No Stress Embroidery: A Beginner's Guide to Hand Embroidery

1. Less Stress, More Embroidery: Hi, I'm Imogen and I'm the maker and embroidery Oddest behind Sultry. It's I'm here to teach you hand embroidery with that mistress. My grandma and my great Auntie Norma told me to embroider about 10 years ago, and I haven't looked back since. This course is designed for complete beginnings and even for people who don't really consider themselves really crafty. I created this class for my friends who wanted to get started with hand embroidery that felt completely overwhelmed. By the end of this course, you'll have learned five basic stitches to launch you into the world of hand embroidery. We'll take you through the process, step by step and also go over all the materials that you're going to need to get started with the right tools. I really believe that everyone can avoid them. So thanks for joining me on the Jenny, and I'm really excited to see what you come up with. 2. Project Overview: for the glass project, we're going to create two samplers, a rainbow and a trio of sunflowers, so the colors and the stitches are completely up to you. So if you're struggling with any of the suggests that stitches feel free to use your favorite instant. To complete the project, you made two pieces of calico to foreign troops and needle either a water, a reasonable pen or hate the raise a bullpen and embroidery thread in the colors that you choose. If you'd like to back your who, you can also use a hot glue gun and two pieces of cardboard to cover the back of your groups. When you finished, remember to upload your piece to the Project gallery so we can all celebrate your progress . 3. Materials for Hand Embroidery: first, I'm gonna take you through all the materials that you're going to need to get started with embroidery for embroidery. I recommend three different types of material. The 1st 1 is linen, which you can see has a slightly larger we've than the other ones or otherwise. You can use any playing kind of cotton or calico, which has a lovely natural color. We're going to use calico for our project. Basically, for embroidery, you gonna need embroidery threat, and I recommend DMC Threads because I found that they're the best quality. As for needles, you gonna need some embroidery needles. I recommend size five as the best kind of size for that one. As for hoops, you can get bamboo hoops in many different sizes. This 16 inch and this one's a four inch, which is what we're going to use for our project as well, and so that you can transfer the patterns. You can use either one of these. So other award a raise, a bullpen or one of these heat arrays, herbal pins from fiction. And, of course, last but not least, you just need a small pair of scissors that you can step the threat with 4. Getting Started: There's three things we need to do before we get started with stitching. The 1st 1 is learning how to use your embroidery hoop, so just loosen it at the top and then you'll be able to pop out the inner ring off the hook . Take your fabric and position and in the middle off the hoop. Now it's really important for embroidery that your fabric is super tight in the hoop. So what I normally do is tied in the hoop a little bit and then pull the fabric and then just keep doing that until I'm happy with how taught the fabric is. Now that you've got your hopes set up, you ready to transfer the pattern. So bring up the pdf on your laptop, turn up the brightness, and then you'll be able to rest the hoop in the fabric up against your screen. After that, you'll be able to trace the pattern. If you prefer the old fashioned way, you can print out the pattern, take them to a glass door window and trace the patterns from there. When you transferred your pattern, flip it over under the hoop and take out your fabric so that you can flip it back up to the top side to make it easier to embroider. Last but not least, we've got threading the needle. So to start with, I recommend cutting a piece of embroidery thread about the length of your elbow embroidery . Thread is actually made up of six individual students. With today's practice, I recommend splitting it in half, and we'll use three strands to make threading the needle easier. Use a bit of water or saliva just to wet the ends. So how I thread the needle is that holding a threat in my left hand on keeping control and pulling that with the rest of my fingers so that when threading that needle, I'm only pushing a tiny amount of threat into the native. Now threading the needle is often one of the most difficult parts of getting started an embroidery. So once you've got this down pat, you are on the home run last of all to keep the thread anchored in the fabric. We're going to make a small so you can do this anyway you like. So I do it by making a loop with my fingers and bringing up the thread in the middle off the loop. Definitely recommend doing this twice to make sure that your threat stays on the back of the fabric. 5. Backstitch: right, Let's get straight into it with backstage. So with back stitch, we're not going to start right on the edge of the line. There were actually going to go a little bit forward. So coming up from the back, just gently pulling the thread there and putting the needle back down there for the next step of backstage, we're going to take another stitch about the same distance in front, and then we're going to aim to get that needle back into the same hole or as close as you can get it. So then, which is going to repeat that again and again for backstage backs? It is a great stitch to use when you want to outline something, and also for lettering. So it's a great around versatile hostage, and they good finished with backstage. 6. Securing the Thread: When you finish sewing your line, you need to secure the threat at the back of your hoop. So what I always do is that I make a look to the left with my thumb, and then I bring the needle under the last stitch that I made and up through the middle off that loop. And then all you need to do is gently pull that there, and you've made it not to secure it. I generally do it twice, so loop to the left under that last threat and pulling it up to secure that. When you finish that, you can grab you. Paris's is snip that off and then you can use this piece of thread for your next itch. 7. Stem Stitch: next up is in stem stitch, unsurprisingly, called that because it looks really great as a stem of one of your flowers. So this time we're going to start with a needle at the beginning, off the line. So I'm going to bring that up and just hold it to the left with my thumb. So while I'm pulling that down just for the first stitch of stem stitch, I'm going to bring the needle up quite close to where I first brought it up. So then you can pull it through from them Next are making that look to the left and making the next itch about the same distance in front. So from now on, with stem stitch, we're going to come up in the middle of these loops that you're making as close as he can to that same hole as before. I'm gonna pull that tied again, keeping that loop to the left, making a stitch in front about the same distance and bringing it up within the same hole. So the thing that stem stitches, you can either make this loop up to the left or you could bring it down to the bottom as well to the right. But the most important thing is that you pick one side and stick to it. Otherwise, it is going to alter the kind of ropey shape that you make with your stem stitch. All right, so just to more stitches to go now, bringing that up in the middle and then for your last ege. So you coming up in the middle and then just to finish off the line, just come back in down of that last ditch, and then you can finish off just like we did before with backstage. 