Embrilliance Stitch Simulator: How to Use It

Last updated: October 2026

The Embrilliance Stitch Simulator sews your design on screen, stitch by stitch, so you can see the order it will stitch in before it goes to the machine. You open it from the View toolbar or from View > Stitch Simulator, and it is a feature of Embrilliance Essentials. Use it to spot extra color changes, long jumps and odd sequencing, and to insert color stops that let you isolate or remove part of a design.

This guide follows the Embrilliance Platform manual for version 1.180, which Embrilliance says still applies to the current 1.190 release.

Which Embrilliance products include the simulator

Embrilliance is one program (the “Embrilliance Platform”) that unlocks different features depending on which serial numbers you own.

Product	Simulator?	What Embrilliance says
Essentials	Yes	The manual’s Essentials feature list includes “Simulate the sewing of any design,” and the Essentials product page says you can run a simulator to see how designs will sew before they go to the machine.
Enthusiast	Works alongside Essentials	The Enthusiast page refers to “Essentials’ Stitch Simulator” for inserting color stops and functions, and the manual’s Enthusiast chapter says to use the sewing simulator for color stop inserting.
StitchArtist (Levels 1 to 3)	Paired with Essentials	StitchArtist product pages describe StitchArtist as a design creation tool and point to Essentials for working with existing designs, mentioning the simulator in that context.
Express Mode (free)	Not stated	The manual says some features “are not available in Express Mode.” Express is meant for typing with .BX fonts and saving to a machine format.
Demo version	Lets you try it	Embrilliance support says the Demo lets you use all features with only Save disabled.

If you are unsure what you own, the simplest test is to look for the Stitch Simulator tool in the View toolbar. If you only run Express Mode and want to try the simulator before buying, download the Demo from embrilliance.com/downloads.

Check the current Essentials price on the Embrilliance store (it was $159 in October 2026). Embrilliance offers a 90-day money-back guarantee.

How to open the Stitch Simulator

Open your design in Embrilliance (File, open your design or .BE working file).
Click the Stitch Simulator tool in the View toolbar, or choose View > Stitch Simulator.
The simulator controls appear in the Tool pane at the top of the window. The manual explains that the Tool pane changes depending on what you are doing, and when you run the Sewing Simulator, its controls show there.

The controls, one by one

These names come from the “Stitch Simulator Controls” section of the Embrilliance Platform manual.

Control	What it does
Player Control	Sew forward, backward or stop. The right arrow sews forward, the double bars stop, the left arrow sews backward.
Step Stitch Control	Moves one stitch at a time. Right arrow forward, left arrow backward.
Speed Control	A slider. Move left for slower sewing, right for faster.
Manual Control	A slider you click and drag forward or backward to jump straight to a particular part of the design.
Insert Color Stop	The Stop button (a red stop sign). Inserts a color stop at the current point in the simulation.

The manual’s feature list also notes the simulator “can play in 3D.” Separately, the Main View shows stitches in realistic 3D by default, and you can turn that off with the 3D button on the main toolbar. Turning 3D off can make it easier to see individual stitch lines.

How to check a design before you stitch it

Run through these checks each time you get a new design, merge designs, or add lettering.

Watch the color sequence. Play the design at medium speed and watch the order colors appear. Compare it with the color list in the Object pane. If the same color comes back several times with others in between, ask whether that is on purpose. The manual’s sequencing advice notes there is always a trim when the machine goes to the next color, and that revisiting a color can be a good idea for layering or shading. If it is not on purpose, a color sort may save you thread changes.
Look for long travel within one color. Embrilliance’s manual defines jump stitches as the needle traveling across the design, within one color, without sewing. When the simulated needle leaps from one area to another, that is a jump your machine will either trim or leave for you to cut by hand.
Check the underlay. Slow the speed down at the start of each filled area and watch for the light underlay stitches laid down first. Embrilliance’s own support center includes a user tip about using the simulator to see whether a design has proper underlay for the fabric you are stitching on.
Step through tricky spots. Use the Manual Control slider to reach the area, then the Step Stitch Control to go one stitch at a time. This is the best way to see small details and lettering.
Check merged designs. When you combine designs, play the result to make sure the order still makes sense, and that one design is not stitched entirely before a part that should be under it.

If something looks wrong in a design you did not create, the fix may need editing software (see below) or a word with the designer. For physical problems at the machine, see our guides to thread breaking and bird nesting.

Using color stops to isolate or remove part of a design

The Stop button is more useful than it first looks. Embrilliance’s support article on deleting part of a design in Essentials walks through it:

Click the Stitch Simulator icon.
Move the slider to the stitch just before the part you want to remove.
Click the red Stop Sign button. Embrilliance asks you to pick a color for the new break. Choose something different from the current color, as the manual advises.
The stitches after your new stop now show in the new color, and the new color appears in the Object view.
Move to the stitch just after the part you want to remove and insert a second color stop.
The unwanted section is now its own color block. Click it in the Object pane and press Delete.

Embrilliance notes you can also copy, paste, resize or move that new color block instead of deleting it. Their support FAQ adds that the simulator can be used this way to cull stitches, and that to delete a color change you simply make the two colors the same.

When you need more than the simulator

The simulator shows you the problem. It does not edit individual stitches. Embrilliance support says individual stitches can be removed and altered using Enthusiast. The Enthusiast chapter of the manual covers selecting stitches, switching a stitch between Jump and Normal with a right-click, and ensuring tie-off stitches so you can safely cut a jump.

If you are building your own designs in StitchArtist, the simulator is also the quick way to check object order and entry and exit points. The manual uses a simulator screenshot to show how a fill with its exit point in the middle sews one side, then the other.

Before you send it to the machine

Once the simulation looks right, save in your machine’s format. Our embroidery file formats guide explains which one, and Brother owners can follow transferring designs by USB. If your design thumbnails are not showing in File Explorer, see Embrilliance Thumbnailer not working. Match stabilizer to the fabric with our stabilizer guide, and stitch a test on scrap first.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the Stitch Simulator in Embrilliance? Click the Stitch Simulator tool in the View toolbar, or choose View > Stitch Simulator. Its controls appear in the Tool pane at the top.

Is the Stitch Simulator in the free Express Mode? Embrilliance lists the simulator as an Essentials feature and does not say it is part of Express Mode. You can try it free in the Demo version, which has every feature except Save.

Can the simulator remove jump stitches? Not directly. It shows you where they are. You can use color stops to isolate and delete sections, but editing or converting individual stitches is done in Enthusiast.

Can I play the design backward? Yes. The left arrow in the Player Control sews backward, and the Step Stitch Control moves one stitch back at a time.

Does adding a color stop change my file? Yes. A color stop is a real stop command inserted into the design at that point, and a new color appears in the Object view. Save a copy first if you want to keep the original.