InkStitch - hotfix

Draft

Objectives

• Create patterns for hotfix

• Quality: draft

• Difficulty: avanced

Principles of hotfix

Hotfix or (hotfix stones) are decorations like rhinestones, rhinestuds, nailheads, etc. that can be glued on textiles or other materials by heating them. This article will explain how to create designsd with rhinestones, i.e. flatback hotfix stones, using InkScape and optionally Ink/Stitch

Rhinstones come in different sizes. The most popular are 4mm (16ss), 3mm (10ss) and 7mm (34ss). Working with SS16 allows for fairly good filled lettering or other details and manipulating these is not too much of a pain. Working with small SS10 stones is a real pain ! SS20 (4.6 to 4.8mm depending on the make) or bigger are easy to use.

There are three methods to design with rhinestones

• Glue stones individually with a hotfix applicator, i.e. some kind of soldering iron with and end that fits on top of a rhinestone (cheap)
• Cut out the template with a laser cutter or a cutting plotter. Glue a sheet of something (e.g. thick paper) underneath. Then fill the template with rhinestones by pouring a pile on the template and then using a brush. You the can either transfer the stones to a textile using a transfer sheet or just leave them in the template. Thickness of template should be 0.5mm for smaller stones, but it can be higher for larger stones (e.g. SS16 and SS24). Then use a heat press, e.g. 30 seconds for 160 - 200 degrees to glue.
• Buy a stone setting machine that can place and glue hotstones (expensive)

See the Hotfix stone for details.

Creating cutout patterns

Cutout patterns define where the laser or vinylcutter will create holes for the rhinestones.

Fill manually a polygon with circles

• Draw a circle, e.g. 4mm. Make sure to get the size right, because later scaling with precision will be more difficult.
• Copy/paste the circle and place the circles manually with polygones
• A quick method is to use the tiling method below, create a copy, select a subset, move in place, and delete the ones that do not fit into the polygon

Alternatively, use one of the methods below or combine

Using fill patterns

• Draw a circle, e.g. 4mm. Make sure to get the size right, because later scaling with precision will be more difficult.
• Create a fill pattern from this circle
  • Object -> Pattern -> Objects to pattern
  • Objet -> Motif -> Objets en motif (fr.)
  • The result will show as fill pattern in the fill panel
• Fill a polygon with the pattern
  • Object -> Fill and Stroke ... -> Fill ; Select the pattern icon
  • (fr) Objet -> Fond et Contour ... -> Fond (fr.) ; Sélectionnez l'icone "motif"
• In the Fill and Stroke panel adjust the distances, e.g. 20% = 0.8mm in our case.

That type of pattern can be cut with a machine that accepts bitmap input. For a typical laser cutter, the file must be exported as high resolution PNG image, then vectorize with center lines.

Using tiles

• Create a circle
• Create a large tile of these circles
  • (en) Edit -> Clone -> Create tiled clones
  • (fr) Edition -> Cloner -> Créer un pavage de clones
  • You can change translations
• Combine all the clones (CTRL-K)
• Add a polygon (contour only), move it below de tile of circle in the stack, make a copy (to use as outline in embroidery)
• Select polygon and tiles
• Path -> Difference
• Path -> Break a part (CTRL-SHIF-K)
• Remove objects that you do no want. Copy/Paste and/or move circles.

Using tiles to fill an object with circles

Regular tile distribution

Tile distribution - result (somewhat misplaced template)

Pattern along path

This strategy profits from the idea that Ink/Stitch does create lines of stitches for fills.

• Select a fill
• Parametrize a tatami fill without underlay and without underpath
• Define wide spacing, e.g. 5 mm, change entry or exit point if needed
• Select just this object and create a stitch plan, copy the stitch plan to another layer, fix if needed
• Draw a circle and copy it (CTRL-C)
• Path -> Path Effects...., select Pattern along Path
• Pattern source = link (icon to the right
• Pattern copies = repeated
• Spacing = 1

The result is not brilliant, the circles are distorted, even when lines are smoothed.

Scattering

This method can be used to distribute circles along a path.

(a) In order to fill a surface:

• Parametrize contour fill without underlay and without underpath
• Define wide spacing, e.g. 4.4mm for 4mm stones, change entry point if needed
• Select just this object and create a stitch plan, copy the stitch plan to another layer, fix it if needed, smooth first (ctrl-L).
• Draw a circle (e.g. 4mm) and put it on top of the stack somewhere
• Menu (fr) Extensions -> Générer à partir du chemin -> Distribuer suivant un chemin
• Select both the stitch plan and the circle, configure distances, e.g. 0.2 and go. You may have to move the result.
• Move misplaced holes, start by using the overlap tool in the align and distribute panel.
• save.

Alternatively, you also could do this with a tatami fill. However, the lines of circles will be aligned randomly, which is not optimal for dense fills.

(b) In order to fill a line (much easier)

• Draw a circle (e.g. 4mm) and put it on top of the stack somewhere
• Menu (fr) Extensions -> Générer à partir du chemin -> Distribuer suivant un chemin
• Select both the line and the circle, configure distances, e.g. 0.25 and go. You may have to move the result.
• Move misplaced holes and save.

Example using the params of above:

Preparation: Contour fill for hotfix holes generation with "Scatter along path" (Distribuer le long d'un chemin)

Hotfix holes generation with "Scatter along path" (Distribuer le long d'un chemin)

Raw results of the two operations.

hotfix holes generation with "Scatter along path" (raw result)

hotfix holes generation with "Scatter along path" (raw result)

Spray

This method is probably fairly efficient for medium sized objects

• Select the circle
• Then with a steady hand spray the circle using the following parameters (may need some adjustments)
  • Spray clones (fr: pulvériser des clones de la selection initiale)
  • Width (fr: largeur): a bit wider than the circle, e.g. for 4mm use 12
  • Quantity (fr: Quantité) : 100
  • Spread (fr: Eparpiller): 1
  • Apply on transparent zones (fr: Appliquer sur les zones transparentes): checked
  • No overlap of colors (fr pas de cheveauchement entre couleurs): Checked. (You many turn this off if do not mind touching the borders of underlying objects
  • No overlap - distance = 110 (this can be off if the overlap of colors is on).

The spray is a bit sluggish, if it stops spraying, make sure that you are no spraying on top of somethings, and restart.

Using the spray to fill an object with cercles

Result with hotstones (version 1 with some mistakes)

Once you are done, you can, if you like, optimise distribution. Select all clones and open the alignement tool.

• In the Organisation (fr: Organiser), click on Spread (fr: éparpiller). You can do this several times. Alternatively use another algorithm or adjust by hand.
• Then at the bottom, define minimal distances: E.g. H=3 and V=3 (click on the little icon to the right)