8. Satin Stitch: way. All right, we're halfway through. So now it's time for something completely different than that satin stitch so sentenced. It is a great stitch to use when you want to color in large areas. So I'm going to show you two different ways to do it. So when you have something like a triangle or a square, what you gonna do? You're going to start at the top there and then follow the lines as you go along in a parallel line kind of fashion. So now I'm bringing that natal up right next to that first ditch, and I'm bringing the line along to come along with that edge them. So really sudden stitch is kind of just the embroidery of vision off coloring. It way finished the triangle. So now when you're tackling a round shape like circle, which could be like the middle of a flower, what I recommend is to start in the center of the shape. So, like this in the same way we're coming up and then we're going down. I'm gonna go to the right this time. I'm coming up to the right of that line, pulling it up and putting the needle down straight next to that. As you can imagine, if you tried to start on the side of the circle, that would be really difficult to try and get the lines in properly. That's why I definitely recommend starting in the middle. Once you finish that side, there's no special rule. You can come straight up next to them, so I'm going to start from the top and go down to the bottom, and I'm going to go and finish filling in this side of the circle. 9. Lazy Daisy Stitch: All right, We're on the home run, so it's time for Lazy Daisy stitch. Now, this one is generally considered to be one of the more difficult stitches for beginners. So I'd really recommend that you take your time and practice this one a couple of times before you start the same blood. So just like a real pedal, we're going to come up at the edge of the center and then we're making a loop to the left without thumb there and just holding the thread down said next, we're going to come back down either in the same hole or just next to it to bring that needle down. So just make sure you're keeping control of that threat as you pull it through, and then we're gonna come up on top of the dot there and just pull that really gently to form your pedal. So the second step of Lazy Daisy is what I like to call a sticky tape stitch. So it's basically a small stitch that is just going to keep that sticking down onto the fabric. So I'm going to do a large one to show you what I mean. So basically it's like a straight stitch that it's just going to make sure that that sits nicely on the fabric. So let's have another go. We're going to come up at the edge of the circle, make a loop to the left with your left thumb, were coming back down either in the same hole or just next to us and then bringing the natal up on one of your pedal dots so pulling that really gently really slowly. Then I'm gonna put that thread back under the control of my left thumb and do a small, sticky type stitch up the top there. So basically, that's how you're going to continue the whole way along. But be really careful to not pull that thread too tightly. Otherwise you might end up ruining the rest of your pedals. So I've made my look to the left. I'm coming up at the top of the pedal, and then I'm gonna do my little sticky tape stitch there. So if you work at it and just be patient with yourself, you're gonna make some really beautiful daisies 10. Chain Stitch: all right, We've made it all the way to the last itch. So we're up to Chain Stitch now, let you in on a little secret. Chain stitch is actually the same stitch as Lazy Daisy. But instead of showing it in a circle, we're going to do it in a line. So what I find really helpful. It's just making sure that your line is facing the direction that you're going to. So So I'm gonna rotate my hope to be this way. So just like Lazy Daisy were coming up at the bottom of the line. Then we're making a little to the left without left thumb and then coming in in the same hole or as close as you can. This time, I'm gonna come up on the line to make that loop for your next itch. We're going to go look to the left, and now you're still aiming to put it in that same hole. But actually, you can put it kind of anywhere in that loop, and it will do the same job. So I'm gonna put it down there, keeping control with your left thumb. That's gonna make it a lot easier and then I'm coming up again on the line. When you come to the end of the line, we're going to finish off in the same way as Lazy Daisy with small, sticky tape stitch. 11. Backing Your Hoop: in this video, I'll show you a simple way to cover the back of your finished. If you choose to heat erase a bullpen, you can remove the marks by using a hair dryer or a lifeline. If you've used the water soluble pen, you can dip it in a bowl of water or running under the tap. Then make sure you hanging out to dry and I in it before you put it in the hoop. I took the back of the food. You need your hot glue gun and a small piece of cardboard to get a piece of cardboard, the perfect size to cover the back of the hoop. Just pop out the inside, ring off your hoop and the news a pencil to trace around the outside of that ring while you hot glue gun is heating up, it's time to position the fabric in the make sure that your pattern is right in the center of the hoop and that you make sure to tighten the fabric in the room. So we're doing it the same method as we began, tighten the hoop a little bit and pulled the fabric. Next, grab a pair of scissors and cut about one centimeter or half a niche around the edge of your group. Now I ready for the next. So taking your hot glue gun, we're going to add a couple of drops off hot glue directly onto the wooden hoop itself, and then we're going to fold down the fabric onto those drops of glue. So that's that process that we're going to follow the whole way around. A couple of drops of hot glue and folding it down and voila! You hope is ready for the last step. Add the cardboard backing. We're going to use the same technique as before. Grab your hot glue gun and add a line of hot glue around the edge off the hoop and then place you cardboard backing on top and press it down. Just make sure you don't burn your fingers 12. Thanks, Goodbye, and a Little Surprise: and we're all finished. Congratulations on finishing your beginning Embroidery course. Feel free to ask me any questions or leave any comments on what kind of classes you'd like to see next. I'm really looking forward to seeing what you guys can create. So remember to upload the photos of your projects into the gallery. All right, See you later.