eClass: Digitizing Series Webinar
Professional Digitizing Series: What They Left Out of Your Software Manual, Levels 1, 2, 3 & 4
Each level consists of six 1-hour sessions
Course fee includes pdf handouts, exercises, artwork, and applicable designs for class attendees only
Minimum 10 paying students per series (repeat students can attend but don’t count towards total)
Your digitizing software manual will teach you what the buttons and menus do. It may have even come with a tutorial to walk you through creating a simple design. What it didn’t teach you was the theory of digitizing. When do you use underlay and what purposes does it serve? Should you change your default stitch length and density settings? If so when, where, and why? What is the proper sequence for building a design? How do you avoid gaps in embroidery? If these are your questions, then this course is for you!
What this series is
This is a series of non-software specific lessons on digitizing theory. The concepts will work with most all current embroidery digitizing systems. While it is geared for the beginner, you will gain more from the sessions if you have digitized and sewn out at least one design. Exercises will be provided for you to work on between lessons to help you solidify your understanding of the topics. These exercises are optional but are highly recommended.
What this series isn’t
These sessions are not designed to teach you how to use your particular brand of software. Please refer to your manual or one of the E-Club users groups.
Who should take this class
Although you will get the most out of this series if you are comfortable with your computer and have done a bit of digitizing, this series starts with the basics and is geared for a total novice digitizer. Some people have taken this class while considering the purchase of digitizing software to help them make a better buying decision. It is also a good class for serious embroiderers even if they do not intend to digitize. The more you know about how a well-digitized design should be constructed, the more discriminating you can be in your design selection. By learning how designs are “built”, you’ll feel more confident about editing designs to make them more appropriate for your project. Editing not only extends your current library of designs but allows you to maximize your creativity without having to digitize from scratch.
FAQs
- What kind of software do I need?
Any digitizing software will work. Auto-digitizing will also work as long as you also have ability to do manual punch.
- Will this work with auto-digitizing software?
Yes. At some point, you will want to adjust the stitch parameters of an auto-digitized design. This course will teach you how to make intelligent choices as well as how to look for problems in an auto-digitized design to make it more embroiderable and artistic.
- Do I need auto-digitizing software?
Absolutely not.
- What kind of machine do I need?
Any embroidery machine that you can send your design to and sew it out.
- I just got my machine. Should I take this class?
If you are new to machine embroidery and especially if you are also a relative novice with a computer, I recommend waiting until you are familiar with your machine and sewing designs. If you’ve been embroidering for at least three months on a regular basis, are comfortable with your machine and computer, and have played with the software, you have a good foundation for this course.
- Do I need this if I’m taking the E-Classes for my digitizing software?
If you want to learn professional digitizing you need to take classes from a professional digitizer not a software educator. Lindee has 15 years experience as a digitizer, has a degree in art, has won awards for digitizing excellence and has taught intensive 3-day seminars on digitizing. This series is based on those seminars plus other advanced classes.
- Do I need anything else?
Well, obviously you need a computer and all the necessary supplies to sew and test your designs. A graphics tablet is nice but not required. If you’re thinking about getting one, I recommend one no smaller than 8×6”. I also recommend getting a USB version over Bluetooth wireless. I personally use a mouse for most of my digitizing.
Level 1—Digitizing Basics, Part 1
Session 1: Orientation & Introduction
- Digitizing: what it is and isn’t
- What you need to know/learn
- The digitizer’s responsibility
- When/what to digitize
- Home software vs commercial software
- What about auto digitizing
- File formats
Session 2: Stitch Basics
- Stitch Length
- Stitch direction vs Sewing Direction
- The 3 basic stitch types
- Stitch attributes
Session 3: Density & Compensation
- How to control and manipulate density for quality embroidery
- Why the defaults may not be the best setting
- How to offset the distortion of “push and pull” through drawing your shapes and applying compensation
Session 4: Underlay
- Importance & purpose of underlay
- Types of underlay
- Auto vs manual underlay
Session 5: Pathing
- Where to start and how to navigate through your design
- Why color-sorting is not necessarily a good thing
Session 6: Putting it all together
Review, working through a design, troubleshooting design problems
Level 2: Digitizing Basics, Part 2
Level 1 prepared you with the fundamentals, now lets put it into practice!
Prerequisite: Level 1
Session 1: Artwork for Digitizing
- Types of artwork (vector vs. raster)
- How to choose
- How to prepare
- What’s best
- Where to get it
Session 2: Attributes of Quality Embroidery
- Criteria for judging embroidery
Session 3. Corners & Curves
- How to plan stitch angles around curves and corners
- Shortening
- Options for digitizing corners
Session 4: Digitizing Letters
- When to use keyboard lettering
- When to use auto-font digitizing
- When to do it from scratch (actually digitizing letters will be covered in Level 3)
- Font terminology
- Font selection & preparation for TrueType font auto-digitizing
Session 5: Advanced stitch effects
- Motifs
Fill patterns
Carved satins
Gradient fills
Feathered edges
Session 6: Putting it all together
Review, working through a design, troubleshooting design problems
Level 3: Lettering & Specialty Techniques
Now that you’ve gotten the basics down, lets put your new-found skills to work and learn some more necessities plus some fun specialty techniques. This course will cover digitizing letters, appliqué, 3-D appliqué, fringe, puffy foam, cutwork, twin and wing needle work, and an introduction to lace basics.
Prerequisite: Level 2
Level 4: Artistic Digitizing Techniques
This series will focus on adding realism to your designs. We’ll look at embroidery from a more artistic perspective, discussing composition, light and shadow, creating a focal point, working with color, and techniques to bring your design to life.
Prerequisite: Level 2 with Level 3 highly recommended
Related Posts
Notice: The copyright of the article eClass: Digitizing Series Webinar is owned by Lindee Goodall. Permission to republish eClass: Digitizing Series Webinar in print or online must be granted by the author in writing. Here are articles I have written that you can freely use as long as you retain my bio info.
