If you have a custom logo/design and you would like to receive a quote on the design please email us the colored art work as a tiff, jpeg or bit map file. We will take a look at it and give you a set-up price. We will try to avoid a custom set-up if at all possible. (Stitchin' Dreams has pre-purchased over 80,000 stock designs and it is possible that your logo/design may have already been digitized (set-up) and we own it. If this is the case then we can by pass the set-up time and fees and continue to the next step.)

We will maintain your design and thread colors on card file. This makes reordering a quick and simple phone call. We will also provide you a copy of your design (if it is custom digitized design) unlike many other embroiders hold your design and refuse to provide it OR they will "mess" with the file so to make it difficult for the next embroiderer. We at Stitchin' Dreams would always prefer to have return customers because of our work quality and service NOT because we are holding your design hostage. Bottom line is that if you paid a set-up fee then the design is yours, not ours!

WHAT IS DIGITIZING?

Many customers are bewildered when I ask if their design has been digitized. Especially when they explain that they have already paid a set-up fee to the graphic designer who has given them a disk with a design on it. I have actually had customers argue reference their uncle or son who has a computer and can give me the design. It is true that "digitizing" in graphic design generally refers to making the design and setting the lettering fonts and colors, however, digitizing in embroidery is a different process. Most people with any home computer can create a design, add letter, colorize the design and so on. (I have not located a home computer owner that has spent the $8,000 plus on the embroidery digitizing software required to put your design into a recognized embroidery file.)

There are numerous types of embroidery files and several digitizing programs. We can read the majority of them, however, the older "tape" files we would have to send out for translation onto a disk. Most tapes should be re-digitized because software has greatly been improved and designs have enhanced accordingly. To "digitize" a design into an embroidery file is a little more difficult than just scanning an image in and pushing a button. After your design is transferred to the digitizing software (just the image) then a program writing process begins. Basically a programmer will decide what part of the design gets sewn first, which direction does the thread need to travel to avoid fabric push/pull issues, type of stitch (fill stitch, satin stitch, running stitch, bean stitch, etc...), when to trim, when to do a color change, length of stitch, etc... A simple way to think of embroidery digitizing is to imagine that every time the needle goes up and down someone had to tell it what type of stitch and direction of travel is to be completed.

Pricing of custom digitizing is based on time and difficulty of design, not necessarily number of colors in the design (like screen printing), nor by stitch count (although many digitizers charge $12.00 - $18.00 per 1,000 stitch count). This is a one time set-up fee and we will provide you with a copy of your design file. We at Stitchin' Dreams would always prefer to have return customers because of our work quality and service NOT because we are holding your design hostage. Bottom line is that if you paid a set-up fee then the design is yours, not ours!

When you price out digitizing there are several concerns that a customer should check on. 1. Check to see if the quality of the design is guaranteed? Yes, we guarantee that you are completely satisfied (have not had an unsatisfied custom design customer as of yet [knockonwood]. 2. Make sure that customer changes are included in the price - some digitizers will low ball their quote and then charge you for every change (even if the change needed is their fault for not paying attention to the original art work. Yes we include reasonable changes, we do not up charge if the original art work does not change. However, if you have an art work change then an additional charge may apply. 3. You need to have a clean, free of trims - running stitches design, no puckering, good registration, etc... Basically you should have an overall nice and clean design. REMEMBER: Clean art work in = clean design out & Crap in = crap out. (At Stitchin' Dreams we can assist you with obtaining clean art work, referring you to an artist, or just cleaning up what you may already have. With computers nowa days this seems to be less of an issue than in the past.)