A Co-Design Workshop:

Tactile, Machine Embroidered New Year’s Cards

A Happy New Year's Card stitched in bright yellow thread on black cardstock. The text reads "Happy New Year". There is also small snowflake, a large snowflake, and a champagne bottle popping.

Background

A digital embroidery machine stitches a clock image on black paper in bright green thread.

Over the past two years, in collaboration with my colleagues at NYU’s Ability Project, we have worked with Blind/Low-Vision (BLV) tactile graphics experts to develop a method for creating tactile graphics (tactilely legible raised–line images that deliver information through touch) using digital embroidery on paper. This method has been well-received by members of the BLV community as an additional method for tactile graphic creation, alongside traditional well-established methods such as microcapsule and embossing. This design and fabrication process, however, is not accessible for BLV artists and designers.

Workshop Materials

Visual design software is generally not accessible for artists who use screen readers. Blind/Low-Vision (BLV) designers and sighted assistants brainstormed together to come up with ideas for what types of images to include in a design for a New Year’s card. We chose public domain images from the Noun Project that were graphically and tactilely clear and could be easily embroidered. We stitched 30 design template elements on cardstock and cut them out.

30 images including snowflakes, party horns, and the words Happy New Year stitched in silver thread on black card stock. The images are stitched on to squares of cardstock.

Digital Co-Design

A 8.5" x 5.5" rectangular grid of 1" x 1" raised-line squares made with microcapsule

Workshop attendees arranged the design elements on the provided raised-line grid and affixed them using magnets on a magnet board. The design was given to the sighted assistant who digitally matched the design elements with the physical design the participant created.
Image at left: A raised-line microcapsule grid used for designing cards

A screen shot of the Inkscape design software used to create the cards
Using open-source Inkscape software and the Ink/stitch extension to
digitize participants designs for digital embroidery

Digital Embroidery

Two sets of hands guide a large embroidery hoop on to a digital embroidery machine. A black piece of paper is in the hoop

We used a Pfaff consumer-level digital embroidery machine, polyester thread, tear-away stabilizer, and 65# cardstock. Designs were stitched using a double-bean running stitch, which created tactilely legible raised lines.
Pictured at left: A workshop participant and an assistant guide the hoop into the embroidery machine.

A workshop participant arranges three design elements (a clock, a party horn, and champagne glasses) on to a raised line grid.
Arranging design elements onto the raised line grid.
Participants at the workshop, Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library, NYC. December 19, 2023.