How to Use the Brother SE700 Embroidery Machine

On this page (9 sections)

1. What should you have ready before your first SE700 project?
2. How do you set up the Brother SE700 for embroidery?
3. How do you hoop fabric so it stays taut?
4. How do you choose and preview a design on the SE700?
5. How do you start embroidering on the SE700?
6. How do you finish and care for your embroidered piece?
7. How do you send your own designs to the SE700?
8. What mistakes should you avoid on your first SE700 design?
9. What's the simplest way to learn how to use the Brother SE700 embroidery machine?

To use the Brother SE700, power it on, wind and load the bobbin, thread the needle, and hoop your fabric in the included 4 x 4 inch frame. Pick a design on the 3.7 inch color touchscreen, press start, and let the machine stitch.

The steps below walk through a first design on this combo sewing and embroidery machine. Do them in order once and each new design gets quicker.

What should you have ready before your first SE700 project?

Set up the machine on a sturdy table with the included hoop, a bobbin, thread, fabric, and stabilizer within reach. The SE700 comes with a 4 x 4 inch embroidery frame set, a needle set, a bobbin already on the machine plus a spare, and 8 sewing feet.

You still need thread. The SE700 uses standard 40-weight machine embroidery thread, and most starter designs change colors several times.

A multicolor kit saves repeated trips to the store.

You also need fabric and a stabilizer cut to fit the hoop. A medium-weight tear-away or cut-away stabilizer keeps fabric from puckering under dense stitches.

Avoid stretchy knits for your first design; a cotton or linen square is more forgiving.

Give yourself a clear work area on the left for the machine head and above the hoop for the embroidery arm to move. The SE700 weighs 15.6 pounds, so a steady table matters.

How do you set up the Brother SE700 for embroidery?

Power on the machine, raise the presser foot, and attach the embroidery foot. The SE700's 3.7 inch LCD touchscreen shows an embroidery icon on the home screen; choose it to switch into embroidery mode.

Before you thread, check the numbered threading guide printed on the machine. The SE700's automatic needle threader finishes the job.

Raise the presser foot so the thread seats in the tension discs, then lower it after threading.

Wind and insert the bobbin. The SE700 uses a jam-resistant drop-in top bobbin, so you drop it in and thread the bobbin case following the guide.

Pull the bobbin thread up through the needle plate before you start.

The included 4 x 4 inch embroidery frame set snaps together around your fabric and stabilizer. It's the only hoop size the SE700 needs for its maximum embroidery area.

How do you hoop fabric so it stays taut?

Center the stabilizer under the fabric, press the inner hoop into the outer frame, and tighten until the fabric is drum-tight without stretching it. Loose fabric lets the design shift; stretched fabric pulls back when the hoop is released and distorts the stitches.

Cut your fabric with enough margin to extend past the hoop edge on all sides. Lay the stabilizer beneath it, then place both over the outer frame.

Push the inner frame down evenly with both hands.

Tug the fabric at the edges as you tighten the ring. It should feel firm and flat, like a drum, with no wrinkles or ripples.

If the weave starts to distort, loosen and start over.

Use the embroidery arm to attach the hooped fabric to the machine. Slide the frame under the needle in the carriage, then lock it in place.

Who should choose the MagnaHoop set?

Choose the MagnaHoop set if you want fast, repeatable hooping without tightening a screw ring. The 3-in-1 set is made for the SE700 and PE545 family and holds fabric with long-bar magnets instead of an inner frame.

Because the upper frame lifts off, you can straighten a slipped fabric without re-hooping from scratch. It's a practical upgrade once you know you'll keep embroidering.

How do you choose and preview a design on the SE700?

Pick one of the 135 built-in designs or 10 embroidery lettering fonts on the touchscreen, then preview it before stitching. The 3.7 inch LCD color touchscreen lets you edit on screen and see the design before the needle moves.

Scroll the built-in design categories and tap one to load it. The screen shows a preview of the finished design in its thread colors, which is your chance to spot a design that's too large for your hoop or a color you don't have.

Use the on-screen editing to move the design within the embroidery area or combine a design with lettering. Since the SE700's embroidery field is 4 x 4 inches, check the design's finished size against the hoop before you commit.

When the design looks right, set the first thread color. The screen tells you which color to load, and the SE700's automatic thread cutter trims the jump between colors so you don't stop with scissors each time.

How do you start embroidering on the SE700?

Lower the presser foot, press start on the screen or the machine's start button, and let the SE700 run the design. The machine stitches the first color, stops, and prompts you to change thread for the next color.

