Testimonials

A Machine Embroidery Digitizing Journey: Maureen Hochdorf’s Creative Story

Hatch — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 22:38:00 -0800

Maureen Hochdorf’s machine embroidery digitizing journey is a perfect example of how creativity, curiosity, and personal passion can turn into a meaningful embroidery business. A family travel creator turned designer, Maureen draws inspiration from her travels, motherhood, and everyday family moments to create embroidery designs she truly loves. In this interview, she shares how her machine embroidery digitizing journey began, what motivated her to learn digitizing, and how her experience with Hatch Embroidery helped her bring the designs in her head to life.

Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

I'm Maureen, a family travel creator who recently started an embroidery business focusing on travel and mom designs. I currently live with my husband, daughter, and dog in Scottsdale, Arizona after living overseas for 20 years.

How long have you been doing machine embroidery?

I have been doing machine embroidery for about about a year and a half.

What made you start digitizing?

I started out buying designs from mainly Etsy digitizers, but I quickly realized that they weren't living up to my expectations. I wanted to be able to bring the designs I had in my head to life, so I decided to learn how to digitize.

What inspires you when you create your designs?

Most of my designs come from trips we have taken as a family or things my daughter loves. Plus Star Wars - we love Star Wars in my family, so I like to create SW designs just for us.

What has been your experience with Hatch Embroider like?

It's been great! I started by taking courses in the Academy to learn all the basics. Then I began by fire and trial, and anything I needed help with, I went back to the courses. I still want to learn patches, so that is my next learning course. :)

Maureen's Top 10 Reasons Hatch Embroidery Digitizing Software Is Worth It

What are your favorite tools & features in the software?

There are so many great tools and features in Hatch - it's hard to choose just a few. I love that it's super easy to learn - some platforms are not as user friendly as Hatch is. The auto-digitize feature is great - just upload your image and it does the hard work for you. I just started doing more monogramming, so the Monogramming tool is fantastic - so many designs and options. I'm also in the process of creating more applique designs since I use a smaller machine and don't have the capability of the industrial ones. So the Multi-hooping and Appliqué tools are great for us smaller machine users.

What’s the best advice you can give to fellow embroiderers or people who are just starting out with machine embroidery?

Take time to really learn it before just diving in. Watch videos, learn from other embroiderers, and be easy on yourself. It takes time to learn the ins and outs (I'm still learning new things every day), and have fun with it. Make designs that you love - that's the key.

Check out Maureen’s designs on her website or on Instagram and TikTok.

Maureen kindly created this 90's themed free design for our faithful readers. Click the button below to access the design.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Hochdorfs | Family Travel Tips & Adventures 🌵 (@mommymoadventures)

Access the Free design

Visit the Hatch Home Business Hub for more information and to request the FREE eBook.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The definitive choice when selecting embroidery software for your home embroidery business.

Hatch Embroidery software is a comprehensive embroidery design solution that offers a range of tools and features for both beginners and seasoned embroiderers.

Here’s why it's a great choice for your business:

User-Friendly Interface: The software is designed with a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for anyone to start creating beautiful embroidery designs, regardless of their experience level.
Powerful Editing Tools: It provides powerful editing tools that allow users to resize, edit, and adjust embroidery designs with precision. This is essential for businesses that need to customize designs according to specific customer requirements.
Wide Range of Formats Supported: Hatch Embroidery supports a wide range of machine file formats, making it versatile for use with different embroidery machines. This flexibility is crucial for businesses operating with multiple machine types.
Professional Quality: The software generates professional-quality stitches, ensuring that the end products are of high quality, which is vital for maintaining customer satisfaction and business reputation.
Extensive Design Features: With features like auto-digitizing, lettering, monogramming, and even special effects, businesses can offer a wide range of embroidery services, increasing their market appeal and potential revenue streams.
Regular Updates and Support: Hatch provides regular software updates and robust customer support, ensuring that businesses can always access the latest features and get help when needed.

Overall, Hatch Embroidery software equips your business with the tools necessary to create stunning, high-quality embroidery designs efficiently and effectively, enhancing productivity and customer satisfaction, making it pivotal when selecting suppliers and supplies for your home embroidery business.

Hatch Embroidery software products are in popular use in over 120 countries. It is time to join the global trend and give Hatch a try! The 30-Day Free Trial grants you unlimited use of all the amazing features and the 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee ensures that there is absolutely no risk involved. In fact, choosing Hatch Embroidery software is one of the smartest things you can do when selecting suppliers and supplies for your home embroidery business.

Enjoy over 500 FREE lessons presented by our own embroidery experts at Hatch Academy. Grow your confidence and embroidery skills fast to start creating your own beautiful designs in no time!


