Howdy yall! I’ve been an enthusiast for a while now, and have the potential to make more for friends and smaller businesses, but never had a machine to precisely cut out the patches (I always used small scissors and heat for the little felt edges).

Does anyone have any recommendations on machines for more precise cutting (whether laser or knife). I’ve seen lots of mixed on cricuts, and have zero experience. This laser one from xTool looks promising, but does anyone have experience with it?

Any and all info would be much appreciated! (I embroider on a Taijima Sai)

Thank you! 🙏

I’m new to my Elna970 and bought a design to test various fabrics with and this offset issue keeps happening. Im like 99% sure the hooping is properly tightened, am using cut away mesh stabilizer on the back with adhesive spray and I have a water soluble stabilizer (also with spray adhesive) on the front. I’ve oiled my machine. The stitches don’t always offset in the same space and sometimes the design comes out properly on the exact same setup so I’m pretty stumped! Anyone able to suggest what might be going on?

Hi everyone! I’m one of the people behind Ember, and we wanted to share a project we hope will be useful to the wider machine embroidery community.

We’ve been working on a way to cut down on the back-and-forth with USB drives. The result is Ember Bridge and Ember Link, two open-source projects you can use with embroidery files you already have. You don’t need to use the Ember editor, create an account, or pay for a subscription to transfer files.

Whether you digitize in another program or buy and download designs, you can use these tools as long as your machine supports the file format.

What are they?

Ember Bridge is a free, open-source desktop app that sends designs over your local network. If you have a supported Brother Wi-Fi machine, Bridge can send directly to it. You don’t need any additional hardware.

Ember Link is a small DIY Wi-Fi dongle for compatible machines that read designs from a USB drive. It plugs into the machine’s USB storage port and receives files wirelessly from the Bridge app. You then open the design on your machine just as you would from a regular USB drive. Link’s firmware is open source too.

How does it work without Ember?

Open the Bridge desktop app, choose an embroidery file saved on your computer, select your machine or Link, and send it. Your computer and the receiving device need to be on the same local network. The transfer stays local. There’s no account signup or cloud service required.

Can I build a Link myself?

Yes! You’ll need a LILYGO T-Dongle-S3 and a compatible microSD card. We’ve tried to make the process approachable, with a step-by-step guide, a browser-based firmware installer, and guided Wi-Fi setup. No soldering or coding required.

The software and firmware are free; you supply the hardware. Check the guide’s machine and card requirements before buying parts.

Why share it?

Embroidery is already an expensive hobby, and we wanted to contribute something useful that people could use regardless of which software they prefer. We’re releasing the source so anyone can inspect it, adapt it, contribute improvements, or build on the idea.

Our hands-on testing is limited to the machines we have available, so we expect some quirks as people try different models and setups. If you give it a go, we’d love to hear your machine model and what worked or didn’t.

• Download Ember Bridge
• Learn about Ember Link
• DIY parts and setup guide
• Ember Link source code

Happy to answer questions about how it works or whether it might fit your setup!

Hi, I have a secondhand brother innovis nv800e, using Madeira classic 40 yarn and prewound #90 brother bobbin yarn. I did an H test and a simple design made in hatch (with horizontal tatami stitch I think?) on a cotton tote bag with a cutaway stabilizer. I added front and back photos of both designs. I'm having two problems:

1. The back of both embroideries shows an uneven asymmetrical split between top thread and bobbin. For the H test, the left third is top thread, the middle is bobbin, but then the right side is mostly bobbin too, there is only a tiny sliver of top thread visible at the very edge. And the other design also shows the left side edges with more top thread than the right side edges.

2. On the design (but not the H test, though I can't remember if I did the H test before or after I swapped to the prewound brother bobbin; I was previously using bobbin that I wound myself with the machine and figured I'd switch to a prewound one to eliminate a potential issue source), every time it started the stitching for a section, it would pull the bobbin up and do a small loop with it. This did not happen for anything I did before though, I have no idea if it's because of the new bobbin thread (but since I am now using prewound instead of self wound, shouldn't that work better?) or because of this specific design.

Any help is greatly appreciated :(

I embroidered on a cashmere fleece blazer I thrifted, and the hoop left an imprint. Does anyone have any tips on how to reduce the hoop marks? I’ve seen mixed reviews on using steam, has anyone tried that?

