dst file extension

[Xxray]

Apparently people who use embroidery machines require a dst file, I went to have a hat embroidered with a design I made in aspire, I saved it as a dfx and a ai [for photoshop], I figured they'd be able to use one of those. Nope, I went to 3 different guys at a mall and all needed dst and couldn't even open a dfx. So my question is, anyone know if it is possible to convert a dfx to a dst ? Not looking too promising, saw some file conversion websites, no luck with those. hard to believe these people limit themselves to a single obscure file extension.

[highpockets]

I'm surprised too, I know several people who do embroidering and they take just about any file format.

It's not dfx, but how about pdf to dst https://anyconv.com/pdf-to-dst-converter/ . Haven't tried it....

[Xxray]

Don't think that'll help, insofar as I don't have anything in pdf format - I may be wrong but seems to me so far those file conversion websites are a waste of time at best.

[Adrian]

I've come across this before when getting clothing designed for a motorsports team. DST is the nearest thing to a standard with those machines, they can't process vector files so a DXF won't work. DST is based off bitmaps so they should be able to convert from a JPG. That's what I provided when I had the shirts done. After all no member of Joe Public is going to be able to give them a DST file so they must be able to work from a picture.

[Mark's Wood Chips]

My wife has an embroidery business and I get involved with DST file creation. There are several specialized software packages the generate DST files but none that I know of can use a DXF file as a starting point. "Digitizing" an embroidery file is similar to creating vectors using standard Vectric drawing tools and node editing Bezier curves. The similarity ends there because thread colors need to be assigned along with stitch type and density, pull compensations, inclinations, etc. which can vary depending on fabric type and how you want the light to reflect off of the threads. It gets more complicated than that because the type of garment (e.g. hats, shirts) will influence the order of how a design stitches. Digitizing embroidery files is a big business and finding a good digitizer is important if you want to supply your customers with a quality product. We have the software to digitize our own designs but we regularly send out anything except simple designs. Embroidery designs are size dependent in that a design may be re-sized by the user +- 25% or so, any more than that and it needs to be re-digitized.

The DST file itself is not very editable, equivalent to a visual G-code file so reverse engineering is not possible. Below is an example of a design we recently sent out for professional digitizing.

Mark

[Xxray]

Thanks for the input Adrian and Mark. I was coming around to thinking much the same, that files for stitching are relatively complex and don't [can't] lend themselves to conversion. Was also thinking they might be able to come up with what I want from a jpg, but since I created it in vectors, challenge will be to create a usable pic from it. Problem there, I don't know what is usable to them. Will broken/missing vectors send them in a tailspin ? Does it need to be colorized ? I'm thinking they could work on these issues and more with their specialized software for their machines, if I find out I'll update for future reference.

This is my design, a distressed flag with lettering, I am thinking it would need quite a bit of work to make it usable for a stitching machine

[Mark's Wood Chips]

This is my design, a distressed flag with lettering, I am thinking it would need quite a bit of work to make it usable for a stitching machine

Actually your design "as is" would work for a skilled digitizer. You only need to specify height and width overall, like the Rose picture. If you want the areas between the stripes to be white, then it needs to be sewn on a white garment, otherwise you need a surrounding shape for the white background fill. You don't really have to colorize the line art but you need to specify colors in general, for instance, stars-white, star background-blue, stripes-red, numbers-red with white border, etc. If you have a photo of something similar to what you are trying to achieve, all the better. The embroiderer receives the DST file from the digitizer with the appropriate number of color stops and assigns the actual colors when the design is sewn. Shades and hues can vary depending on colored threads in stock. Tiny elements like the tip of the star above the tear would not stitch well and small islands representing holes in the flag might not sew well either. PM me with your phone number and I will help you get this done if you desire.

FYI, DST file format is for select brands of embroidery machines. There are a lot of embroidery file formats and machine brands, all proprietary and they don't like each other.

