This is the design that I started out with (created in CorelDRAW). For version 1 of the design, I imported the diagram into the Bernina Cutwork Software and used the tools available to transform the design into stitches with some parts cut out (the squares and the central star – all shaded grey). The stitchout for this was fit for nothing other than the garbage! The problem – I knew that it was a good idea to do some “running before” stitches to stabilize the space to be cut out, but did not know what a good offset would be, so I used an offset of 0.6mm. When the cutwork tool did it’s thing, it cut up all the “running before” stitches, so I ended up with some holes with very frayed edges! Further investigation (in the online manual) recommends an offset of 0.8mm.

For version 2 of the design I decided to go back to the Bernina Embroidery Software to create all the non-cutwork stitches, and only use the Bernina Cutwork Software to create the actual cutwork stitches. Here are the results!

This is all the “non-cutwork” stitching. I figured it was probably a good idea to do as much of this as possible before doing any cutting to maintain as much stability as possible in the fabric. I am using DellaQ’s silk taffeta (maybe not such a good idea for a first attempt!) backed with OESD Fusible Polymesh, and OESD Heavyweight Tear-Away in the hoop. I pinned the silk in place and then stitched out a tackdown line to ensure the fabric would not move.

The first part of the cutting process is the “running before” stitches. As mentioned above, I set the offset to 0.8mm – any smaller and these stitches get cut out!

Now the machine is telling me it is ready to start cutting with the tool set to Cut 1.

Here is the actual Bernina Cutwork Tool! You have hopefully already figured out that it works with the embroidery module. I am using the #26 foot. The tool fits into the needle casing, and the blade itself is about 2mm wide and 3/8″ long. The white dial rotates and has four settings, 1, 2, 3, and 4. Here it is in position 1.

The first round of cutting has been done. The left and right sides of the square have been cut – it’s a pretty clean line, more visible on the left than on the right. And just inside the “running before” stitches!

Now the machine is telling me it is ready for Cut 2.

It’s actually very easy to move from cutting position 1 to 2. Sitting down is probably a good thing – just so that you can see what you are doing!

After cut 2, four points on the star have been cut. The blade on the Bernina Cutwork Tool can essentially set to 4 different angles. Vertical and horizontal are always going to be very clean cuts, as are cuts at 45 degrees in both directions. Everything else is going to be cut using the optimum combination of vertical, horizontal and 45 degree cuts. The white showing in the center star is where the silk has begun to lift up, revealing the stabilizer underneath.

Now the machine is telling me it is ready for cut 3.

And finally it is ready for cut 4!

All the cutting has been done! A lot of the pieces are beginning to lift out of their own accord. At this point I removed the hoop from the machine so that I could gently remove all of the pieces which had been cut out. If I had thought about it in advance, I would have done this over the garbage can. As it is, I ended up with a lot of tiny pieces of fabric and stabilizer all over the floor! Some pieces needed a little help to come out, but only a few threads here and there needed clipping.

Here all the pieces have been removed. Some of the edges are cleaner than others. The fact that silk frays a lot anyway probably didn’t help me. A nice crisp fabric would give the best results – I have read that using spray starch on the fabric gives it a great hand for the cutting. However, I was not about to start spraying starch onto the silk!

Here are the results after the satin finishing stitch around the edges of the cutwork. You may notice that the larger star in the center has changed color, and is now turquoise. This is now showing version 3! I neglected to use some water soluble stabilizer underneath the satin stitches on version 2 – and the result was not a pretty sight! The extra stabilizer is necessary to give the satin stitch a solid foundation for stitching on. Without it, one side of the satin stitch is tring to stitch into nothing and the results are definitely not pretty. The settings for the satin stitch need some work. In places the “running before” stitches are showing through. I’ll let you know what I come up with to solve this problem!

I’m not sure if curiosity or the need for some sanity lead me to stitch the design out again, this time without doing the actual cutting. I wanted to have something to compare against, to see how clean the cutwork is when it is finished. When I have found the correct settings for the final satin finishing stitch, I think the finished cutwork will be very clean indeed!