These tools work on shapes you have already drawn. Hover a shape to see what will be picked. Clicking a stitch hole picks the line it sits on.
Beveling (X)
Rounds corners with an arc.
Use: click two lines that meet; or click a corner; or drag a box round several corners to round them all at once (one undo step).
A side drawn in several straight pieces is joined into one line first: pieces of the same line type, layer and group that meet end to end on one straight line (where nothing else ends) become one line, in the same undo step as the rounding.
Several corners in a row: hold Ctrl (⌘ on a Mac) as you click the second line, and the tool goes on from it: click the next line to round that corner too, and so on round the outline (one undo step per corner). Click the first line again to close the outline, or press Esc (or right-click) to finish. With Bevel: pick several lines without holding Ctrl on (File ▸ Options, on by default), the tool always goes on, without Ctrl.
Option: Bevel radius (at least 0.2 mm; default 2).
Offset (O)
Draws a parallel copy of a shape at a set distance, for example a stitch line inside an edge.
Use: point at a shape and click on the side where the copy should go. Only that shape is offset, so you can put a stitch line along just one side of a piece.
To offset several shapes together (a whole outline, or two sides), group them first (Ctrl+G). Clicking any shape of a group offsets the whole group, and shapes that meet end to end stay joined at the corners.
Outer offset: select a closed outline first (with the Select tool; clicking a grouped outline selects all of it), then click Outer offset in the Offset tool's options. Each selected closed outline gets a copy outside it at the offset width, its corners joined, in the current line type. Selected shapes that don't close an outline are left out. The new outline is selected, so clicking again adds another one further out.
Option: Offset width (mm).
Centre line (C)
Divides an edge into equal parts and draws a short line square to it at each division: centre marks, fold lines.
Use: click an edge.
| Option | Effect |
|---|---|
| Line length | The length of each mark. |
| Divisions | N equal parts (2 gives a single centre mark). |
| Lines at the ends too | Also mark both ends. |
Distance marking (M)
Puts marks along a path at a set distance from a point.
Use: click a point on a line, curve, arc or circle. The marks go towards the path's farther end, and the path carries on through joints: it is the chain of shapes of the same line type joined end to end, as a double-click selects (see Selecting shapes). A tick on a corner is square to the corner's bisector. To measure from a stitch hole or a dot on the path, click it: the marks start at its centre.
| Option | Effect |
|---|---|
| Mark every | The distance D from the clicked point. |
| Mark length | The length of each tick. |
| Mark the origin too | Also tick the clicked point. |
| Continuous | Repeat every D to the end of the path (round a closed one). |
| Stamps: … | With a library template chosen (see below), each mark stamps the template, turned to the path's direction. The ✕ goes back to ticks. |
To mark with a template: with the Marking tool active, open the template library and click a template.
Tangent circle or line (Ctrl+E)
Draws a circle (or line) tangent to two or three existing shapes.
Use: hold Ctrl and click 2 or 3 lines, arcs or circles. Then move to choose among the possible circles and click to draw it. Ctrl+click changes the picked shapes.
| Option | Effect |
|---|---|
| Draw | Tangent circle, or Tangent line (two circles only). |
| Tangency | Both, Inscribed or Circumscribed circles. |
| Arc only | Draw only the arc between the tangent points: a smooth rounding between the shapes. |
| Line symmetry (two circles only) | Keep the circle's centre on the line through the two circles' centres, so the result is mirror-symmetric about it: the circle in the gap, the one round both, or one round either circle. Move near the outline of the one you want. With Arc only, the half circle on the cursor's side is drawn. |
Also in Shape ▸ Tangent circle or line.
Trimming and notching (!)
Trim mode: click the piece of a line, curve, arc or circle to remove. The piece between the nearest cut points on either side of the click goes; cut points are crossings, joints and stitch holes on the path. A circle becomes an arc. While you point at a shape, the piece that would go is shown dashed in red. Templates, text and dots can't be trimmed; clicking one says so.
Notch mode: click a point on an edge to cut a V-notch there, pointing into the shape (or towards the cursor).
| Option | Effect |
|---|---|
| Mode | Trim or Notch. |
| Notch depth | Default 2 mm. |
| Notch angle | The V's opening angle; default 45°. |