As you’ve probably noticed, we have been running more articles about embroidery lately. We thought it’d be nice to do more posts for beginners at embroidery.
It’s definitely been my craft of choice to relax these past two years. You just have to reach for your hoop and see where you’ve stopped. No stitches to count or trying to find where you’ve stopped on a pattern.
So I decided to put together a list of tips for beginners and research the best kits to start with embroidery so you can easily have fun!
Start with simple designs
So you want to start with embroidery, or you already tried but, like all crafts at its beginning, it’s getting overwhelming?
Our first advice is to start with simple designs.
Why? So, you won’t get discouraged and will let this piece of fabric with colourful threads languishing for months at the bottom of your projects bag.
Remember, simple design doesn’t have to mean boring.
When I first wanted to start to embroider, I went to a haberdashery and the designs there were just not my jam. Flowers, puppies, fruits. All in shades of brown and beige. You know, those designs.
So, make sure you love what you choose, or you won’t ever finish it. Start with simple research on Pinterest typing a theme you like or even start vague with “modern embroidery”. From there, you should quickly find hundreds of ideas and embroidery artists to inspire you.
Get good supplies even if you’re a beginner at embroidery
How to transfer your pattern on fabric?
That was my biggest question when I wanted to start off embroidery? How do you get the drawing on the fabric??
Turns out, you have plenty of methods!
Erasable pens
You can use an erasable pen. Some are sold specifically on crafts shops like the Clover Air Erasable Marker. Other people use the Frixion pens from Pilot.
I never used one of those for embroidery because I was afraid lines would still be visible but please report back if you’ve experience with those.
Dissolving patterns
I have been seeing those a lot on Instagram!
The process seems easy enough and fun. You transfer your pattern then stitch over the paper, following the design.
Once you’re done the pattern dissolves when you wash it.
Carbone Paper
Our favourite method because it’s super easy!
You put the carbon paper coloured side down on your fabric and place the pattern on top. Then you trace it with a sharp pencil and tadaa you’re done.
You can easily find carbon paper in the sewing sections of all the crafts stores.
Why good thread is important?
Good supplies are important, especially thread.
You don’t want to start an exciting project, just to find out your thread is getting tangled or break off easily.
DMC is one of the biggest brands out there and for good reason. Most of the patterns use DMC colours codes and DMC has a huge range of colours with glitter and metallic threads.
Which kind of fabric to use?
To start off embroidery when you’re a beginner, it’s easier to use a thick cotton fabric.
Keep your fabric taut in your loop and from there, you will be able to experiment on linen then on your own clothes.
Are you like me and do you dream of your own cool embroidered jean jacket?!
Play with kits designed for beginners at embroidery (or not. Your craft, your choice!)
Embroidery can definitely seem overwhelming at first.
I perused Instagram and Etsy for hours to find the right kit when I started, and I still fall in love with kits all the time.
Some kits will have pre-printed patterns on the fabric so you can start immediately, while others will guide you into tracing and transferring the pattern.
Paraffle Embroidery
One of our favourite embroidery kits makers is Paraffle Embroidery.
Lydia gifted me a kit for my birthday and bought one for herself and we spent a very nice holiday stitching and drinking wine in the summer evenings.
Sammy makes a whole range of colourful and original kits.
All of her kits are designed with beginners in mind. Several of my favourite from Paraffle embroidery kits are the ones with animals. Another cool thing: you can make them on banners, cushions or tote bags!
Fileuses de toiles and Co
I remember looking a lot at the kits from Fileuses de toiles and Co when I first started looking at embroidery on Etsy. It was the first time I was seeing kits with dark fabric.
Several of Fileuses de toiles and Co kits on Etsy are made for beginners and you will find a lot of themes, from birds and plants to scenes from Paris.
Vingert
Diana Vingert not only create kits for beginners at embroidery on Etsy, she also makes videos to go with your embroidery kits!
Her aesthetic is not usually something I gravitate towards but her hedgehog smelling a flower and stitched on linen is one of the most adorable embroideries I’ve seen.
By Katie Olivia
It’s almost spring and if you’re like me, you’re thinking of all the greenery!
To get a taste of flowers in your house all year round, look no further.
ByKatieOlivia has been embroidering for a little more than a year and her kits are full of delicate flowers.
Katie guides you along the embroidery with a manual inside her kits.
Jenny Blair
We are big fans of Jenny Blair’s work and her kits here at The Fox and The Knight.
Lydia stitched Priscilla the Pink Cockatoo last year and I’m about to start the Owl embroidery kit that I bought one year and a half ago. It’s so beautiful, I’ve been afraid to mess it up. Stupid, I know. It’s by practicing your craft that you get better at it.
Anyway, Jenny has so many different themes you can choose from with many kits specifically targeting beginners.
Our own collection of seasonal embroidery kits
Finally, it’s the shameless self-promotion minute.
We designed The Fox and The Knight embroidery kits with beginners in mind and each of them represents a season.
The kits are fully packed with a yarn thread made for embroidery that I dyed with each plant chosen for each season and you get a fun zine along the explanations guide.
You can also find out more about the process for our embroidery thread kit for Autumn but also the history, medicinal uses and natural dyeing process of the pomegranate as well as more facts about dyeing with the walnut tree.
We hope you enjoyed these tips for beginners at embroidery!
Check out all these awesome designs and tell us which one you prefer in the comments below.
Have fun!
