Free Embroidery Designs

I Just got my Brother 270D emboidery machine for Christmas so I am new to the world of embroidering. I have purchased and downloaded a few fonts so that I can use them on my machine. I put them on the memory card and put the card in my machine, but here’s my problem. Each letter is a different design on the memory card. So how do I combine the letters to spell a name so that my machine can embroider the name all at once? Example: I want to embroider the name "Olivia" but the O is one design, then the "L" is another, etc. I can’t do one letter at a time or else I’ll never get the spacing right! When you use the four fonts that are on the machine, you can type in all the letters you want to use and then it embroiders them all as one design. How can I do this with fonts that I’ve downloaded onto my memory card?

You need a program that will allow you to merge designs. Here are a few that have good reputations:
http://embird.com/
http://www.designersgallerysoftware.com/products/product.asp?Product_ID=EDG-CW
http://www.buzztools.com/products/software_wizard/sw_be.asp

Embird is probably the most used of these programs and the least expensive (I think).
Embird also offers a free trial. It’s fairly easy to use, and there are tons of tutorials and yahoo groups that offer support.

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Since you’re new to the hobby, I’d like to recommend a couple of sites to you
www.artisticthreadworks.com has the best embroidery forum members on the net. I’ve been a member there since I started out with my first 270D. The ladies and gents there have answered every question I’ve ever had.
www.nitasplace.com Nita O’keefe has some of the most beautiful embroidery designs online and she’s a wealth of knoweledge. She’s a sweet heart and is always willing to answer a question.
www.sewforum.com This is a great community of textile artists and hobbyist. They have several great forums that where you can get quick answers to questions, free embroidery designs (I share designs there), and a great forum to show off your finished products. Sewforum is a free site.

I would also like to know what embroidery software I can use for different sewing machines as well.
Well, I do not want to spend over $1000.00. My husband might have a heart attack if he knew that I said that, but I really want a good one that will sew and embroider.
It is so hard for me to choose a Best Answer because you have all been so helpful.

I have the Brother 270d. It is a little work horse. It does bother embroidery and sewing. It comes with a set of built in designs, including some Disney patterns. You will want to get the PE Basic so you can embroidery patterns that you download offline. You can find some sites with nice free ones – they are samples to entice you to buy their sets. I really like www.bunnycup.com (sorry for the tangent).

You do not need embroidery software to use the Brother 270d. You can begin embroidering and sewing right away.

You will want to get other necessities (stabilizer, thread, and maybe some more needles). The machine comes with a set of needles to get you going though.

The types of stabilizer and thread you use does not matter, though some are easier to work with than others. Do not let the price shock you – I use discount coupons from Jo Ann’s and Hobby Lobby to get mine. The spending in this department will be high initially! Again, this is why for a beginner I recommend the Brother 270d.

Costco has it on sale for $389.99 and it comes with the PE Basic. Wal-Mart sells this machine for $350. I got mine from my local Brother dealer for $500, but they threw in 1 year in store maintenance and free classes for life.

I hope this helps. True the other machines can do more, but you are paying more than double to price (and some of them do not sew). For a beginner, this is the best machine at the best price! Good luck!

Hello. I’m new to embroidery. I just purchased the Brother 270D. I have the Amazing Box 2, and some designs I’ve downloaded from the internet. I’m fine with the designs and understand how they work and how to get them to the machine.

I get confused when it comes to fonts. I see fonts that you buy for $10-15. I see free fonts. However, it looks like the files are individual for each letter. How/What do I need to type words and transfer it as a pattern to my machine.

For instance, if I want to type "Happy Birthday" is there a program that will allow me to load fonts that I’ve purchased or downloaded for free that will stitch it and allow me to send the words "Happy Birthday" to the machine. I’m really not interested in getting into digitizing. I just want something basic that will let me type and embroider random words. I looked at Embroidery Fonts Plus, but it looks like you are limited to their fonts. Would Embroidery Magic I work or am I limited to their fonts as well?

ANY help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Brandon

You would have to send individuall letter fonts in two ways.

1) You would need a simple program that would allow you to combine the designs into the words happybirthdayy and then you could save it as a new design and then send it to the machine.

2) You would have to send the design to the machine individually and then hope you line up the fabric each time in the hoop in the correct position.

Embird basic is a program that will do that and allow you some minor modifications to a design but it is priced at $144.
You can download a demo of it and see if it will do what you want it to do here: http://embird.com/sw/embird/features.htm
There was a issue with it if you were running Windows Vista, not sure if they have fixed that issue.

I would suggest finding a Yahoo group for your machine and see if anyone else there has any other suggestions for programs they might be using to combine designs without a big expense to you