We have found a "new" way to see how well the stabilizers and methods you are using are working with so that your designs look GREAT without any off outlines, puckering, cupping or warping. This is a TEST - Only a Test - but if You and your stabilizers pass - You will have great looking designs. And if your methods and stabilizers don't pass - you can just try again - Till you get it right.

I think and recommend that we should test stitch all designs every time that we stitch-out any new design for the first time. With testing we get to see how the colors work out and whether we have used the right stabilizers and methods. After the test stitching - we can easily see if the outlines are off and if all the parts line-up - BUT - we don't know if the fault is in the design itself or in the stabilizing. This is where our New "stabilizing test" is really useful. It can show us if we have used the right stabilizers and methods. It's real easy - just baste a "picture " around the design. And when you are finished stitching - you can easily see if the basting stitch is still straight or if the design stitching has pulled it in - in some places and made the straight basting picture no longer straight. If it is not straight - then the conclusion has to be that either you used the wrong stabilizer for this fabric and design or that you didn't use enough or in the right way (method).

And conversely - If the basting stitch is still straight and the outlines are off or certain parts don't line up - then the conclusion has to be that the stabilizers and methods used are OK - And the problem is the fault of the design. ( Of course in any test we need to make sure that everything is working properly and that we are using the right needle, have the right tension settings and ect.)

Please let me know what you think about the "stabilizing test" above and if you tried it - and what the results were - I think is is a great idea - I wish that I could take the credit for it - but Sandy gets all the credit for this - But I can take credit for writing this and passing a good idea along. - I hope.

Our designer and digitizer, Sandy Carter creates all our machine design patterns and takes the time to ensure that they will sew out easily and still be unique, distinctive and dimensional. Our patterns can be sewn with all home and commercial machines. The pictures of our designs on our web pages can't show all their beauty - that is why we have free machine embroidery designs files to download so you can sew out the designs to see the quality and how well they stitch out on your own clothes or fabrics. Many of the patterns in the new collections have free embroidery designs samples to download, so you can stitch some of our free designs on your machine and see the quality of our embroidered designs today. You can see all of our designs at our web site >

http://www.digitizingemb.cn  and get more embroidery help also.

Terry at digitizingemb

Email me at ersonName>No1digitizing@gmail.comersonName>

Hi Terry,

possibly you might remember me. In the early 2000s I started embroidery, at that time as home embroider just with one Artista 180 and I am still member of Artista list at Quiltropolis and have been active on the Artista-Adventure list until the day I steped into emb biz.
Well, as you will remember, the "new" stabilizing test is not that new. I don't no remember, who talked about it initially and on which list, most probably it was you or Sandy. I tried out that method at that time and it is definitely a good method to test out things, but during all the years I also learned, that some situationss I can't avoid pushing as I would like to do.
In some cases another much more stronger stabilizer than I use (e.g. Polymesh for Jersey, Polo etc) might avoid moving the fabric but what about the person wearing the garment? Often such stabilized designs scratch and don't flew naturally, whereas when used a lighter and softer stabilzier is used, this issues don't show up.
Attached  is a sample where I take the soft fabric and some possible push into account during digitizing: You may notice that the the vertical columns of the outer shield are not straight punched. This is due to the fact that the original stitch out onf Polopiqué "flattens" the fabric, even it's only lettering. Here is the situation that there is the horizontal and curved lettering on top resp. on the bottom of the inner shield. The areas on left and right are without stitches and the fabric is not "flattened". Possibly I could have used leight Tatami in fabric's color to avoid that the fabric "pulls" in, but the customer did not want to have any stitches on the navy background. I think, this proves, that the mentioned method will work for compact designs but not for designs with explained "problem zones".What do you think or is there a better way?

BTW, I attached the jpg since I could't manage to paste it into the post like you did. How does that work?