Tips & Techniques

Using the Plus Hoop To Stitch Out Designs

First, print out the design. To do this, you will have to open the Customizing program. Make sure you know if it is horizontal or vertical design to choose the proper orientation. Then go to "File" and "Plus Hoop" and P1. Find the first part of the design and click on it. This makes it land in the correct place on the display screen. Then back to "file, plus hoop, P2 if there is one and find that part of the design. Then back to "file, plus hoop, P3" and click on that one. Now the whole design is on the screen. You must click on "combine." You should be able to see the whole design. Click on "3D" to check it out. Now, you can print out the design.

You will notice that the template you received with your plus hoop has a grid on it. You can lay that template on top of your printout and the grid on the template matches perfectly with the grid on the printout. You will see the heavy vertical and horizontal marks cross each other at the center of the template where the hole in the template is. The outside vertical and horizontal lines on the printout will show in the slots on the template. You could cut the printout around that rectangular grid and tape it under the template and use that for placement of your design on the garment. Or you could use a template pencil or a Vis a Vis marker to draw the just outline of the design onto the template with the design underneath the template. This easily washes off later. Using the template, mark placement lines for that design on your garment.

Put your programmable card in the reader/writer and bring up the reader/writer program. Find all parts of the plus hoop design to put them on that screen and then click on "write to card". After completion, insert the card in your sewing machine.

At your machine, with your fabric hooped or using the non hooping method, slide your hoop into P1 after attaching it. Choose the design that represents P1 and start the sewing process. When the first part is done, choose the next part of the design and slide your hoop to the next position. Make sure that you always have the design part picked and then move the hoop to that position. Some designs only have P1 and P3.