In 2020, the global sewing and embroidery machine market was worth $5687.6 million. The demands in the fashion industry drive this value as embroidery trends are on the rise.
Wear your masks and try to walk down the street or relax at a lovely coffee shop, then observe people. Look at their clothes, and you’ll see an embroidered patch or two. Have you ever wondered how designers can embroider such intricate designs?
These patches could be of hand-stitching or even computerized by machines. How exactly do computerized embroidery machines work? Keep on reading to get an overview of the automated embroidery process.
The embroidery machine will be working on details that first need creative design. The designer can have manual drawing or design through computer designing software. The operator or designer can scan the illustration to digitize it.
There are types of embroidery software with existing designs to copy or alter.
Digitizing is translating a design into a machine language an embroidery machine reads. The file should be in a format that the device can understand, such as MB format.
Different embroidery programs use other native file formats. So, it’s essential to know what the machine needs in particular. After that, the operator feeds the file to your embroidery machine through a USB cable.
The machine loads the desired design from the computer. The operator then selects the appropriate hoop and the required colored threads.
Hoops hold the cloth in place on embroidery machines. Hooping is the technique of stretching the fabric onto the machine’s embroidery hoop.
Before stitching, the textile must attach to the embroidery hoop and stabilize. The design will not line up well if the operator disregards this. The machine then begins embroidering the preloaded design by pushing a few buttons.
Embroidery machines use stabilizers to keep the fabric in position while stitching. Stabilizers are often rigid sheets placed above or below the embroidered cloth.
The hoop moves along a path determined by the machine’s software while embroidering.
Numbers in the software determine which colors lay in which order. The machine has more than one needle, each assigned to a number. Each of these needles also has a different colored thread.
The operator fills in the number at each stage to show the machine how the stitching should be. It will show the embroidery machine the preferred stitching schedule. The operator double-checks the hooping or framing before starting the process.
The operator then turns on the machine and leaves it going until the stitching finishes. The best sewing machine can run in a set field after feeding the needle numbers into the program. The embroidery machine will not work outside this field and will stitch in this order until done.
It’s crucial to track the process to avoid errors and produce the right patch with an accurate design.
Embroidered patches are becoming more common for some advantages over printing alternatives. How the colors of threads go with intricate designs sparks curiosity.
We hope you learned more about the technical process of computerized embroidery and how to make custom embroidery.
Do you wish to learn more about the apparel industry? Scan through our blog for related articles.