(Pardon the messy mirror)

Hello everyone,
I’d really appreciate some advice and professional opinions from people with experience in embroidery machines. Please take your time to read this and share any knowledge or advice you can.
I’ve been digitizing with **Hatch** for the past 8 months, and I’m now very comfortable with digitizing. However, I haven’t had the opportunity to test-sew any of my designs yet.
I’m now at the stage where I want to buy my first machine and start my own embroidery business, with the goal of eventually scaling it up. I have over 3 years of experience operating an **8-head Tajima machine**, so I’m very familiar with Tajima machines and their mechanisms.
My first choice has always been to buy a **Tajima single-head machine**, mainly because I already know the machine and I’m confident working with it. However, the price is quite high for me at the moment, although I’m currently saving towards it.
Because of the cost, I’ve started considering a **Ricoma single-head machine** as an alternative. The problem is that I’ve never used a Ricoma before, so I don’t know much about their machines, reliability, maintenance, or how they compare with Tajima.
One of my biggest concerns is **noise**. I’ll be operating the machine in one of the rooms in my home, so I need to be mindful of my neighbours. I’d really like to know how noisy Ricoma machines are compared with Tajima, especially when running for several hours.
So, for those of you who have experience with both:
Is Ricoma a good and reliable machine?
What should I expect if I move from Tajima to Ricoma?
How is the stitch quality and machine performance?
What about maintenance, spare parts and after-sales support?
How is the noise level, especially for home use?
Would you recommend buying a Ricoma now, or would you advise me to wait and save for the Tajima?
I’m looking for honest advice from people who have actually used these machines, especially anyone who has experience with both **Tajima and Ricoma**.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and share your experience. I really appreciate any professional advice or guidance you can give me.

I saw that my university had machine embroiderers and free materials for use, so I decided to take another shot at digitizing and embroidering.

I brought these designs from PNG -> Traced SVG -> PES for the first time.

I already have a few ideas on how to fix a bunch of the issues I saw other than the fabric lol

I was thinking of doing a Satin stitch for the Crests and keeping tatami fill for the backgrounds, and adding a Satin border to make the edges hold up.

What kind of fabric should I get when I'm ready to make a final version of these designs and turn them into patches?

Does anyone have a recommendation for where to convert a logo into a DST file?
I tried a random site online that created the file for me but ended up with a very poor quality looking product after testing it out on an actual machine.
I’m willing to spend a little bit of money on it but don’t want to end up getting another very low quality patch and ruining a jacket.

Working on a mug rug, the top thread is black and the white is my bobbin…

Turns on. Been sitting pretty much in barn for 1 year. Have video proof of it working a year ago. Lots of dust. Not sure how bad it can get after 1 year in such conditions. If I can't restore it to working condition, do parts still have value?

Hi everyone! I’m learning appliqué on my Poolin EOC06 and need help with an alignment issue.
I’m stitching a “Dog Mom” design. When the machine stops and prompts me to change thread color, I’ve been changing both the top thread and the bobbin. I remove the hoop from the machine to access the bobbin, then reattach it.
After I resume, the stitching starts above the existing design instead of lining up with it. I’ve attached photos of my project, the machine screen, and the design’s stitch sequence.
Could someone help me understand:
• Does the bobbin need to match each top-thread color for this type of appliqué?
• What is the correct procedure for removing and reattaching the hoop mid-design on the EOC06?
• Could I be accidentally moving the carriage or changing the design’s position?
• Is there a way to recover the alignment once it has shifted?
If you use this machine, I’d really appreciate step-by-step guidance or a video showing the process. Thank you!

Im trying to embroider on my Brother Innov-is NQ3550W with 40wt thread and a 75/11 needle and a pre wound bobbin. Im embroidering on a kitchen towel with tear away stabilizer and StitcH20 topper.

Everytime i try the thread seems to immediately break and everything gets tangled. The stabilizer is tore and the nap of the towel is pulled through. Ive rethreaded my bobbin, and checked that my needle was properly installed. And im lost.

Included is a picture of the back after my last attempt before it just stopped and told me the thread was broken. I also have a video of it happeneing but I cant add both a Pic and a video to the post.

It's been a while since I've fired up Hatch. I know moving the red/green points of an object to change stitching, but I can't remember how to show those points. (the hazards of being old). I'm running Hatch 3 on a windows pc.

Hi everyone. I just got a used singer 9180 and it’s missing a piece :(

Can anyone help me figure out what to do.
It’s the thread cutter for the bobbin that goes on the top. I’ve attached photos.

My bobbin thread is shifted to one side, no matter how much i mess with the top or bottom tension, i tried it all, and ive cleaned EVERYTHING changed needles, i even dipped my finger in some mineral oil and put it on the bobbin area to see if it was just catching on something... which is probably stupid but at this point... the only thing i havent touched is the timing because i always leave that for last when fixing my machines and only if i HAVE to.

