Sunday, February 10, 2013

Monogram Magic: Playing with Embroidery Software

My New Monogram: Destined for my Sewing Machine Dust Covers
Since I had nothing better to do this afternoon (shh!), I've been playing in my Bernina embroidery software, and this is what I've come up with to decorate a dust cover for my new sewbaby.  Isn't that fun?  It's big; the design measures approximately 7 1/2" wide by 8 1/2" tall, and it has over 50,000 stitches.  It will be the first embroidery design that I stitch out with the Jumbo Hoop I bought for my B 750 QE sewbaby.

Original Bernina Design for the 830 LE
I didn't digitize this from scratch -- I started with a Bernina embroidery design for the 830 LE machine that you can download here for free, and then I deleted the "830," copied and pasted a few swirlies and deleted a few others, and then combined the Bernina design with an enlarged "R" monogram from Embroidery Arts' Gothic 10 collection, which you can purchase here.  I think this particular late nineteenth century leaf and vine monogram style is perfect, because the little satin-stitched leaves on the inside of the monogram look almost exactly like the little satin-stitched leaves in the upper right section of the Bernina design.  I wanted my new design to look just as seamless as the original, as though the monogram and the swirly background graphics had been digitized together.

Gothic 10 Monogram Collection from Embroidery Arts, here
I used my software to remove overlapping stitches, to change the flower at top right from black to red, and to resequence the order of stitching to my liking, and then I printed out a full-size template of the design that I'll be able to use for placement. 

I have some other sewing that I've committed to finish up by the end of this week, plus I've got the carpool tag mini quilt and Princess Petunia's Dresden Plate quilt vying for my attention, so I won't be starting this new project right away.  At least I've got my design modified and ready to stitch out.

Seriously, I have LOTS that I should be doing right now.  I can't believe it's after 3 o'clock already. 

Enjoy what's left of your weekend!