Hatch Academy over 200 FREE Lessons	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly instalments

FAQs

Barbara’s Embroidered Bags

Hatch — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 20:36:00 -0700

I came across Barbara Baugh’s Embroidered Bags in the Hatch Facebook Group. Their uniqueness, the obvious use of the various tools of Hatch Embroidery Digitizer, and the great quality of the photography made them really stand out and pop.

It made me curious to find out more about their maker, so I got in touch with Barbara. I asked her several questions to find out more about her as a person and also as an embroiderer.

Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

I am a retired RN. I had been gathering embroidery machines and other embroidery items, including Hatch Digitizer 3, so when I retired, I would have a hobby/income. I have always loved embroidery designs and I have a multi needle machine. My goal has always been to create my own embroidery designs. I’m finally getting there. I love making purses/handbags! I have been making them for years and am learning to do in the hoop designs. To me, a purse is not complete without an embroidery design. I am in the process of creating my own website to sell my designs.

What made you want to embroider bags?

I used to make purses from different shades of denim and hand embroidered on them. I love thread art and the machine embroidery is mesmerizing to watch. The technology for embroidery has come a long way and I love the way it looks on purses. When I started embroidering on purses, I could not find an embroidered bag I liked, so I started designing my own.

Do you make the bags yourself?

Yes, I make the bag. Most of the time I embroider a piece of material and then decide what I want the bag to look like. I create my own patterns. I love the challenge of figuring out what I want the purse to look like.

Could you share a bit about your creative process?

I fall in love with a piece of art, then I visualize it as embroidery. I digitize the embroidery design. I find just the right fabric for the design and embroider it onto the fabric. Once the design is on the fabric, I may lay it aside and look at it for several days or even weeks. Then the design comes to life in my mind, and I put it together. Most of the time my bags are one of a kind or size unless I digitize an in-the-hoop design. In that case, I will make several of the same bags just with different embroidery designs.

What inspires you when you create your designs?

Everything! When I see something I like, I think of embroidery. I visualize how the art, design, or real item would look like as an embroidery design. Sometimes what I originally had in my mind is not what I wind up with. One thing always leads to another. There is still so much I need to learn, and I will.

What has been your experience with Hatch Embroidery and what are your favorite tools & features in the software?

I love Hatch!!! As I have already mentioned I am completely satisfied. I love its ease of use, and the ability to duplicate, and rearrange colors and sections of my designs. When I digitize, I am sometimes random with each section so having the ability to create and then go back and organize is good for me. I love the digitized holes, which I have just started using, Weld, creating layouts tool, the knife is amazing, and everything else. It is really hard to have a favorite tool because all the tools are what makes this program so unique. I am a trial-and-error kind of person. What I mean by that is I learn and remember better when I just dive in and do something. I love the challenge of figuring things out.

What’s the best advice you can give to fellow embroiderers or people who are just starting out?

Do not be afraid to try! Every person/designer has their own style and likes. There is room for all of us in the embroidery world. What you see may be different from what I see. Your creative style will be amazing with Hatch! I appreciated that I was able to do the free trial. I was sold after just a week of it.

Anything else you might want to share?

I may see a purse someone else has created and it gives me ideas for a new creation of my own. It is ok to be inspired by others. This collaboration brings life to your own unique designs. Sometimes I watch videos on something I need to learn, and that will also inspire what I have been working on to completion. When I first started making my own purses, they were cute, but my quality and design capability have definitely improved over the years. Creativity is a part of me. I forget about everything else when I am designing something, so it is my mental outlet.

I am in the process of creating my own website. My goal has always been to sell my own purse patterns and digitized designs. My website will be Keonaskreations.com. It may be a few months before I’m ready to publish the site for everyone to see.

We love Barbara’s Embroidered Bags!

Barbara kindly created a lovely FSL doily design for our faithful readers. Click the button below to access the design.


Hatch Academy over 500 FREE lessons included for software owners	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly installments

Valentine’s with the Gentleman Crafter

Hatch — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 19:50:00 -0700

Nothing says “I Love You” better than a handmade card. Our friend John Bloodworth aka Gentleman Crafter created this beautiful embroidered card and graciously provided the tutorial as well as the FREE design to our faithful readers, so here is "Valentine’s with the Gentleman Crafter".

Over to John –

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching my thoughts turned to how I could create something quick but out of the ordinary. As I have been increasing my adventures in machine embroidery recently I felt that there was no better time to try something using Hatch Embroidery Digitizer.

After sketching out a rough tattoo style love heart with one of those swishy banner things I imported this into Hatch and set about digitizing it.

