Hi everyone,

I’m brand new to machine embroidery. I just got a Brother Innov-is M330E and I’m trying to embroider a custom logo.

The logo is a black/white line-art style design with “DVM” in the middle, plus animals, a clothesline, a stethoscope, scrubs, flowers, etc. It’s meant to be one colour.

The problem is that the custom logo is stitching out really bumpy/loopy/raised, especially around the animals and small details. It looks kind of messy and thick instead of clean.

To troubleshoot, I stitched one of the built-in designs from the machine using the exact same setup:

\- same machine  
\- same hoop  
\- same fabric  
\- same cut-away stabiliser  
\- same top thread  
\- same bobbin thread  
\- same needle  
\- same tension  
\- same hooping method

The built-in design stitched perfectly, so I’m thinking the issue is probably the custom file/digitizing rather than my machine setup.

I first tried making the file myself in Ink/Stitch, but it stitched badly. Then I paid someone to digitize it, and that version is a bit better, but the animals and small details are still bumpy/raised.

I’m very new, so I don’t really know the terminology yet. I’ve seen people mention things like running stitch, satin stitch, fill stitch, and bean stitch/triple stitch, but I don’t fully understand what should be used where.

My questions are:

1. Does this sound like the logo was digitized incorrectly either by me or digitizer (no shade just curious)?  
2. For line-art animals and small details, should they be stitched as simple line stitches instead of filled shapes?  
3. Should only the “DVM” letters be filled, while the animals/clothesline/flowers are stitched as outlines?  
4. Is this design too detailed for a 100 mm x 100 mm hoop?  
5. What should I specifically ask a digitizer to do so the animals stitch flatter and cleaner?  
6. What beginner-friendly software do people recommend for making/editing embroidery files? I’m on Mac and have tried Inkscape/InkStitch, but I’m struggling with it.  
7. Is it realistic for a beginner to digitize a logo like this, or should I keep using a professional digitizer?

I also have NO issue making the PES file in inkstitch but I’m thinking something funky with the settings i use?? 

Any advice would be really appreciated. I’m trying to figure out whether I need better digitizing, simpler artwork, different software, or all of the above.

Title: Complete beginner with Brother M330E custom logo stitches bumpy/loopy but built-in designs are perfect. Is it the digitizing? What software should I use?