The Home Screen and Your Library
The Home screen is your design library. It shows the folders and designs in your library folder, and it is where StitchALot Studio saves new patterns and imports.
Where Your Library Lives
| Platform | Default library location |
|---|---|
| Windows | A StitchALot folder inside your Documents folder |
| macOS | A StitchALot folder inside your Documents folder, or the StitchALot Studio folder in iCloud Drive when iCloud Sync is on |
| iPad | The app's own storage, or iCloud Drive when iCloud Sync is on |
| Android | The folder you choose with Patterns Folder in Settings, or the app's own storage |
On Windows and the Mac you can point the library at a different folder with Working Directory in Preferences and Settings.
The first time you run the app, two sample designs — Demo Heart and Demo Leopard — are added so you have something to explore. If you delete them, they stay deleted.
What the Home Screen Shows
- Folders come first, in A–Z order. Each folder tile shows its name and how many folders and files it holds
- Designs follow, newest-modified first, each with a thumbnail preview
Click a folder to open it, and click a design to open it on the canvas.
The Path Bar
The path bar above the grid shows where you are — for example, Home › Pillows › Florals. Click any part of the path to go back up to that folder.
Creating a Folder
Click the New folder button (the folder with a plus sign, to the left of the path bar), or choose File > New Folder. Type a name and click Create. The new folder is created inside the folder you are viewing.
To rename or delete a folder, use the buttons on its tile. Deleting a folder that holds designs asks for confirmation first, and cannot be undone.
Design Buttons
Each design card has a row of buttons:
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Duplicate file | Makes a copy named "Name 2", "Name 3", and so on |
| Rename file | Gives the design a new name |
| Add As Shape | Saves the design (visible layers only) to your Shape Library so you can stamp it into other patterns. See Placing Shapes |
| Move to folder | Pick a folder from your library to move the design into |
| Buy canvas | Adds the design to your printed-canvas order (shown while Buy Canvas is on in Settings) |
| Delete file | Deletes the design after you confirm. This cannot be undone |
When the buttons don't fit on one line, they wrap into two even rows.
Moving Designs by Dragging
You can drag a design onto a folder to move it there:
- With a mouse — Just drag the design
- On iPad and Android — Press and hold the design until it lifts, then drag. A quick swipe still scrolls the library
Drop the design on a folder tile to move it into that folder, or on a folder in the path bar (including Home) to move it back up. The library scrolls on its own when you drag near its top or bottom edge. Press Esc to cancel a drag.
If the target folder already has a design with the same name, the design stays where it is and a message tells you why.
Opening Recent Files
File > Open Recent lists the designs you opened most recently, with Clear Recent Files at the bottom. On the Mac, the menu shows the ten most recent.
Opening a File from Elsewhere
Use File > Open (Ctrl+O / Cmd+O) to open a .stitchalot file from anywhere on your computer. If the file is outside your library, the app asks whether to Copy to Working Directory so it appears on your Home screen, or Keep Where It Is.
On iPad and Android, opening a file copies it into your library.