Stitch types
Every vector object has a Fill type. Pick it from the stitch-type picker, either on the essentials bar or in the Properties panel; the picker shows the stitch rather than the word for it. There are three:
| Fill type | What it makes | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Running stitch | A single line of stitches tracing the path | Outlines, fine detail, redwork |
| Tatami fill | Rows of parallel stitches filling a closed shape | Large filled areas |
| Satin column | A dense zig-zag laid across the width of a column | Lettering, borders, narrow shapes |
You change a selected object's fill type at any time; the stitches regenerate. Each type has its own settings (stitch length, spacing, angle, underlay, and more): see Stitch parameters for the full list with defaults.
Two of the three have a second decision inside them:
- A satin on a closed shape can be placed as a Contour (a ring around the outline) or as Inner satin (the interior read as real satin columns). See Inner satin.
- A tatami can carry a tiled pattern, so the shape reads as a relief in the stitching. See Add a pattern to a fill.
Setting the default fill for new shapes
Select a drawing tool and deselect everything else, and the Properties panel shows that tool's new-shape defaults instead of an object's properties: the fill type (and its settings) the next shape you draw will start with. This is a device-local preference, remembered per tool group, not part of the design:
- Pen and Freehand: start as Default, which reads what you drew. An open line becomes a satin column; a closed loop becomes a tatami fill. You can override it with Running stitch, Tatami fill, or Satin column. The two tools share this setting: changing it for one changes it for the other.
- Rectangle, Ellipse, Polygon, Star: start as Tatami fill by default; you can switch to Running stitch.
- Satin column tool: always Satin; it has its own defaults panel (spacing, underlay, and more). See Stitch parameters.
Changing a tool's defaults doesn't affect shapes you've already drawn.
Bean stitch and passes
A bean stitch is a running stitch retraced several times so the line reads heavier. Set Bean passes on a running-stitch object to an odd number: 1 is a plain running stitch, 3 is a triple (bean) stitch, and so on.
Passes is the other repeat: it runs the whole path again, each lap retracing the last. That is the one thing bean passes cannot do, because a bean has to finish at the far end of its own step; set Passes to an even number and the line ends where it started.
Underlay
Tatami and satin can add underlay: stitches sewn underneath the main fill to stabilize the fabric. Tatami has an Edge-walk underlay toggle; satin offers Center walk, Contour walk, and Zigzag underlay. See Stitch parameters.
How pixel art stitches
A pixel sprite does not use the three fill types. It is a grid of cells, and it has its own Stitch as choice:
| Method | What it makes |
|---|---|
| Cross-stitch (default) | One cross per painted cell. |
| Mini-satin | One small satin block per cell, the thread direction alternating between neighbors so the sprite reads as a woven basketweave. |
| Tatami fill | Floods each blob of color solid. Better at large cell sizes, but it gives a silhouette rather than pixel art. |
Cross-stitch also exists as a one-pass way to turn an image straight into stitches, without painting anything. See Import as cross-stitch.
Contour lettering
Digitized text has its own stitch designs rather than a fill type, and one of them is Contour: each letterform traced as a single running line, one loop around each glyph and each counter, with nothing filling the middle. Because it is a line rather than a fill, it works at any size. See Fonts and lettering.
Stitch vertex types
Inside a stitch block, each vertex is one of three kinds:
- Stitch: a normal needle penetration.
- Jump: the needle moves without stitching (travel between areas).
- Trim: the machine cuts the connecting thread.
You can see jumps and trims, and every needle penetration, in Stitch mode using the stitch overlays.
Fabric presets
A project has a fabric preset (Cotton, Polyester, Denim, Knit / Jersey, Organza / Sheer, or Felt) that seeds stitch-parameter defaults to suit that fabric. Change it from the header's Fabric dropdown, next to Machine and Hoop; new projects start from the default set in Settings.
An individual object can override the project's fabric preset in its Properties panel Fabric section, instead of inheriting it. If you change the project preset while some objects have their own override, Boldbobbin asks whether to update those objects too or leave them on their own preset.