The background was an easy job using the Circle/Oval tool from the Digitize toolbox. This was to just give a random background so being able to apply the stipple single run stitch at the prod of an icon was a joy! Even better still was being able to fiddle with the settings in the Object Properties docker until I was 100% happy.

For the heart, I chose to use the Digitize Closed Shape tool. I mean, there is a heart available in the Standard Shapes but, I’m a fussy old stitcher. Anyway, after digitizing the shape the only other change was to add a Florentine Effect to give the Tatami stitch some direction. The highlight to the heart involved the Freehand Closed Shape tool to give this a scribbly-wibbly style the underlay was removed from the tatami stitch and a feathered edge was applied, all within a couple of clicks.

The banner was put together using several digitizing tools, the best of which was the Digitize Blocks option. This was because I wanted the stitching to follow the direction of the swishy banner. Using the contour stitch in conjunction with this really made the “flow” look fantastic.

The heart and the banner were given outlines using the Outlines and Offsets tool in the Create Layouts toolbox. I was basically going for that cartoonish tattoo look where solid colors are surrounded by a solid outline.

Now, the text, let me tell you about the text! I can’t even imagine how long it would have taken me to manually digitize just these two words but thanks to the Lettering toolbox, I was able to type out the words and immediately have the stitching almost ready to go. The Reshape tool and Baseline style options REALLY made the difference here though as I was able to make the text flow with the banner and adjust individual letters that weren’t quite “spot on”. Amazing!

Finally, so that I didn’t have a whole bunch of random stitch types crossing over each other and causing a proper mess, I prodded the Remove Overlaps button, and bingo, all of the offending areas were immediately knocked out.

Anyway, long story short (too late), I think that I managed to use A LOT of the tools available in Hatch to create this but it came together unbelievably quickly and stitched out perfectly thanks to the software. Click, click, clickety-click… stitch! That, my friends, is why I genuinely love using Hatch.

I could have framed this but chose to mount it in an aperture-fronted card for a truly unique creation.

Hey presto, digitized, stitched, and made in around an hour.

Right, that’s me just about done with this post, I hope that you like the design and have enjoyed this quick overview.

Hope to see you again soon!

John

Hatch Embroidery software products are in popular use in over 100 countries. It is time to join the global trend and give Hatch a try! The 30-day Free Trial grants you unlimited use of all the amazing features and the 30-day Money Back Guarantee ensures that there is absolutely no risk involved.

The 30-day Money Back Guarantee ensures that there is absolutely no risk involved.


Hatch Academy over 500 FREE lessons for software owners	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly installments

Sweet Gingerbread Houses by Sandra Fuller

Hatch — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 19:30:00 -0700

FREE Christmas Ornament Designs

I have not met Sandy in person yet, but hopefully one day I will get the chance to visit her. She lives in the middle of a mango farm in the Philippines, so if I do, I will have to ‘pick’ the right season! 🙂

However, what I know about Sandy is that she is very determined, an extremely hard worker, generous, kind and always ready to go the extra mile for her customers. She is praised and adored by over 9,600 members in her Facebook group.

Sandy fought really hard to win the Hatch Valentine’s day photo contest (did I mention she is very determined?) and when she did, straight away upgraded her prize to Hatch Embroidery Digitizer. Obviously Sandy does not do anything halfheartedly, but instead throws herself at a challenge with all her might. Having used a competitor’s software for over 10 years, she set out to master Hatch and create beautiful designs for her customers, and also, these lovely gingerbread house designs that she offered as free giveaways for our faithful readers. You can access them by clicking the button at the bottom of the article.

I had a chat to Sandy to find out more about her and how she got into embroidery!

Can you tell me a little bit about yourself ?

I am originally from Northern California, but I haven’t lived in the USA for over 17 years. I moved to Costa Rica in 2001 and lived there for 12 years, up in the mountains raising cattle and pigs, plus doing upholstery and a construction company. I moved to the Philippines with my life partner Willie in 2012. My children, 2 daughters and a son, are all grown up living in USA.

How long have you been doing machine embroidery for?

I have been sewing and doing crafts all my life. My mother always had top of the line sewing machines in the house. I have been doing machine embroidery since Viking came out with the #1 Plus. I used it so much, I completely wore it out and had to have it rebuilt. Three years later I wore it out again, so for my 50th birthday I got the Designer SE. Later on I bought the PR600 II and now I want to upgrade to a Gemsey 12 needle.

What made you start digitizing?