Mark

[Xxray]

Hat will be black, and you are correct, starting with the 1st ragged stripe is red then alternate to white on down, the reds look contained but yes, some starting and ending borders need to be defined for whites. I first made this file for a black and white pocket emblem on tshirts and my tshirt guy had no problem with it, I didn't really consider the extra complexities with embroidery ,,, Well I did, but I figured they could iron them out on the fly like most of us do, thats when I ran into the file extension block. I'm going to give it another go with the jpgs and see if that helps, I might go into sticker shock and get nothing at all, I am not going to pay $40+ for a hat .

One girl told me it would be $10 plus the cost of the hat, which I thought was pretty reasonable.

[Mark's Wood Chips]

One girl told me it would be $10 plus the cost of the hat, which I thought was pretty reasonable.

Go for it!

[Xxray]

No joy, neither one of them could do a thing with a jpg, apparently they need to be digitized in the .dst format and, outside of basic lettering, they are perfectly incapable of improvising anything on the fly. So my option appears to be sending in a file to an online service who digitizes them for me, then taking the file to the hat place. I'm thinking that service will likely cost more than the embroidered hat itself so probably am going to shelf the idea of a custom cap, unless I can find someone else with a little more flexibility/talent.

[Adrian]

That would be like one of us insisting that everyone brought us a toolpathed Aspire file. Guess 99.99% of their business must be stock designs and lettering.

[Xxray]

Stock designs and lettering is it - They have loads of designs and files but all for naught if someone like me wants a 1 off custom job. I need to find more of a freelancer capable of designing on the fly, quite a departure from what I know of CNC,vinyl and laser guys who are almost always willing & capable of improvising.

There is a program called sewart I am going to check out, offers a 30 day trial and it looks fairly simple to create a digitized file, at least for my purposes where my design itself is pretty simple. Hopefully I can create a dst file myself for the hat chick. Makes me wonder why they don't just get this program themselves.

[rtibbs]

As an owner of 16 needle industrial embroidery equipment as well as my CNC equipment I can tell you that what you are asking for is easily doable with the right software.
Each embroidery machine likes its own file format and I know of 35 different formats. There are probably more.
I regularly (before CNC got me hooked) digitize drawings from .dxf, .jpeg and other "drawing" programs for my embroidery projects.
I am a relatively new user of Aspire however, I exported an Aspire file to dxf and inserted it into my embroidery design software as a test this morning and from there can digitize it for my embroidery machine.
Digitizing takes a level of expertise (just as Aspire) that many "Embroiders" don't have or don't want to invest the time to learn.
Hopefully you can find the right person for your project.
Unfortunately digitizing takes time and time is money for most. And a one off item can be costly. My digitizing software was right up there with what I paid for Aspire so most want a return on their investment.
I am fortunate that this is just a hobby for me so I don't look at it for income.

Anyway, good luck with your project.

Just my 2 cents'
Ron

OBTW, I not looking to take on another project as my plate is full with my own.

[Mark's Wood Chips]

No joy, neither one of them could do a thing with a jpg, apparently they need to be digitized in the .dst format and, outside of basic lettering, they are perfectly incapable of improvising anything on the fly. So my option appears to be sending in a file to an online service who digitizes them for me, then taking the file to the hat place. I'm thinking that service will likely cost more than the embroidered hat itself so probably am going to shelf the idea of a custom cap, unless I can find someone else with a little more flexibility/talent.

Your design should cost in the range of $15-$20 for digitizing, unless you want a large design for a jacket back, then more like $50-$75. Of course these prices can vary a lot and so can quality.

If you can do a screen capture from your Aspire file and save it as a high resolution jpg or other bitmap, that's all you need. Line art is easy to work with because the boundaries are clearly defined.

Mark

[Mark's Wood Chips]

That would be like one of us insisting that everyone brought us a toolpathed Aspire file. Guess 99.99% of their business must be stock designs and lettering.

Lettering yes, designs no.

99.99% of our business requires custom digitizing and like Aspire, other design elements such as lettering can be added by the embroiderer if they have appropriate software. When we purchased our commercial machine, it came with a boatload of stock designs, most of which are useless because they don't stitch properly. We learned early on that not all digitizers are created equal and like most things in life, you get what you pay for (that's why I invested in Aspire ). Digitizing is big business and it takes years to understand all the nuances associated with producing a quality product.

Mark