Ink extensions

The Extensions menu, you will see Ink/Stitch.Keep in mind that this program will not run by itself. You must have Inkscape in order to make it work. Creating a vector graphic in InkscapeBecause Ink/Stitch is a plugin for Inkscape (a vector-based drawing program), you must first create your art as a vector-based graphic. This might be a bit daunting if you know nothing about creating vector-based graphics. But, you can learn quickly if you play around with some of the drawing tools in the program. For example, if you drag and drop the rectangle tool, you can easily create a rectangular shape. Then you can create more complex shapes by performing Boolean operations between these two shapes.An example of creating a more complex vector shape by subtracting one shape from another.Before you can convert your vector graphic to an embroidery file, you must first convert it to a path. Select the graphic and then go to the Path menu and select “Object to Path.”Converting the vector graphic to an embroidery fileOnce you have created your desired vector shape saved as a Path, then you can convert it into an embroidery design. All of the functionality you will need to create this embroidery file are located under the Extensions menu and then “Ink/Stitch.”With the vector-based object selected, choose the Params option under Extensions then Ink/Stitch. The menus that appear allow you to specify what type of stitching you would like to use to represent your object. In the example below, you

To change Start/Stop point by selecting the ‘fill’ object and then ‘Extensions->Ink/Stitch->Commands->Attach Commands to Selected Objects’. In the popup window we checked the ‘Fill stitch starting position’ and ‘Fill stitch ending position’ check boxes.Once you click ‘Apply’ you will see a circle and arrow object show up. They may be in a objects of there own. To keep things organized you can select the newly created Start and Stop objects and place them in a layer ( which is an object ). To do this create a new layer and place the new Start and Stop objects and ‘fill’ object in the new layer. Move the ‘Start’ and ‘Stop’ arrows to adjust where the fill stitch will start and finish.This will get us close, but the ears are still breaking up the fill stitch. We can fix this by adjusting the angle of the fill and underlying stitches by highlighting the ‘fill’ object and selecting ‘Extensions->Ink/Stitch->Params’. A box and simulation window will pop up that lest you tune the stitch. Make sure you click ‘Apply and Quit’ to save the parameter changes to the object.Experiment around with the angle settings until you get the fill we wanted. You can always ‘Cancel’ or ‘Undo’ any unwanted changes. We had to move the start point down to get the underlying stitch to perfect. You can also test out some of the ‘satin edge’ parameters to get them where you want. Adding Text using default Ink/Stitch fontsInk/Stitch make adding text very easy, if you opt to use the ‘Lettering’ tool with the default installed digitized fonts. We will be using the Ink/Stitch default fonts for this patch. Create a new layer called ‘Text’ and select ‘Extensions->Ink/Stitch->Lettering’When you click ‘Apply and Quit’ individual letters will be an object group that contains individual parts of

Satin columnThis is where the Ink/Stitch comes into play, as it us used to convert the ‘satin edge’ to a ‘satin column’. The wide zig-zag stitch of a ‘satin column’ handles curves well. Select the ‘satin edge’ object and then go to ‘Extensions->Ink/Stitch->Tools:Satin->Convert Line to Satin’. This may create more than one path. You create a new layer to logically keep the paths together. In our case we created a new group and named it ‘satin edge’. Later on we will set up layers, but Ink/Stitch will work fine with groups, as it will work from the bottom of the stack to the top when creating the embroidery file.Ink/Stitch changed the single path into two paths consisting of parallel lines with perpendicular intersecting lines. This is what Ink/Stitch uses to code a satin stitch.Simulate stitches with Ink/StitchAt this point we now have enough to have Ink/Stitch simulate the stitches your machine will do. Running the simulation will also make sure that the layers are in the proper order as we want the ‘fill’ object to be first followed by the ‘satin edge’. To run the simulator make sure no objects are highlighted and then select ‘Extensions->Ink/Stitch->Visualize and Export->Simulator / Realist Preview’This will open a window that will show you stitch by stitch of how the patch is created. Make sure the ‘fill’ object is first and that it is filling in logically. You may need to change the Start/Stop points of the ‘fill’ object to ensure that it there are no breaks in how the background is created. As a rule, as single smooth fill, with no breaks looks best.In the case of our patch, Ink/Stitch wanted to do the bottom half of the patch and then jump to the top of one ear and then the other.We were able

