This method is free, but requires some technical know-how.
First, youâre going to need to install Processing.
Then, follow the given instructions to install the PEmbroider library for for Processing.
Open up Processing, and copy and paste in this script. I canât write Processing code, but I modified this example.
import processing.embroider.*;
PEmbroiderGraphics E;
PShape mySvgImage;
void setup() {
size(500, 500);
noLoop();
E = new PEmbroiderGraphics(this, width, height);
String outputFilePath = sketchPath("myfile.pes");
E.setPath(outputFilePath);
PShape mySvgImage = loadShape("myfile.svg");
E.fill(0,0,0);
E.stroke(0,0,0);
E.strokeWeight(1);
E.hatchSpacing(2);
E.setStitch(5, 15, 0);
E.hatchMode(E.CROSS);
E.shape(mySvgImage, 0, 0, 500, 500);
//E.optimize();
E.visualize();
//E.endDraw();
}
void draw() {
;
}
In the Processing toolbar, go to Sketch > Show Sketch Folder. In here, create a folder called data/
and then drop your SVG file into this folder. Rename myfile.svg
in the script to point to its filename, and change myfile.pes
to change what the outputted file will be called.
A few things you can tweak about this script:
hatchSpacing
controls how close together the lines are. Iâve found that 2
is usually pretty good.
- In the line that says
E.shape
, the first two numbers control which coordinate the shape starts and ends at. The next two control the dimensions of the shape: right now itâs a 500 x 500 square, but weâll change that in a moment.
Run the script in Processing, and look at the output. Itâll be square-ish, and if your original SVG wasnât square, that means itâll be distorted. Change the third and fourth numbers in E.shape
to give it the right shape, continuing to re-run the script until it looks right.
Once youâre happy, uncomment the lines that say E.optimize()
and E.endDraw()
. optimize
optimizes the output, but this can take several minutes. endDraw
actually saves your file, which will be outputted to the âsketch folderâ from earlier.
Run the script again. When the preview window with the shape pops up, youâll know that the outputted file is in the sketch folder. You can now load that .pes
file onto a USB stick and have your machine embroider it.