Embroidery. Tried and True Technique

You can use this technique for creating embroidery designs where the pattern is drawn on fabric by hand with a sharp needle. Here are some steps to follow:

1. Choose a thread color and cut it to 36 inches. Tie a knot in one end of the thread to help prevent fraying.

2. Drape the cloth over your workspace so that it's big enough for you to lay down without touching any part of it, or else your stitching will be off-center.

3. Arrange your design on the cloth, making sure that you have an extra 5 inches (or more) of thread at the beginning and end.

4. Starting in one corner of your design, make tiny stitches all along the lines using as few stitches as possible to keep it smooth and even.

5. After you finish each line, cut your thread off close to the fabric so that none remains exposed to catch on anything and unravel later.

6. Take your needle up to the beginning of the next line and begin there.

7. When you travel back to any previous lines, take your thread through the middle of a previous stitch rather than over it. This will keep your stitches uniform in size and prevent bulges in the fabric from accumulating over time.

8. Sew along each line until you reach the last one, then turn back and go over your work with a fine running stitch to help secure it permanently into place. Just be sure that you take a tiny backstitch at the beginning and end so that these stitches won't show.

9. Trim your thread close to the fabric as you go, always staying within a few inches of where it's stitching. This will help prevent pulling and bunching from bunching up.

10. Depending on how much you colored your design, you may need to clip out any bleeds from around the main lines of stitching. If not, you can leave as is and gather it in later with a piece of white fabric or cotton batting.

12. This will allow you to see your design more easily, as well as allow you to stitch over any fraying edges to help strengthen the design and keep it from unraveling.

Title: Hand Embroidery

Author: Vickie Lynn Bienvenu

Subject: Embroidery.

Date: 8/14/2008 7:04:42 PM

Title: Hand Embroidery 

Author: Vickie Lynn Bienvenu 

Subject: Embroidery.

Conclusion

These are some great examples of how hand embroidery, like hand stitching, can be used to create beautiful pieces of art. As with any craft, consistency is absolutely essential for a successful piece and the best way to do that is to find something that you enjoy doing. If you have never tried any hand embroidery before or if you only know what it's like from watching old movies, then picking up a beginner's book like this has great benefits. It will give you a great foundation on which to build your skills and confidence as well as teach you how specific materials work best for different designs.

As always, I would love to hear about your experiences in the comments section.