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EXTRAS

There are lots of fun hand embroidery supplies

availablesome are so cool, youll want them
just to decorate your sewing room! Heres
what you need to start embroidering by hand.

Hoops are made of metal, plastic or wood,

and come in different sizes and colors. They
hold the fabric taut while you sew, ensuring
even stitches.

Embroidery transfers are paper patterns

that are transferred to fabric by heat from
an iron. Using a transfer is much easier than
creating the design from scratch!

Embroidery floss is made up of six loosely

twisted strands, and come in a coil called a
skein. Experiment with cotton, rayon or silk
varieties that have different sheens.

Embroidery scissors are often between

31 2"- to 41 2"-long to ensure proper
clipping of even the smallest threads.

Embroidery needles, or crewel needles,

have a long eye to accommodate several
strands of floss. The smaller the size, the
longer the needle. Use a large size for
heavyweight fabrics and a small size for
lightweight fabrics.

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Aida fabric, a cotton fabric with woven

threads, is commonly used for cross-stitching. Aida fabric is also available in linen,
rayon/cotton blends or polyester/cotton
blends, and in different sizes: 11-, 14-,
16- and 18-count (holes per inch). Use
any fabric you like for hand embroidery,

but make sure the print (if using) wont

compete with your design.
SOURCES
Charles Craft provided the Aida and Evenweave fabrics:
(910) 844-3521, charlescraft.com.
Coats and Clark provided the Susan Bates HOOP-La
embroidery hoops: (800) 648-1479,
coatsandclark.com.
Colonial Needle provided the hand embroidery
needles: (800) 963-3353, colonialneedle.com.
DMC Creative World provided the embroidery floss,
gold tapestry needles, Marbleized Scissors and My
Style, My Stitch Transfer Kit: (973) 589-0606,
www.dmc-usa.com.
Sublime Stitching provided the iron-on transfers:
sublimestitching.com.

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Hand Embroidery Stitches by Sharon Boggon

Learn basic hand embroidery stitches to

create beautiful hand embroidered items.
Blanket Stitch: The blanket stitch is
worked from left to right over two imaginary lines. Bring the thread up at 1 and
down at 2. Bring the thread up at 3,
catching the thread from the first stitch
(A). Repeat (B).
Chain Stitch: Knot the thread. Bring the
thread up from the wrong side at 1. Make
a loop to the left, holding the loop with a
thumb. Insert the needle at 2 and bring it
up at 3. Pull the needle and thread through
the loop, but not too tightly. Repeat by
inserting the needle inside the first loop
at 4 and back up at 5. Repeat to create
a chain of stitches (C).
Couching Stitch: Position the surface
thread, trim or floss on the fabric right side.
Bring the couching thread up from the
fabric wrong side using a large-eyed
needle. Take a small straight stitch over
the surface thread at 1 and back through
the fabric at 2 (D).
Cross-Stitch: The cross-stitch is made by
two bisecting diagonal stitches. Bring the
needle up to the fabric right side at 1 and
back through at 2, and then up again at 3
and down again at 4. Repeat (E). Following
the opposite direction, bring the needle up
through the fabric at 5, and then back
down at 6. Repeat (F).
Fly Stitch: Also known as the Y stitch, or
open loop stitch, the fly stitch is a V-shaped
loop thats tied down with a vertical straight
stitch. Bring the needle up at 1. Hold a bit
of floss down with a thumb and insert the
needle at 2. Take a small stitch along the
center of the V at 3. Pull it through the
fabric and secure it in position with a
small loop. (G).
French Knot: Bring the needle up from
the fabric wrong side and hold the thread
taut with your thumb. Twist the needle
around the thread twice. Holding the
thread firmly, insert the needle into the
fabric a small distance from where the
thread emerged (H). Push the knot down
the needle shaft, and hold the knot firm
against the fabric (I). Pull the floss through
to the fabric wrong side.

2
3

Lazy Daisy Stitch: Bring the needle up

from the fabric wrong side at 1 and hold
the thread with your thumb (J). Insert the
needle back into where it first came out at
2, and then guide the needle back through
the fabric a small distance from the center
at 3 (K). With the thread wrapped under
the needle point, pull the needle through
the fabric; fasten the loop with a small
stitch. To make a flower, stitch in a circle
with each stitch radiating outward to
form petals.
Leaf (Feather) Stitch: Bring the needle
up from the fabric wrong side and hold the
thread down with your thumb. Insert the
needle a little to the right of the invisible
line and take a small stitch in a downward
diagonal motion so that the needle point
appears on the center line. Keeping the
thread under the needle point, pull the
thread through the fabric. Make a second
stitch in the same manner (L). Insert the
needle a little to the left and make a small
diagonal stitch so that the needle point
comes out on the center line. Keep the
thread under the needle point; pull the
thread through the fabric to make the
stitch (M). Repeat the stitch, alternating
from side to side.
Running Stitch: Bring the thread up
from the wrong side at 1. Insert the needle
at 2, up at 3, in at 4 and up at 5. Pull the
thread through (N). Keep the stitches
about twice as long as the spaces between
them. Knot the thread on the wrong side
at the end of the last stitch.
Split Stitch: Bring the thread up from
the fabric wrong side and take a stitch
through the fabric. Point the needle backward along the line and stitch through the
thread loop of the previous stitch (O).
Stem Stitch: Working from the left to
right, bring the floss up from the fabric
wrong side. Take a straight stitch, leaving
the needle on the fabric wrong side. Bring
the needle to the fabric right side, slightly
to the right of where it first emerged (P).

3 2

D
54

2
1

E
2 4
1

G
2
1

I
J

2
3

M
N
5 4 3

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