How to put an embroidery file on a USB stick

Embroidery machines read the FAT family of file systems: FAT32, or FAT16 on very small sticks. They generally don't read exFAT, NTFS or Mac formats. New sticks of 64 GB and above often come formatted as exFAT, which is a common reason a machine "doesn't see" a stick.

Formatting erases everything on the stick, so copy anything you need off it first.

• Windows: open File Explorer, right-click the stick, choose Format, select FAT32 as the file system and click Start. Windows' built-in format dialog only offers FAT32 for drives up to 32 GB, which is one more reason to use a small stick.
• macOS: open Disk Utility, select the stick (the device, not just the volume), click Erase, choose "MS-DOS (FAT)" as the format and "Master Boot Record" as the scheme.

Give the stick a short name without spaces or accents, such as EMBROIDERY.

Designs often arrive as a ZIP archive, including StitchMyPic downloads, which contain every format. The machine can't open a ZIP, so:

1. Unzip it. On Windows, right-click and choose Extract All. On a Mac, double-click the ZIP. Opening a ZIP on Windows without extracting only shows a preview of its contents; copying from that view sometimes fails, so extract to a real folder first.
2. Pick your format. Copy only the file your machine reads, for example the .pes file for a Brother. Leaving the other formats on the stick is harmless but clutters the machine's file list.
3. Keep names short and simple. Use letters, numbers and hyphens, and avoid accents, emoji and special characters. Some older machines only display the first few characters of a name, so "rose-5x7.pes" is easier to find than "Final version of the rose design (2).pes".
4. Put the file in the root folder. Many machines only show files in the top (root) folder of the stick. Brother, for example, states that designs saved in a folder on USB media cannot be retrieved by some of its machines. When in doubt, use the root.
5. Don't overload the stick. A few dozen designs per folder keeps the machine's file browser quick; hundreds of files can make it slow or cut off the list.

When a Mac copies files to a FAT stick, it adds hidden companion files that start with "._" (for example "._rose.pes"), along with system folders such as .Spotlight-V100 and .Trashes. Finder hides them, but an embroidery machine doesn't. You may see duplicate designs that won't open or an error message when you select one.

To clean the stick, open Terminal and run dot_clean -m followed by the path of the stick, for example: dot_clean -m /Volumes/EMBROIDERY

That removes the "._" files. Then always eject the stick (the eject icon in Finder, or drag it to the bin) before unplugging it. Pulling a stick out without ejecting can leave a half-written file that the machine reports as damaged.

The steps differ by brand, but the pattern is the same: plug in the stick, open the USB or external memory screen, select the design and confirm.

• Brother and Baby Lock: touch the USB icon on the embroidery screen, choose the design from the thumbnails and confirm. If the design exceeds the attached hoop, the machine says so. See the Brother guide.
• Janome and Elna: open the USB/external memory screen. On several models the machine expects files in the folders it creates on the stick. If your file doesn't appear, save any built-in design to the stick from the machine, then put your JEF files in the folder it created. See the Janome guide.
• Bernina: open the personal program or USB screen and load the EXP. The colours shown are defaults, since EXP has no colour information. See the Bernina guide.
• Commercial machines: load the DST into memory from the control panel, then assign needles to each colour stop, since DST has no colours.

Before you press start, check the orientation and centre point on screen against the marks on your hooped fabric. Most machines let you move the design in small steps and trace its outline with the needle; use that trace to confirm the design clears the inner edge of the hoop by a few millimetres all round.

Usually the stick is not formatted as FAT32, the file is still inside the ZIP or a folder, or the format does not match the machine.

• The machine doesn't detect the stick: reformat it as FAT32, or try a smaller or older stick and another USB port.
• The stick works, but the design isn't listed: wrong format for the machine, still inside the ZIP, inside a folder, or a file name with unusual characters.
• The design is listed but won't open: the copy may be incomplete (eject before unplugging and copy again), or it's a Mac "._" file.
• "Too large" or "cannot be used with this hoop": the design is bigger than the attached hoop's sewing field. Rotate it, use a larger hoop, or download it at a smaller size; see the hoop size chart.
• Colours look wrong on screen: normal for DST and EXP files. Follow the colour list that came with the design.

Every StitchMyPic download is one ZIP containing the same design as PES, DST, JEF and EXP, so you never have to convert between formats. Unzip it, copy the file for your machine to the stick and keep the ZIP on your computer as an archive: if you switch machines, the other formats are already there.

If the machine says the design is too big, adjust the size in the editor and download again; re-exports within 7 days of paying are free, and the stitches are recalculated rather than stretched. A download costs 1 credit, and new accounts get one free (pricing). Start with PNG to PES for Brother or PNG to JEF for Janome.