In this video, we continue Part 3 of our caps and hats digitizing series by refining lettering placement and thread colors in Forte. We begin by adjusting the question mark, which is sitting too close to the other letter, and use the right and left arrow keys to move it slightly farther away. After zooming in and turning the stitches on, we start changing the lettering colors by selecting the text and choosing a new color from the Isacord thread chart, using color 0020 for the lettering.
We then change the question mark to Isacord 1950 and update the line element as well. To select the full line, we either drag with the Select Object tool or hold the Shift key and click the red number 3 to select everything assigned to that color. Once selected, we open the thread spool, go to the Isacord tab, and choose 1950. For the accent mark over the E, we avoid selecting the full character, since that would also change the E itself. Instead, we use the Freeform Object Selector, draw around only the accent mark, right-click to select it, and then change just that accent mark to 1950.
After the colors are assigned, we review the color sequence bar and see that the design still contains five color changes. To reduce this, we open the Color Sequence window, move item number three underneath item number one into the number two position, and confirm the change. With the sequence regrouped, we then hold the Alt key and click the first color to combine those matching sections, and click the second color to combine the pink sections, reducing the design to only two color changes.
We also demonstrate a useful Forte feature called Slow Draw. By going to the Display menu, selecting Slow Draw, and pressing the F5 key, we can watch the design stitch out in the work area. Using the right arrow key increases the playback speed. Because this design was digitized for a cap, it sews from the center out, and Slow Draw gives us a helpful preview of how the design will stitch before sending it to the machine.
When your cap design is ready to run, match those color choices with reliable Madeira thread.