Text to Embroidery: How to Embroider a Custom Name

One of the most common reasons to get an embroidery name is to embroider custom names. 

That means knowing how to convert text for embroidery is a beginner skill - and one you should master early on.  I use (and recommend) Embrilliance Essentials which has a built-in text tool that handles digitizing text so you can easily embroider a name.

Why regular fonts don't work for embroidery

Here's the thing about embroidery fonts. They're not the same as the .ttf and .otf fonts you'd use in Silhouette Studio or Cricut Design Space. A regular font only describes the shape of each letter.  But an embroidery machine needs a stitch path, a density setting, and an underlay. None of that exists in a normal font file.

That's where embroidery fonts come in. The most common type in Embrilliance is a BX font. BX fonts are pre-digitized, meaning every letter already has stitch direction, density, and underlay built in. You install them once and they show up in Embrilliance's font dropdown. 

Turning text into embroidery in Embrilliance

Open Embrilliance Essentials and start with a blank workspace. If you haven't installed Embrilliance yet or you're not sure whether you're running the current version, walk through the full Embrilliance setup and update video in the Silhouette U library first, then come back here. The text tool looks like a capital A in the toolbar at the top.

Click the text tool. A text box with ABC will appear in your work area. 

Select it and on the right side panel where it says "Text" type the name you want to embroider. 

In the Font dropdown, select the font you want to use. 

Once you click Enter the text in your work area will adjust to your selections. 

If you need to resize you can select the text and drag a corner in or out. Just be careful not to resize the text too small or the stitches start collapsing on themselves. 

Installing New Embroidery Fonts in Embrilliance

You can install your own embroidery fonts or use the defaults in Embrilliance.  To install a custom embroidery font in Embrilliance just download the file to your computer and unzip. With Embrilliance open, double click the downloaded BX file and it will instantly be available to use in Embrilliance.

Saving the file in your machine's format

To get the embroider name file to your machine you'll want to export it from Embrilliance. 

Embrilliance can save in nearly any embroidery format, but your machine only reads certain ones. Brother machines (PE800, SE600, SE2000, and most of the consumer lineup) read .PES files. Janome reads .JEF. Bernina uses .EXP. Pretty much every embroidery machine on the market reads .DST as a fallback, though some of the finer details don't always transfer cleanly in that format.

Go to File then Save As > Stitch and Working. This will give you two different files - a BX file that you can edit later and the file in your machine's preferred format.  

Just make sure you choose the right format for your machine (I have several Brother embroidery machines including the SE2000) so I am using the PES format.  

Embrilliance then produces the PES and BX files. 

To move the embroidery file to the machine, I pull the file onto a thumb drive then insert the thumb drive directly into my Brother SE2000. 

From there, you're ready to hoop your fabric, load the file, and start stitching the name - just like you would any other embroidery file.

New to Embrilliance for Embroidery?

If Embrilliance is brand new to you, this month we dropped a new Silhouette U video that walks through the full software setup along with an overview of the work area, so you know what every tool does and where to find what you need before you start designing. Preview the video for free before joining, or jump in for full access alongside 700+ other tutorials covering embroidery, Silhouette, xTool, Roland, sublimation and more, plus same-day support when something isn't working.

Join Silhouette U here.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. By clicking on them and purchasing products through my links, I receive a small commission. That's what helps fund Silhouette School so I can keep buying new Silhouette-related products to show you how to get the most out of your machine!