I hope someone can figure this out for me. I have the Brother PC 8500, with PE design ver. 6 software. I don’t have much experience creating original designs, but I’m working on it, very part-time. Several times, after saving a design and writing to card, I am getting an error message that says “can’t use this card” when I put it in the machine. I had it checked (twice) at an embroidery machine store, and nothing is wrong with the card itself. It seemed the error was that the design extended beyond the hoop dimensions, or was improperly oriented. The measurements of the design are well within the frame of the selected hoop parameters.  I resized my Photostitch design by about 1 inch in width and height and it accepted and stitched out fine. I need to add an applique frame for this design but now can’t get the machine to accept the card with the pattern.  Any ideas? Thanks ahead of time, - Libby S.

Hi Libby,

If you have checked and the design fits within the hoop area and the hoop itself is the correct size for your machine then I think you might find that you have exceeded the stitch limit for your machine for a single design.  From memory the 8500 had a stitch limit of under 50000 stitches ( I am not sure of the exact number) and as Photo-stitch is quite stitch intensive you may find that even though your original design was under the limit that the new applique frame you have added just puts you over the stitch limit. That is what I would check first.  I hope that works for you.

Kind regards
Carolyn Keber
Tutorials for Embird and PE Design

I marked a cotton batiste christening gown with air erase purple marker. I have it soaking in cool water, haven’t ironed it, there are gray spots where the markings were! How can I get them out?? Help! Thanks so much, - Kathy

Dear Kathy;

Whoops! That’s awful, I have no idea why that happened…but I do know that some air erase markers are not meant to be soaked out at all.  Some of them just have to disappear on their own, and depending on the humidity in the air, that could be as long as 2 weeks! There is an eraser for air erase pens that takes the marks out in moments, they are made by Elize, a Japanese company. I tried to find you a source for that, but can’t seem to find any other than direct wholesale sources on the net. I’d try using a little soap and warm water on those gray spots, but what it sounds like has happened is that the pen has actually removed the color of the fabric reverting it back to the original gray goods color. Maybe one of our savvy readers will have a fix for you…keep checking the Secrets blog to see.

Maybe it would be possible to put more embroidery or trim on those areas?

Good luck!
Evy
A Bit of Stitch

I am looking for a temporary adhesive for sewing (won’t gum up the needle) that can be painted on rather than sprayed.  Is there such a product?  A lot of the applique pieces I use are small and the spray blows them around and gets on the wrong side of the material.  Thanks for any help. - Sandy

Hi Sandy!

I don’t know of any temporary adhesives that would be okay to sew through other than the ones we normally use for embroidery work. Aleene’s Tack-It Over & Over is a pressure sensitive glue that may be repositioned. It comes in a bottle and may be brushed on, but it is not really intended to be used with sewing…so I couldn’t recommend that, although you might wish to try it.

What I do when I’m spraying small parts and pieces that want to fly away with the force of  the spray is to coat a piece of cardstock with a good layer of temporary spray adhesive, then I can lightly press my small pieces down on the cardstock, wrong sides up and safely spray the backs with temporary spray adhesive. The adhesive doesn’t seem to cling to the right sides at all, making this a fast and easy “fix” for me!

Another product you might be interested in is Clear Fuse ‘n Stick by Hoop-it-All, Inc. This is actually a stabilizer that can be used for applique as it is fusible (with an iron) on one side and pressure sensitive (temporary adhesive) on the other. Check it out at www.hoopitall.com. You’ll find it under stabilizers.

I hope this helps!

Evy
A Bit of Stitch

Embird Seminars in Townsville, Queensland, Australia

I have a Viking Designer 1 machine.  I’ve always downloaded in pes, then converted to shv.  Somewhere recently I read DST is the preferred format to convert to shv.  When I’ve used DST and opened in Embird, the colors are really crazy - pink moose!   And the colors listed to use are the same crazy colors.  Is there a fix?  Thanks - Shirley

Hi Shirley

There is an easy “fix” for this problem and even for the designs that you have converted to DST. But firstly it means reverting to your original pes file and deleting those badly colored converted files. This is what you need to do to keep the original colors.

In Embird manager go to Options on the Menu Bar and place a check mark beside “Support Palette Files” (*edr*rgb,*txt).  Once you have checked this option then convert your files to your preferred format. This will create an EDR file (Color information file) for your design and as long as you keep that EDR file (of the same name) in the same folder as your converted design the embroidery file will keep its original colors.

I hope that helps. Good luck with your converting.

Kind regards

Carolyn Keber
Tutorials for Embird 2006, Embird StudioV4, Sfumato, Cross Stitch, Font Engine and PE Design

Husqvarna have now created a software update to enable computers installed with Windows Vista to run their 3D software.  The software update can be downloaded from this link:  3D Software Update

Hi Carolyn

I am using the full Husqvarna 3D program and have a D1, still using floppy disks.  I have Windows XP Home at the moment, but I need a new computer.  This will be with Vista.  Is the Husqvarna 3D program compatible with Vista?  Will there be any problems when I have all my saved designs transferred to the new computer?  Thanks - Noelle

Dear Noelle,

If you get a new computer running Vista you will NOT be able to run 3D on it as it is not Vista compatible in any way.   Your only choice is to get the 4D software as Embird is not compatible with Vista yet either but they are working on an upgrade.  VSM will not be making an upgrade available for 3D as they are ensuring a demand for the 4D software.  They did the same with the change from Windows 98 to XP.  The Version 5 software became obsolete once XP was introduced thus guaranteeing sales of the VIP software.

It is quite easy to get an external floppy drive to add to the computer for the D1 disks but you will still need the 3D software to create disks for the D1.

If you want to run 3D you can either put XP on the new computer or divide the drive so that you can run the two operating systems side by side.

Carolyn Duncan
Author of Pfaff, Husqvarna & Sewing Tutorials
Sew What Designs

I’ve read several tutorials by Hope Yoder and she talks about using English cotton netting.  I have asked our local sewing store for English cotton netting but they do not know the material. What is English cotton netting and where can it be purchased? Thanks - Connie

Dear Connie,

Below are the answers to your questions regarding English Cotton Netting.

English Cotton Netting ~ is imported from England and is 40-42″ wide, there are also different weights of material (we are spoilt I know!). This fabric is used to create the lovely heirloom effects in my embroidery design collections and patterns. Create your own lace motifs using this wonderful fabric. Please note this fabric must be pre-shrunk as it shrinks at 6″ in width.

Pre-Shrinking English Cotton Netting ~ Dip in hot water, wring out excess water and dunk in straight liquid starch (found in the grocery store next to spray starch). Fill a bowl with just enough starch to cover fabric. Swish around and wring out excess starch. Place netting on an open bath towel and roll up and squeeze out excess moisture. Let air dry until 80% of the moisture is gone and iron dry. Netting is perfectly stabilized and ready to use with Hope’s Heirloom Embellishment embroidery designs.

Thank you,

Hope Yoder
Designs by Hope Yoder Inc.

(You can purchase English cotton netting directly from Hope Yoder. It is sold pre-cut in 1/2 yard increments for $14.95. Please email us via this Ask the Experts link if you are interested and we will pass your message onto Hope.)

Angie’s Embroidery Designs has a new Directional Stitches Sequencing tutorial for the Pfaff Creative Vision machines containing 14 step-by-step sequencing exercises using the 16-way connecting stitches. Learn how to create Maxi continuous borders combining 9mm decorative stitches and directional stitches. The connecting stitches have been positioned precisely to follow the contours of the chosen stitch.