They're very delicate and cute and they never look the same. The pictures will probably help make more sense of this! )įrench knots are considered to be a nightmare for most embroiders, but I love them. You'll use less floss that way and keep everything nice and organized. Take a look at the back of my back stitch - see how everything is nice and neat? That's what you want. The most important thing about backstitching is to make sure you're using the hole that forms at the end of a stitch to start the next stitch anytime you can. As long as you keep your stitches even lengths it will look great! You can backstitch to the left or the right - but try it to the right first to get the rhythm down. Use the hole at the end of the farthest right stitch to bring the needle back to the front of the fabric.Bring the needle back to the front of the fabric a stitch length to the right and then pass the needle through to the back of the fabric using the hole at the end of the first stitch.Bring your needle through to the front of the fabric and take a stitch to the right.I use a slightly altered backstitch for embroidery - it keeps the back neater and leaves less dark lines that show through to the front. I also use it for any outlines on drawings because it makes the outlines nice and crisp. It makes the text easier to read and it's more uniform. But not so tightly you can't budge it! You'll regret that once you've embroidered for a couple hours and your sore fingers can't open the hoop. The fabric floating between the hoops should not give very much - this will make the embroidering much more complicated than it should be.Īfter the fabric is taut, keep tightening the screw until it feels secure to you. Now you'll want to tighten the screw a bit and begin pulling the fabric taut. This will sandwich the fabric between them. Lay the piece of fabric over the plain inside hoop.Īfter you have the fabric over the inside hoop, push the top hoop down over the inside one. Your choice! See the last photo for how I assemble my plastic hoops.) This lip can come over the top of the hoop OR hang below the bottom. (If you're using a plastic hoop, the inside hoop will have a lip. Place the outer hoop to the side - we'll worry about it in a second! To start, loosen the screw at the top of the hoop. :)Ĭut a square of fabric slightly larger than your hoop. I typically embroidery on a linen blend.Įmbroidery hoops come in many flavors, though the basic circular wood and plastic ones are the most common. whatever fabric you like! Muslin, quilting cotton, canvas and linen all work well.This way you can draw designs onto your fabric! It's best it you use a water soluble pen so you can rinse the markings out with cold water at the end. a water soluble marker or other marking tool.These have bigger eyes than normal needles to accommodate the size of the floss. I prefer DMC floss and use it exclusively.
This is cheap and comes in TONS of colors.
These come in plastic and wood - I prefer plastic for doing the embroidering and wood for displaying the embroideries. You put the fabric in between the hoops - this helps keep it taut, making the embroidering easier.
Plus, embroidery is a nice relaxing thing to do after a long day if you're a lover of crafting while watching TV or listening to podcasts - most of my nights are spent embroidering! :D Learning to embroider is not as tough as you might think! With a bit of practice, you'll get it down in no time. This instructable will teach you the very basics of hand embroidery.