How to View DST Files Online
DST is Tajima’s embroidery format, and it’s the one almost every commercial and multi-needle machine reads. That makes it the format most digitizers deliver and most design shops sell, so it’s very likely you have a DST file on hand even if your own machine uses something else.
Your computer can’t show you what’s in one without embroidery software. A browser can.
View a DST file online
- Go to the embroidery file viewer.
- Drop your DST file into the box, or click it to choose the file.
- Click View Design.
The preview shows the whole design and its width and height in inches. It’s free and you don’t need an account.
Why the colors look wrong
They aren’t wrong, exactly: a DST file has no colors in it. It records where each color change happens, but not which thread goes in each block. So the viewer gives each block its own placeholder color so you can tell them apart.
Your machine does the same thing. When you load a DST, it will show its own default colors or ask you to assign a thread to each needle. If the design came from a digitizer, they usually send a color chart along with it.
What to check before you stitch
- The size. A commercial machine’s hoops are often bigger than a home machine’s, so a DST meant for one can be too big for another. Check the width and height against your hoop before you go any further.
- The number of color blocks. Each placeholder color is one color change. If you’re stitching on a single-needle machine, that’s how many times you’ll rethread.
- The stitch order. Watch it stitch, below the preview, plays the design back in the order the machine will sew it. It’s a good way to spot a design that jumps back and forth between areas.
Need it in another format?
A DST runs on most commercial machines, but many home machines want their own format: PES for Brother, JEF for Janome. Click Convert to another format under the preview, and the converter opens with your DST already loaded. How to convert PES to DST (and back) covers what changes on the way.