Did you know that printer ink is (purportedly) one of the most expensive liquids on the planet? Luckily, University of Connecticut students have access to printing resources on campus through multiple easy to access WEPA stations. But printing costs can quickly add-up, especially for students on a budget. Fortunately, there are several tools that can help you print smarter, saving both paper and ink. Here’s some tips to get the most out of your printing experience while minimizing waste. Printing costs can quickly add-up, especially for students on a budget. Photo by Mahrous Houses/ Unsplash.Print Only What You Need Before hitting “Print,” take a moment to review the document. Most programs, including web browsers, offer a print preview to ensure you’re not printing unnecessary pages. You can also usually choose a range of pages to print — separated by commas or using a dash for a range. For example, if I wanted pages 1, 3, 4 and 5, I could type “1,3-5” in that field. If you’re printing a webpage, consider highlighting only the portion you need and choose “Selection” under the Print options. Adjust Layout and Scale Printing in landscape mode or reducing the scale can help fit more content on a single page. Use the scale setting in the Print menu to shrink content — it’s usually a percentage, so don’t make it too small for yourself! This can reduce total pages without compromising clarity in many cases. You can usually also adjust the margins here — because some printers cut off the edges, you don’t want to have margins less than about half an inch. Change Color and Quality Settings For non-essential prints, switch to “black and white” mode instead of color. Not only is it cheaper, if the text or images don’t have color the printer won’t use any color. (Yeah, even if it’s all black, they still use color ink!) Additionally, selecting “draft” or “eco” mode in your settings, if it’s offered, will use less ink while keeping text legible. Printer ink is (purportedly) one of the most expensive liquids on the planet. Photo from redgaskell/Instagram.Save as PDF Instead of Printing If what you need doesn’t need to exist on paper, opt for “Save as PDF” instead of actually printing. Every computer now has this cool feature — it may appear to be a printer, but once you click “Print” it will open a “Save As” window. This allows you to keep a digital copy, especially as a way to archive things more efficiently than screenshots or photographs of your screen. You can also annotate PDFs digitally using apps like Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Office. If I am printing a “perishable” type resource, I will often save a PDF first and then print that copy to paper. Printing Extensions Chrome extensions like “Print Friendly and PDF” can help format web pages for efficient printing by removing ads and unnecessary images. You can delete individual items and text, adjust the font size and edit the print

Can see that I chose a fill stitch with a 45 degree stitch angle with 1.5 mm long stitches. I also added an underlay to ensure adequate coverage of the stitching on the fabric once you stitch it out.If you enter settings that you think you might want to use again, you can save them as a preset. This will make it easier to quickly apply these settings to another object.After you apply your desired settings to the object, then you can export your embroidery design. You do this by selecting the Embroider option from the Inkstitch menu underneath the Extensions menu. In this dialog box you can select your desired embroidery file format.Load embroidery file format onto your embroidery machineAfter you generate your embroidery file, you can load it onto an embroidery machine and stitch it out. Never transferred an embroidery file onto an embroidery machine? Learn how.Don’t despair if you can not save your embroidery file into a format that your embroidery machine reads. You can easily convert your embroidery file from one format to another using free or very inexpensive software. Additional capabilities of Inkscape and Ink/StitchWith Ink/Stitch, you can certainly convert more than one vector shape into different embroidery areas. You can also generate different types of embroidery files other than fill stitch areas.Appliqué filesInstead of generating simple fill areas, you can also create appliqué designs in Ink/Stitch. As long as you can get the object into a vector based format, you can specify whether you