Guide
Choosing a picture that stitches well
Thread comes in solid colours and every stitch has a minimum size, so some pictures turn into beautiful embroidery and others turn into mush. Here's how to tell, and how to fix the difficult ones.
Updated
Easy, medium and hard
| Picture | How it stitches | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Logos and clip art | Excellent | Set colours to the number in the art |
| Cartoons and stickers | Excellent | Keep the outlines; they become satin borders |
| Line drawings | Good | Thick lines sew better than hairlines |
| Watercolours and paintings | Fair | Fewer colours give a cleaner look |
| Photos of pets and people | Fair to good | Use the Pet or Portrait preset, or the AI makeover |
| Landscapes and busy scenes | Hard | Crop to one subject |
A quick checklist
- At least 500 pixels across, sharp, not a screenshot of a screenshot.
- A plain or transparent background.
- No detail smaller than about 1 mm at the size you'll sew.
- Text at least 6 mm tall, or retyped with the lettering tool.
- Only images you have the right to use: your own photos, art you made or bought, or public domain.
Questions
Does resolution matter?
Up to a point. Below about 500 pixels across, edges get blurry and shapes lose their outlines. Above 2,000 pixels there's no further gain.
Can I use a picture from the internet?
Only if you have the right to: most pictures online are copyrighted. Your own photos and drawings, art you've licensed, and public-domain images are safe.