Stitch speeds reach up to 710 stitches per minute. You can slow the speed for your first project while you watch the stitches lay down evenly.

Watch the first few hundred stitches. A bird's nest under the hoop means the top thread isn't seated in the tension discs or the bobbin thread isn't pulled up.

Stop the machine, raise the needle, and rethread both.

When the design finishes, the machine trims the threads. Remove the hoop from the arm before you take the fabric out of the frame.

How do you finish and care for your embroidered piece?

Cut the fabric free, remove the stabilizer, and press the back of the design, not the stitches. Tear-away stabilizer pulls off in one piece; cut-away stabilizer gets trimmed close to the design with small scissors.

Press the fabric from the back with a press cloth between the iron and the stitching. Direct heat on dense embroidery can flatten the stitches or leave shine on the fabric.

Keep the SE700 running smoothly by brushing lint from the bobbin area after each project and changing the needle when it dulls or bends. A clean bobbin case and a fresh needle prevent most skipped stitches and thread breaks.

Store the embroidery arm and hoops with the machine so the next project starts quickly.

How do you send your own designs to the SE700?

Use the free Design Database Transfer software over wireless LAN, or copy the file to a USB drive and plug it into the SE700's USB port. The machine connects to your home network when you set up the wireless LAN in its settings.

With Design Database Transfer installed on a PC, you can send embroidery files straight to the machine without a cable. The Artspira mobile app goes a step further: you can draw a custom pattern on your phone or tablet and send it to the SE700 wirelessly.

The SE700 also works with PE-Design 11 1/2 for creating and sending designs if you want more design control. For most beginners, the built-in designs and the app are enough at first.

How does the SE700 compare with the PE800 for a first machine?

The SE700 is the stronger first buy for most people because it sews and embroiders in one machine, with 103 sewing stitches and 135 built-in embroidery designs. The PE800 is embroidery only, so it makes sense if you already own a sewing machine you like.

If embroidery is your only goal and you have the sewing machine, read our guide on how to use the Brother PE800 embroidery machine before you choose. For a broader comparison of starter models, our roundup of the best Brother embroidery machines covers the combo and embroidery-only options.

What mistakes should you avoid on your first SE700 design?

The four mistakes that ruin first projects are loose hooping, the wrong stabilizer, forgetting a thread color change, and stitching without checking the design size. Each one is easy to prevent with the checks above.

Skip stabilizer and the fabric can pucker under dense stitching. Hoop too loosely and the design shifts against the needle.

Load a design bigger than 4 inches square and the machine will stop or clip the edge.

Thread breaks are the most common interruption. Rethread the top and bottom whenever the machine sits idle for a while or you change thread.

Keep the presser foot up while threading so the thread sits in the discs.

If a design stitches poorly, stop rather than keep going. A little unpicking now beats replacing the fabric later.

What's the simplest way to learn how to use the Brother SE700 embroidery machine?

Start with one small built-in design in a single color, then add a second color once that stitches cleanly. Each successful project teaches the setup order better than reading about it.

Hoop firmly, thread carefully, preview the design on the touchscreen, and press start. Those four habits carry you from a first test square to lettering on gifts.

The SE700's automatic needle threader and thread cutter take the fiddly parts out of the process, so you can focus on fabric and design choice.

When you're ready for your own files, set up the wireless LAN and send designs from your computer or the Artspira app. If you're still deciding between machines, read our beginner walkthrough on how to use an embroidery machine and our Brother Skitch review for a smaller, app-first alternative.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a small embroidery design take on the SE700?

The Brother SE700 runs at sewing speeds up to 710 stitches per minute, so a small 4 x 4 inch design with a few thousand stitches finishes in a few minutes. Actual time depends on stitch count, thread changes, and how often you stop to trim.

Can I embroider without a computer or app?

Yes. The SE700 has 135 built-in designs and 10 lettering fonts on the machine, so you can hoop, choose a design on the touchscreen, and stitch without connecting anything.

The wireless LAN and Artspira app only matter when you want to send your own designs.

What size embroidery can the SE700 do?

The SE700's maximum embroidery area is 4 x 4 inches, set by the included hoop. Designs larger than that need a bigger machine, since this model's embroidery field is fixed at 4 inches square.

Do I need special thread for the SE700?

The SE700 uses standard 40-weight machine embroidery thread. A kit with a range of colors means you won't stop to buy spools for each color change in a multicolor design.

Can the SE700 also do regular sewing?

Yes. It's a combo machine with 103 built-in sewing stitches, including 10 styles of one-step auto-size buttonholes, plus 8 included sewing feet.

You switch from embroidery to sewing by swapping the foot and arm setup.