I got my first digitizing software with my #1 Plus and dabbled with it, then moved to 4D, on to Embird, PE Design (hated it) and now Hatch Embroidery. I was in Costa Rica and a Canadian girlfriend showed me how to digitize in 5 minutes and then I was off and running and haven’t stopped since. The same girlfriend encouraged me to start selling designs. I was giving away designs for about 2 years before I started a free website and as my sales grew, I then went to a full website. I also started taking custom orders around 8 years ago and now have customers scattered all around the World.

What inspires you when you create your designs?

Many of my design ideas come from people on my group or I will be surfing the web and something will catch my eye. I have files full of clipart. One of my favorite designs came from a cookie and I also made an ITH corset cellphone case.

What has been your experience with Hatch Embroidery and what are your favorite tools & features in the software?

I had been watching Hatch Embroidery for months and seeing what it would do. So when the contest came up, I just had to win. I ended up buying the complete digitizing package. At first it was a little daunting to me, because I had been using another software for so many years, but I have been doing more and more in Hatch since I got it. I have finally got used to right and left clicking and really like it. I am striving to learn new features and pushing myself to learn Hatch to its fullest. I love the support that Hatch has. My favorite features would be Lettering and Outline Offset. I also like Ripple Fill.

What’s the best advice you can give to fellow embroiderers or people who are just starting out?

Start out slow and build to your confidence and your ability. Push yourself to do something you don’t know and search out for the help you may need, being a video, other digitizers or groups. Always broaden your horizons. Don’t be afraid to help someone else as it does come back to you. I have helped many people in digitizing and the embroidery world, even if they are my competitors. Most importantly, always follow your dreams.

See more of Sandy’s designs on her website or join her Facebook group.

Visit the Hatch Home Business Hub for more information and to request the FREE eBook.

Hatch Embroidery software products are in popular use in over 100 countries. It is time to join the global trend and give Hatch a try! The 30-day Free Trial grants you unlimited use of all the amazing features and the 30-day Money Back Guarantee ensures that there is absolutely no risk involved.


Hatch Academy over 200 FREE Lessons	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly instalments

Meet Nicole La Cour, Winner of the Easter Photo Contest

Hatch — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 18:26:00 -0700

Downloadable FREE design

We saw some really great entries into this year’s Hatch Embroidery Easter Photo Contest. However, there was one that really stood out above all, Nicole La Cour’s “Bunny Bag”. It is a stunning design that demonstrated a high level of technical skills and was also presented just beautifully.

I was curious to find out more about the person behind the lovely embroidery, so I chatted to Nicole about how she started machine embroidery and her small business Tattered Stitch Embroideries.

Can you tell me a bit about yourself?

I am the owner of Tattered Stitch Embroideries. I live in beautiful, sunny Arizona with my husband (and business partner) Jacques. We have one sweet, lovable Springer Spaniel, Daisy, and one persnickety cat, Dusty.

While I have only recently been introduced to the world of embroidery, (about 2 years ago) I have been an illustrator for as long as I can remember. It is my passion really. I owned a stamp company for 12+ years and after I sold the company I decided that I missed sharing my art. I love sharing my illustrations with others, and knowing that they get enjoyment out of them as well. It always makes me happy to know that my creations make others smile.

How did Tattered Stitch start?

Tattered Stitch was started with a lot of thought and prayer. We have recently started fostering two children, and I knew that I wanted to stay at home once we did so. So, thinking about what I could do to work from home, my mother suggested that I start up an embroidery company, and I am glad that I followed her suggestion. There is something so magical about watching a pattern that you have created and digitized stitch out on a machine. The first time I saw a pattern of mine do that, I was hooked. I had no idea how the pattern was going to translate from computer to embroidery machine, but it did and I was amazed.

What inspires you when you create your designs?

I am inspired by so many sources. I love vintage and I love soft simple illustrations. I also love watercolor washes and I love getting that look in embroidery patterns. I love whimsical little kittens, you will find many of them in my line of designs. I am inspired by the children in my life. I now look for ideas that I think would be cute on a child’s t-shirt or bib.

What made you choose Hatch Embroidery?

When I first started to digitize, I had purchased another software package. It was so not user friendly. After about a week of trying to work with that particular software, I was so frustrated that I went in search of another program to use. It was suggested to me that I try Hatch Embroidery Digitizer. After doing a little bit of research and trying the free 30 day trial, I knew that it would be a great software for me. I found it to be incredibly user friendly. The resources through the Hatch Embroidery board are amazing. I found that there were many videos and tutorials to learn from. I am just thrilled with Hatch Embroidery and how easy it is to use.

What are you favorite tools or features in Hatch Embroidery?

#1 by far is the branching tool. It makes it so easy to get the effect of red work. I get lost in a design when I try to do red work manually. So it makes it sooo easy.

