Brother SE400 Embroidery Machine Instructions

Introduction - Finding an Image

Embroidery is all about solid blocks of color being sewn into fabric. Select images with large solid color fills, not images with skinny outlines. It's just the opposite of most of our laser cuting or vinyl cutting. Start with an image that has only one color. Something like this is perfect. Each block of color has no outline to it, and it's all one color:

Setting up the Embroidery Machine

All of the following steps must be completed before the Brother SE400 is ready to embroider. It can also be used as a sewing machine so you need to change it from sewing to embroidering before use. If someone else has been using it to embroider before you, you can skip the first half of this and jump to the section called Embroidery Computer.

Use the Manual (the paper version is found in the second drawer under the machine) to set up the Embroidery Machine if was previously used for sewing. Pages you need have been inserted below.

What to Prepare (Page 118)

Fabric. If your fabric is not heavy-weight then use stabilizer material, which you can find in the second drawer in the cabinet under the machine. It's a white, thick paper which can be put under the fabric to add thickness.
Embroidery Thread is in the top drawer. Don't use sewing cotton thread.
The extra needles and parts for the Brother machine are in the bottom drawer.

Directions for Attaching the Embroidery Foot (Page 120)

Photo of Embroidery Foot Installed

Directions for Attaching the Embroidery Unit (Page 123)

Preparing the Fabric (Page 126) Note: Our stabilizer doesn't have adhesive

Photo of Installed Fabric

Attaching the embroidery frame (Page 130)

Winding/Installing the Bobbin - Follow directions starting on Page 22

Spare bobbins are in the bottom drawer in a ziplock baggie. Use only these bobbins for the embroidery machine. Brother-brand bobbins are a different size from the other sewing machines in the eurekaLab.

Installing the Bobbin - Follow directions starting on Page 27

Follow these instructions to load a bobbin full. Use only the shiny embroidery thread in the top drawer. Do not use cotton sewing thread.

Installing the Upper Thread & Threading the Needle

Embroidery Computer

1. Login to Embroidery PC. Username and Password are on the computer, to the right of the track pad.

2. Open Chrome.

3. Go to drive.google.com and under user click on "incognito window", then login as you.

4. Download whatever .png or .jpg file you want to embroider from your google drive.

Open SewArt64 on Desktop of Embroidery PC

Open the program by clicking on this icon.

Open your .jpg or .png file from the Downloads Folder

Go to the File Menu and Select Open.

Open your File.

1. Go to the Downloads Folder

2. Click on your file.

3. Click the open button at the bottom of the screen.

Resize the Image - Maximum size for Embroidery is 4"x4"

1. Use the slider at the bottom of the screen to make your image larger/smaller on the screen.

2. Maximum size of the embroidery can be 4"x4". To see what size yours is, go to View->Grid

3. Click on the Resize Image and type in something smaller than 4" x 4" (Make sure "Lock Aspect Ratio" is on)

Optionally, you may crop your image to make it smaller.

1. Click on the Crop Icon, in the red circle, below.

2. Drag the border smaller.

3. Click on the Crop Icon again to save your changes.

When you're happy with the size of the image (smaller than 4x4) Click on the Wizard Icon.

The wizard will step you through converting your image to an embroidery file. Use the following information for each step of the wizard:

1. Click Next.

2. Click the SMALLEST number of colors that look good. (This will be the number of different spools of thread you need to use.)

3. Click the LARGEST number possible that looks good (This is merging the similar colors to use fewer spools of thread.)

4. Click the LARGEST number possible that looks good (This reduces the speckles in your embroidery.)

5. Click the SMALLEST (it doesn't say this but it works!) number possible for the percentage color areas in the image.

When ready to convert to Embroidery:

1. Click on the Sewing Machine Icon

2. Below the Sewing Machine, click on "Auto-sew Image" button

3.Below that, click on "Set Transparent Color"

4. Your mouse turns into a paint brush. Click on the background color (below it's white)

5. All of the steps necessary for the embroidery machine to print will appear in the right-side.

After the file is converted to embroidery...

1. Click OK.

2. File -> Save (NOT SAVE AS...)

Connecting the Embroidery Machine to the Embroidery Computer.

1. Plug the USB Cable from the Embroidery sewing machine into the Embroidery Computer (it's a light-gray cable which should be in the bottom drawer if not in use.)

2. Turn on the Embroidery machine (black switch on right-side.) It will light up when powered on and will say "The carriage of the embroidery unit will move." Click OK.

The sewing machine now appears on the Computer as a drive called "Removable Disk (E:)"

1. Click on the Computer Icon on the left column to find Removable Disk E:.

2. Click on Removeable Disk E:

3. Save as type: Brother (*.pes)

4. Give it a short File Name that you can see on the screen of the embroidery machine. It will draw the stitching in a small window on the screen as it is saving

After it downloads the file to the Embroidery Machine, the PC will say, "filename.pes was successfully saved". The embroidery

The Embroidery Machine will also note the download via USB.

Embroider Your Downloaded Image

1. Click on the USB Button

2. Upload from Memory (up arrow with pocket)

3. Save to Machine (down arrow with pocket, on right)

4. backward arrow (OK to delete the selected pattern?)

5. backward arrow again

6. Up arrow with pocket (All the files I've uploaded before)

7. Scroll through to the end

8. When you find your file, tap on it.

9. If presser foot is down, the sewing button on the machine should be green. Press it to embroider!

Finished Sewing.

1. Click OK.

2. Raise needle and presser foot (lifting handle for presser foot higher than normal to remove embroidery hoop.)

3. While holding up handle, pop the embroidery hoop out of the attachment and slide it forward under the needle.