Moderator answers:

Remember that these machines are intended for lifetime use, if it is looked after properly. Get a service history from the seller. This will give you an indication of how well it was taken care of. I don’t think that the stitch count is a true indication of how much the machine was used, as it is usually reset when servicing. If that is the number it has done since last service, I would rather get it checked out by a reputable dealer before I spend the money.

Moderator answers:

Embroidery can be done freehand with any sewing machine — if your library happens to have a copy of “Singer Instructions for Art Embroidery”, you might want to look at all the beautiful work done in the early part of the 20th century with straight-stitch-only treadle machines. The most complete recent book I know of for freehand work is Robbie and Tony Fanning’s Complete Book of Machine Embroidery.

Of the two machines, my strong preference would be for the serger… It makes sewing tricky fabrics much, much easier, it’s a faster machine and can save you a lot of time while giving a professionally made look. I can cut and serge a basic pair of pants or a t-shirt faster than I can get a pair through the washer and dryer cycles.

Some of the embroidery machines are embroidery only… They really don’t function as a sewing machine for garment construction, for instance. Others are dual purpose machines.

I’d suggest you might want to join the yahoo group “sergers” and poke around in the archives and ask questions there… It’s a friendly and knowledgeable group, and it’s probably a better place to explore all of what sergers can do than this venue.

Moderator answers:

You will apply a hoot to keep the area you want to embroider on stiff and still while the machine does the work but the embroidery is applied directly to the fabric. No need to iron on.

Moderator answers:

My answer will not specifiacally be about the batman design, but what i want to mention is if you locate a design that you like in another format such as PES (Brother), using an embroidery editing program, you can convert that design to HUS. If you have a Viking machine with Viking software, you probably can convert from many formats to HUS. Otherwise, you will need an embroidery file conversion program, such as Buzz Tools or Embird. Both have free trials for thirty days. [I'm not affiliated with any company-I just am familiar with many embroidery programs.]

Since Batman and Spiderman are registered trade marks, you’ll need to search for a company that has the rights to digitize these designs. I’m not sure which company sells these designs, some companies that come to mind are Amazing Designs, OESD, Cactus Punch, Viking, Pfaff, Brother, Babylock. If the desiign is available from Brother, then it would be in PES format and you would need to buy the PES version and convert to HUS.

Most likely only one digitizing company has the rights to digitize these particular designs due to the fact that Spiderman and Batman are registered trademarks. You won’t be able to get these designs from a smaller digitizing company due to the trademark laws.

Hope that this helps you.

Happy Embroidering!
JosyMaude

Moderator answers:

I have no idea.