An embroidery machine is a special machine designed to perform a single function – embroidery! Machine embroidery is surprisingly simple to do!
In order to embroider, you will need to have the image prepared with special software and the file type you will need depends on the machine that is performing the embroidery. We have a Babylock EMP-6, which uses .PES and .DST file types. These isn’t the kind of files you can throw on a simple file-converter – you essentially have to manually trace your image in stitches using special software. The software we use is called Embrilliance, which is available to our DIYers. Don’t worry, we can show you how to use it – it’s not quite as intimidating as it might look.
The cost for using the embroidery machine is simple:
- Material (t-shirt, fabric, etc.) – purchase from us or bring in your own. We can get a ton of shirts for you that can range from ~$3.25 to ~$6 each, although polos can run ~$6 – ~$40 depending on brand, plus shipping if necessary.
- Thread – $0.25 per 1000 stitches, rounded up (feel free to bring your own thread). Once your file’s loaded on to the machine, it’ll tell you how many stitches it’s using. Use as many colors as you like – no extra charge.
- Stabilizer / Backing – $1 per sheet. Stabilizer is a layer of material that can reduce fabric “bouncing,” letting stiches go in cleaner.
- Machine Time / Help – $5 per hour
For example, a standard logo over the breast pocket runs around 5,000 stitches, which can be $3-$5. Like all materials necessary for making things, feel free to bring your own thread. This uses machine embroidery thread. Thread not designed for embroidery machines may more easily snap at the high speeds the machine is capable of.
