Joined
·
2,125 Posts
It can be very confusing as to exactly what is required in order to cut a rhinestone template.
I get people almost every day emailing me wanting to know how much it would be if they send me the cut/design file and if I can just cut it for them.
I give a quote and then they send the file and it turns out to be a bitmap. Oftentimes, I get people sending me a photo that they took of a rhinestone transfer they purchased from someone else or a rhinestone design on a shirt and they want me to cut a template from their image. I end up giving them the following information and I thought it would be good to put it up here so more people than one at a time can learn from it.
There was SO much I didn't know when I started out and SO much I have learned since then. I'm hoping to clear up some confusion for those of you who are thinking about getting into rhinestones so you understand what it takes and what we should and shouldn't do.
First: The only type of file that we can cut a rhinestone template from is called a vector. Vector files are in various formats such as eps and svg. The most common is eps. That eps needs to be made up of vector circles that are ready to be cut. These files are created in various rhinestone design programs and can take quite a bit of time. If someone truly sends me one of these files and it's ready to be sent directly to my cutter, then the price is very low reflecting the cost of the template material and a small fee for my time. However, if someone sends me a picture of a logo and wants me to create a rhinestone design from it, there are various steps to getting from their bitmap to a vector to a rhinestone design. These steps take time. Also, just because something is in eps format doesn't always mean it's a vector. I've attached some photos. The first is a bitmap in jpeg format. The second is a zoom of one of the edges. Do you see how it's totally pixelated? When you stretch a bitmap out, it becomes more distorted. The lines aren't clean. The third photo is the same heart after I vectorized it, stretched it out, and zoomed way in. The lines of a vector stay the same sharpness no matter how much you stretch it out. The rhinestones sit smoothly on the lines creating a cleaner design.
Second: I know that sometimes it's tough trying to come up with an idea of how to design something or figuring out what to design. Especially when you're starting out. However, if you buy a transfer or a shirt from someone or see a cute design on someone's website or Facebook page, that is their design. If I were to duplicate that design, it's stealing. I wouldn't want someone to take a photo off of my business Facebook page and send it to another person and ask them to make a template or a shirt out of it. That's something that I worked hard on. Also, we can't do licensed designs or logos or characters.
If you're looking to get into this business and wanting to start out small by just buying templates because you don't want to fork out money for software and equipment, please remember that if you want something custom, it will take time and cost some money to have a designer create it for you. There are several of us on here, but I know that there are a lot more people wanting templates than are able to provide them. I know when I started out, I had NO IDEA how much work goes into creating a custom template. Sometimes a design I think will take 3 hours ends up taking me 20 minutes. And sometimes a design I think will take 20 minutes takes 2 hours.
In summary, a true rhinestone template file goes from bitmap to vector to rhinestone software for placement or just from vector to software. Some vectors are very easy to stone and some require quite a bit of tweaking.
Finally, please please please don't ever think your question is stupid. We have all had those questions at some point. So please ask away here on the forum. If it's a question that's been asked before, someone will post a link to the thread with the answers or answer it again for you.
That's what this forum is for and how it surpassed 1,000,000 posts in just 6 1/2 short years. I would not be where I am today if it weren't for this place and all of the stupid questions I've asked.
I get people almost every day emailing me wanting to know how much it would be if they send me the cut/design file and if I can just cut it for them.
I give a quote and then they send the file and it turns out to be a bitmap. Oftentimes, I get people sending me a photo that they took of a rhinestone transfer they purchased from someone else or a rhinestone design on a shirt and they want me to cut a template from their image. I end up giving them the following information and I thought it would be good to put it up here so more people than one at a time can learn from it.
There was SO much I didn't know when I started out and SO much I have learned since then. I'm hoping to clear up some confusion for those of you who are thinking about getting into rhinestones so you understand what it takes and what we should and shouldn't do.
First: The only type of file that we can cut a rhinestone template from is called a vector. Vector files are in various formats such as eps and svg. The most common is eps. That eps needs to be made up of vector circles that are ready to be cut. These files are created in various rhinestone design programs and can take quite a bit of time. If someone truly sends me one of these files and it's ready to be sent directly to my cutter, then the price is very low reflecting the cost of the template material and a small fee for my time. However, if someone sends me a picture of a logo and wants me to create a rhinestone design from it, there are various steps to getting from their bitmap to a vector to a rhinestone design. These steps take time. Also, just because something is in eps format doesn't always mean it's a vector. I've attached some photos. The first is a bitmap in jpeg format. The second is a zoom of one of the edges. Do you see how it's totally pixelated? When you stretch a bitmap out, it becomes more distorted. The lines aren't clean. The third photo is the same heart after I vectorized it, stretched it out, and zoomed way in. The lines of a vector stay the same sharpness no matter how much you stretch it out. The rhinestones sit smoothly on the lines creating a cleaner design.
Second: I know that sometimes it's tough trying to come up with an idea of how to design something or figuring out what to design. Especially when you're starting out. However, if you buy a transfer or a shirt from someone or see a cute design on someone's website or Facebook page, that is their design. If I were to duplicate that design, it's stealing. I wouldn't want someone to take a photo off of my business Facebook page and send it to another person and ask them to make a template or a shirt out of it. That's something that I worked hard on. Also, we can't do licensed designs or logos or characters.
If you're looking to get into this business and wanting to start out small by just buying templates because you don't want to fork out money for software and equipment, please remember that if you want something custom, it will take time and cost some money to have a designer create it for you. There are several of us on here, but I know that there are a lot more people wanting templates than are able to provide them. I know when I started out, I had NO IDEA how much work goes into creating a custom template. Sometimes a design I think will take 3 hours ends up taking me 20 minutes. And sometimes a design I think will take 20 minutes takes 2 hours.
In summary, a true rhinestone template file goes from bitmap to vector to rhinestone software for placement or just from vector to software. Some vectors are very easy to stone and some require quite a bit of tweaking.
Finally, please please please don't ever think your question is stupid. We have all had those questions at some point. So please ask away here on the forum. If it's a question that's been asked before, someone will post a link to the thread with the answers or answer it again for you.
That's what this forum is for and how it surpassed 1,000,000 posts in just 6 1/2 short years. I would not be where I am today if it weren't for this place and all of the stupid questions I've asked.