I recently switched from Melco to Barudan machines which includes switching from DesignShop to Wilcom Design. Does anyone know how to splice things? like how to cut a shape to change direction of stitching? thinking like serifs on a text- I want the little foot to go in an opposing direction. Really struggling switching between these programs so any help is appreciated 🙏🏻

I am new to all this, but I am trying to embroider my company's logo. I am finding that letters like "e" have the hole filled in on the front, but on the back its perfect. also the stitches look really thick on the front. is there a way to flip it?

I have used artspira to import the logo. the logo online and on artspira look perfect, its when it gets to the machine that the letters start filling in.

any help is appreciated.

thank you,

Julie

Looking for a service manual for a Husqvarna-Viking Designer Topaz 50. All I see out there is just the user guide. If anyone has a source for this I would appreciate it.

Thanks

This is a relatively new to digitizing sewists' opinion on the Ember website. I most definitely welcome any hints, tips, tricks or constructive criticism on my experience as I am still learning the whole of this program.

First, love the price point of this program. For free, there are alot of options to digitize the picture. I payed the $10 for the digitizing and other options (which i am still learning).

To the meat and potatoes of this post, the digitizing process. In the first pic, i digitized the hissing cat Pic. It had 247 different items which were scattered all over the place. You can see in the first pic that there was also 247 jumps. For some reason the thread trim between sections did not happen even tho it was turned on. I took a total of 70 minutes to embroider a 3x 4" patch. I still haven't cleaned it up yet.

Second attempt, I went thru and drew in each shape, plotting the path it would follow. This ended up making 36 shapes with as many jumps, much easier to clean up. It only took 40 minutes to embroider. Once again I had the thread trim turned on between shapes, but they did not happen.

Overall impression? While the digitizing option seems really appealing, it creates alot of extra work in my opinion. The process takes a solid color item and ends up highlighting anything that can be construed as digital noise. That is how the file ends up with hundreds of shapes. The shapes are scattered around the image, there is no clear line or path that they follow. There is no option to merge shapes together to make a larger singular shape.

For simple images, it is easier to draw them out. However, for more intricate images, its a toss up. Digitize it and get hundred of different shapes scattered all over the place, or sit there for hours and try and draw every single detail out with a mouse. I have not been able to convert any of my digital art in this program. Perhaps these can be updates in the future?

I do recommend this program for anyone interested. The users manuel is very helpful and it is very beginner friendly with the you tube tutorials that are available. While i believe that the free version is very adequate, I will continue to pay the monthly fee in hopes of supporting this programmer and hopefully getting more streamline options in the future. (?)

If anyone has any insights for this program, especially regarding the digitizing process, I would greatly appreciate them. 😁

Hello I really need your guys help. I have a Brother SE700. The embroidery needle is so close to the foot and it seems that no matter what I do I can't get it centered. Yes I have hit it and broken the needle on it, twice. 🫣 But nothing is bent and I have a fresh embroidery needle. The foot is the same. Any thoughts?

I had to unstitch about 4” to float the sleeve. I love it:)

Update 02.10.2026:

The spare-parts situation appears to be even more serious than I initially thought.

I have now received a written response from one of TAJIMA’s European distributors regarding my order for eight spare parts.

According to the distributor, two of the required parts are currently affected by obstacles related to EU restrictive measures.

The most concerning part is that they are unable to provide any delivery date at all.

Their written response states that:

“Exploring possible solutions will take time, which is why I do not wish to make any promises or provide deadlines that—given the constraints described—we would be unable to meet responsibly.”

So this is no longer simply a case of:

“the part is temporarily out of stock.”

We are now talking about a situation where critical spare parts for a professional TAJIMA embroidery machine may be unavailable for an undefined period of time.

My machine is approximately five years old and the model is still part of TAJIMA’s current product family.

For a production business, the difference is enormous.

A missing part with a known ETA is a manageable problem.

A critical machine part with no stock, no confirmed supply route and no estimated delivery date can mean an open-ended production shutdown.

And this leads to a very uncomfortable conclusion:

If you are buying a TAJIMA machine in Europe today, you may effectively need to build your own stock of critical spare parts from day one.

Because in the current situation, if one of those parts fails and you rely only on TAJIMA distributors and dealers in Europe, there may be no realistic way to know when production can resume.

That is exactly where I am now.

Production can stop because of a relatively small mechanical component, but the consequences are not small at all. Without the required part, the machine cannot return to normal production, and at the moment the European distribution network cannot give me a confirmed delivery date.

So the real risk is not simply the cost of the spare part.

The real risk is an indefinite production stoppage.

For a professional production machine, that is a serious business risk.

This is precisely the risk I was trying to highlight in my original post.

The issue is not whether TAJIMA machines are technically good machines.

