Using Software to Fix Annoying Embroidery Problems

Several annoying commercial embroidery problems can be fixed right from the Sierra Stitch ERA Liberty software.

Three most common embroidery issues and the simple adjustments that can save you time, headaches and money!

Faced with annoying quality issues in commercial embroidery, one of the first places to go is to your Sierra Stitch ERA Liberty software. You can solve most problems by applying a few basic tweaks.

When making changes in any design, it is always good to open the file, create a copy and retain the original. Only use the copy to make changes. This is an excellent practice to keep your work safe, allowing you to backtrack easily in case the changes do not have the chosen effect.

Nothing is more frustrating than having to take a commercial embroidery design back to the beginning by retracing your steps. You can always delete the copy if things get out of hand!

Three standard quality problems, as well as how Stitch ERA Liberty software can be part of the solution:

Stitch ERA Liberty Embroidery Software

Problem #1: Small Letters Bulge after Embroidery

Bulging is common in keyboard lettering, especially where the stitches changes direction. The easiest solution is to use a slightly lighter density on a specially digitized font. Stitch ERA Liberty contains keyboard lettering designed specifically for a clean appearance in small type.  There will be times when they do not sew as cleanly as custom-designs fonts, but they are better than larger letters scaled down to ½” or less.

Look through the lettering library in Stitch ERA Liberty, and you should find fonts listed as “small” or other evidence they are for ½”-or-smaller text.

Problem #2: Embroidery Fill Does Not Meet the Outline

If your fill does not adequately meet the outline, Stitch ERA Liberty can help in several ways:

  • Change the direction of the stitch
  • Add a little compensation for substrate pull
  • Reshape the object

If there are only a few missed areas in a simple outline with a running stitch, fix them by moving the stitches around.

For stretchy fabric, satin columns or fill areas may not align because the stitches are pulling on the substrate. What happens is that the object looks smaller in the direction of the fabric. Correct this by adding some pull compensation to the fill object in the direction of the embroidery. Set the compensation in Stitch ERA Liberty to “fixed” (or “absolute” in some programs).

The pull of the substrate is usually in the direction of the stitches, so changing the stitch direction could help registration problems.

Problem #3: Stitches Do Not Cover Properly

When embroidery stitches do not cover the substrate properly, there are three possible fixes in Stitch ERA Liberty