First, formats

The format is the language that your machine speaks - such as .pes, .shv, .vip, .jef, etcetera. 

Each format, or language, was created by a machine manufacturer. For example, the .pes format was created by the Brother company; the .xxx format was created by the Singer company; the .shv format was created by Husqvarna-Viking.

Each format contains a color palette - like a color wheel. Some color palettes are large, and some are small. The size of the color palette differs from format to format. For example, the .hus format has a color palette of about 28 colors - that's very small. The .jef format has a much larger color palette - more than 100 colors.

As the digitizer creates the design, she selects colors for different color fields. Then, when the design is saved into different machine formats, some colors transfer, and some are discarded. A color is discarded if that particular color isn't included in the format's color palette. That means that the larger the color palette, the more accurately the colors will transfer to the design. 

For a specific example, consider this: A digitizer who is digitizing a pumpkin design chooses orange and dark orange for the colors. When she saves into one format, that format recognizes 'orange' and saves the color accordingly. But the format checks its color wheel for dark orange, and doesn't find it. So the format selects something that it thinks is "close." That might be orange, pink, or green, depending on how close the format's guesses are.

Below you'll find a screenshot of 7 different formats from left to right, top to bottom, the squares are .dst, .exp, .hus, .pcs, .pes, .sew, and .jef. The top two, .dst and .exp format, are the "furthest" away from what a frog really looks like. These two formats don't save any color information, so the formats are using their own color palettes to fill in each color field.

The .hus format shows mostly yellows and oranges, and the .pcs, .pes, .sew, and .jef formats are closer to the thread colors used to sew the design.

Why do different formats have different sizes of color palettes?

Different formats have different sizes of color palettes because each was created at a certain time, by a certain company. The Brother company developed the PES format, the Janome company developed the SEW and JEF formats, the Husqvarna company developed HUS, SHV, and VIP. Each format has a different number of colors contained in its palette based on the capabilities of the format.

One example is the Husqvarna-Viking format "family." Some of their first machines operated with the .hus format (that format has a small number of colors in its palette, about 28). Then they added newer formats, such as SHV and VIP, which have more colors in their palettes. You'll find that each format/language release and improvement includes a larger color palette, thus more colors are accurately represented.

When not all colors transfer accurately, what should we do?
Most embroiderers simply choose the colors according to their taste, project, or whatever happens to be handy in their thread drawer. Referring to the color change sheet, they can make changes in various places to give the design a unique look.  

The Embroidery Library provides color change sheets that show the sequence of thread that was used to sew the design during our test sew-outs. The color change sheets are conveniently stored in your order history, or they also can be found near the image of the design on the website. 

When you look at the color change sheet, you'll notice that we list the number of colors used, as well as stitch count, size, and a list of thread numbers beginning with cc1.

If you compare the number of colors on the sheet to the number of colors in your software, the number will not likely match up. Remember - if the format isn't accurately saving the kind of color, then the number of colors won't match, either. 

Check the size, stitch count, and number of color changes as reflected in your software, and compare that information to the color change sheet. If both match, then you are ready to sew. Ignore the colors in your software, and refer to the color change sheet. 

Begin with cc1 - check the color and thread the needle. When your machine stops and tells you to change thread, move to cc2, and thread your needle with that color. Continue, making adjustments where you'd like. 

Some embroiderers like to change the colors in their software because they want to have an idea of what the design is going to look like. I can understand that - we embroiderers are visual folk. I don't change the colors in my software, because it takes too much time. But if you have Embird, version 2003 or more recent, there's a really quick and easy way to load the color change sheet into the design. Instructions follow:

Where is that great trick for changing colors with Embird?

If you have Embird version 2003 or later, you can load proper colors into a design with just a few steps. Just use a .txt file of the printable color change sheet, give it the same name as the design file, and put both files in the same folder. Here are the detailed steps:

Go to the design on the website and click the "Color Change Sheet" link -- or, find a quick link to the color change sheet in your order history.

Click the "Download TXT File" button.

This is the color change sheet that is formatted properly for uploading into Embird.

Click 'Save.' Click on the drop-down box for 'file type' and choose '.txt file.'

Name the file the same name as the design. For example, this design is named  H1719.dst, so I gave the color sheet this name: H1719.txt.

Put both the embroidery file and .txt file in the same folder.

Open Embird. In Manager mode, click on Options and make sure that "Support Palette Files" is checked.

Direct Embird to the folder that contains the design and .txt file of the color change sheet.

Open the design, and the colors in the .txt file will be inserted into the design.

Troubleshooting tips: 

If some colors are changed, but not all, look at the .txt file. Make sure that the words "Madeira Rayon" precede each thread number. Eliminate the pound sign (#).