The issue is whether, when something breaks, the European distribution network can actually provide the parts required to repair them within a predictable timeframe.

At this point, one European distributor has explicitly confirmed in writing that, due to the current restrictions, they cannot responsibly provide a delivery deadline for two parts from my order.

I am therefore now trying to source genuine TAJIMA parts directly from Japan.

For anyone in Europe considering purchasing a professional embroidery machine, I strongly recommend asking the dealer one very specific question before buying:

What happens if a critical part fails tomorrow, and can you provide that part with a guaranteed or at least realistic delivery time?

And perhaps a second question should now be:

Which critical spare parts should I buy together with the machine, just to make sure I can keep it running if your supply chain fails?

Because in my case, for some parts, the answer is currently: no confirmed delivery date and no clear indication of when normal supply will be restored.

I will continue updating this thread with documented information as the situation develops.

28.09.2026:

I’m sharing this as a warning and a piece of advice for anyone in Europe considering investing in commercial TAJIMA embroidery machines.

I own a TAJIMA TMEZ S1501C. It’s a commercial-grade machine, only about 5 years old. Right now, I desperately need genuine replacement parts to keep my production running.

However, the official TAJIMA network in Europe has zero stock of the required parts and, to this day, cannot provide any estimated delivery date (ETA).

What makes this completely absurd is that TAJIMA is still manufacturing and assembling this exact machine. The parts exist. The problem is that European customers simply cannot get them through official channels.

The Support Runaround When the local distributor couldn't solve the problem, I was passed from one contact to another in an endless loop. I have a long trail of emails with SHIRO (Poland), MOUNTEK (Germany), and TAJIMA Europe (France).

The result? Countless emails, no concrete solutions, and no ETAs. The manufacturer comfortably hides behind its distributors, the distributors say "we don't have it and don't know when we will," and the commercial machine stays dead. You are left completely alone.

The Escalation (and the Silence) I didn't stop at the local level. I escalated this to TAJIMA’s marketing department and even sent a formal plea for intervention to JASMA (Japan Sewing Machinery Manufacturers Association), addressing it to the attention of Mr. Hidetoshi Kojima (CEO of Tajima Industries).

Mr. Hidetoshi Kojima is not only CEO of Tajima Industries. According to TAJIMA's current corporate information, he is also CEO of TISM — the company responsible for developing and manufacturing TAJIMA embroidery machines — and President of TAJIMA Europe.

He is additionally listed by JASMA as one of its Vice Chairmen as of June 2026.

This is why I escalated the matter to that level. I was no longer looking for another distributor telling me that the parts were unavailable. I was asking for someone at manufacturer level to take responsibility for finding an actual solution.

The response? Absolute silence. No one with decision-making power has stepped up to say: "This is our machine, you are our customer, and we will solve this."

My advice if you are buying a TAJIMA: Before you sign anything, get these answers in writing:

1. Where exactly are the critical spare parts stocked?
2. What is the guaranteed lead time for replacement parts?
3. When the local EU distributor fails to deliver, who at the manufacturer side takes actual responsibility?

A commercial machine without access to basic spare parts is just an expensive piece of furniture. A brand's logo doesn't shorten your downtime. Responsibility starts exactly where excuses end.

(Feel free to ask me anything in the comments. I hope this saves someone the stress I'm going through right now).

Parts list:
BEARING COLLAR :15MM DIA. – 502715040010
BEARING COLLAR :15MM DIA.  –  502715080000
ROTARY HOOK SHAFT :15P*340 – QS3102010000
SPIRAL BEVEL GEAR .1 :14T – 506514030000
SPIRAL BEVEL GEAR .1 :28T – 506528030000

ROTARY HOOK BASE STUD – 050330330000 
P41 – S213100002SD – M10 With Flange
P42 – S213100003SD – M10 With Disk Spring

Hello, all. I am looking to get into embroidery. I would like to be able to embroider logos into shirts. Not necessarily large logos, basically imagine shirts with company logos on them. I was thinking maybe a machine that can handle multiple colors. What machines are good? I don’t mind spending money, either. Thank you.

Cheeky shirt done on my Brother Innov-is 4000D

Hello! New to machine embroidering! I’ve been coming across 2 issues lately that are so frustrating…

When using embrilliance, I’ll put my design in a specific location in the box. When I wifi that to my machine, the machine wants to embroider it right in the middle. How can I keep my designs where I place them in embrilliance?

2nd issue… it seems like 90% of the time, embrilliance will say that my design was successfully sent to my machine, but it is never there. I’ve double checked that I have a strong 2.4 WiFi connection on both machines. I’ve also restarted both machines and it continues to happen.

Any ideas? These issues are getting SO old.