My second favorite feature is using the Gradient Fill and the Florentine effects together. I love the watercolor look that you can achieve with these features together. It feels like you are painting with stitches when the machine is hard at work. Just love it. These features combined really have allowed me to think about how I would do an image if I were to paint instead of digitize. I can put an outline around it, and it really does feel like watercolor.

What’s the best advice you can give to fellow embroiderers?

The best advice I can give to others is to be kind to yourself when learning to digitize. Learning to think dimensionally is a challenge. Not only do I have to think about how to digitize the design, but then I have to think about the push and pull on a pattern and how it will affect the design. And what you see on the screen is not necessarily how it will stitch out. The biggest thing I had to learn was how to allow for that. Plan on a learning curve. But have fun with it as well. Now that I understand the software and what it can do, my creativity has greatly increased.

You can see more of Nicole’s designs on her website or why not join her Facebook group?

Hatch Embroidery software products are in popular use in over 100 countries. It is time to join the global trend and give Hatch a try! The 30-day Free Trial grants you unlimited use of all the amazing features and the 30-day Money Back Guarantee ensures that there is absolutely no risk involved.


Hatch Academy over 500 FREE lessons for software owners	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly installments

Dominican Doll by Norhilda Alvarez

Hatch — Sun, 07 Apr 2024 18:26:00 -0700

Read about Norhilda and download the FREE design

I have been following Norhilda on social media for a while admiring the speed she keeps churning out her key fob designs. They are very imaginative and incredibly cute. She also digitizes lovely embroidery designs that capture the essence of female beauty and complexity.

I approached Norhilda with a few questions abut how she started machine embroidery and why she likes using Hatch Embroidery Digitizer. I also asked for a free design that we can offer to our faithful readers and she came back with her own version of the popular Dominican souvenir, the faceless doll.

Tell me a bit about yourself

I was born and raised in Dominican Republic. I have 3 sisters and I am the oldest. I graduated from Marketing there and I also did a Masters in Finances and Business Administration. I came to Long Island, New York, in 2006 and met my husband two years later. We have 3 boys.

My business GADAHU Embroidery Designs is named after my sons (GA-Gael, DA- Daniel, HU-Hugo). I wanted to include them in there. I do a lot of in-the-hoop items like key fobs and felties, but what I like the most is the bigger and more complicated designs.

How long have you been doing machine embroidery for?

I’ve been doing machine embroidery for almost two years but only started digitizing about 7 months ago.

What made you start doing it?

In my country embroidery is very popular. Custom embroidered items were and still are great gifts for special occasions. I am a stay-at-home mom and wanted to do something that I enjoy. I wanted to learn something new, and embroidery was always something on my mind. I fell in love when I used an embroidery machine for the first time.

What inspires you when you create your designs?

Drawings are my biggest inspiration. I like to create designs that touch people’s hearts. I am also inspired by my culture. I am inspired by everything that is unique and artistic.

What made you choose Hatch Embroidery?

After a little more than a year making embroidered items, I started to get curious about digitizing. There were several software available, and I didn’t know which one to choose. I saw an ad on Facebook about Hatch Embroidery and it got my attention. After that a friend of mine also talked to me about Hatch Embroidery Digitizer and said it was a very user friendly software to create embroidery designs, and that they had a 30 day free trial. I immediately downloaded it, and I was hooked.

What are your favorite tools & features in the software?

I love everything about Hatch Embroidery Digitizer, but what I like most is the branching tool. It is excellent to minimize jump stitches. Motifs are adorable, those different patterns are so pretty and really make the designs pop.

I love the fact that there are a lot of educational videos on YouTube which makes learning much easier.

Why is your Dominican Doll design so unique?

It is a doll without a face, and it represents us Dominican people. She has no face just like the popular clay figurines that were originally created by Liliana Mera Lime. She found it difficult to add features to her dolls, because we are a mix of three races (indigenous, Africans and people from Spain) and she could not represent all the individual ethnicity in just one face. So she left the faces on the dolls smooth.

My embroidery design has applique in the face, neck and flower. I used motif fills on the head scarf and the blouse.

What’s the best advice you can give to other embroiderers?

My best advice for people who create embroidered items is to try different things like applique, in the hoop items, red work, etc., to find out what they like the most. Embroidery is a world full of beautiful surprises. For those who are interested in digitizing, practice is the key. I learn everyday, and the more I do it, the more I love it. Also, don’t be afraid. Everything will be ok if you have a passion for what you do.


Hatch Academy over 500 FREE lessons for software owners	30-Day FREE Trial all the tools & features	Money-Back Guarantee ease of mind	FlexPay monthly installments