Tips for better Embroidery
• Have good lighting. Good lighting is essential when you are stitching. It helps you see the pattern on the fabric and your stitches & eases the strain on your eyes.
• Keep your hands clean and avoid eating when you are stitching. Clean hands will help keep your work from looking dingy.
• Sometimes, you will need both hands to do a stitch, and some stitches take more practice to master. If you can, sit at a table when you are first getting started. That way, you can set the hoop on the table and have both hands free to manipulate the stitch. With practice, you will learn to use the hand holding the hoop to assist with stitches without putting the hoop down.
• Try to keep your stitches a uniform size on straight sections. On curved sections, start shortening your stitches before you reach the curve to help blend them together.
• Pull each stitch with the same amount of tension, but don’t overdo it. Too much tension will pucker your fabric. Not enough tension will leave your stitches looking sloppy.
• If your thread gets twisted while you’re stitching, drop the threaded needle and let it hang freely until it unwinds.
• Always start and stop each section of embroidery, and avoid running your thread across the back from one section to another. Extra runs of thread can show through to the front of the fabric, so avoiding them keeps your embroidery looking cleaner.
• Trim excess thread and waste knots as you go. Keeping your work tidy will help avoid getting tangles on the back.
• If you make an error, simply unthread the needle and pick out the unwanted stitches.
• If you cannot pick the stitches out, you will need to use a small pair of scissors to cut any unwanted stitches out. Using tweezers will help remove the stitches from the fabric. You can also use a little bit of tape to pick up any fuzzies left behind.
• Take notes when you are working on a project. Record the thread colors used, the number of strands, special stitches, and any changes to the pattern. That way, if you have to put it down for a while or want to duplicate it, you have a reference to remind you. By the way, all of my patterns come with a dedicated page just for this.
• Remove the fabric from the hoop when you are not stitching. This helps prevent hoop marks in the fabric. Also, remove your needle from the thread and put it in a safe place. Loose needles are dangerous to children, pets, and bare feet.
• To iron a finished project, place a soft towel down on the ironing board first. Place the finished piece face down to keep the stitches from being crushed. Then place a pressing cloth or clean flour-sack dish towel over the back to protect the fabric. Mist lightly with water if needed, and always iron the backside of an embroidered piece.
• Keep your hands clean and avoid eating when you are stitching. Clean hands will help keep your work from looking dingy.
• Sometimes, you will need both hands to do a stitch, and some stitches take more practice to master. If you can, sit at a table when you are first getting started. That way, you can set the hoop on the table and have both hands free to manipulate the stitch. With practice, you will learn to use the hand holding the hoop to assist with stitches without putting the hoop down.
• Try to keep your stitches a uniform size on straight sections. On curved sections, start shortening your stitches before you reach the curve to help blend them together.
• Pull each stitch with the same amount of tension, but don’t overdo it. Too much tension will pucker your fabric. Not enough tension will leave your stitches looking sloppy.
• If your thread gets twisted while you’re stitching, drop the threaded needle and let it hang freely until it unwinds.
• Always start and stop each section of embroidery, and avoid running your thread across the back from one section to another. Extra runs of thread can show through to the front of the fabric, so avoiding them keeps your embroidery looking cleaner.
• Trim excess thread and waste knots as you go. Keeping your work tidy will help avoid getting tangles on the back.
• If you make an error, simply unthread the needle and pick out the unwanted stitches.
• If you cannot pick the stitches out, you will need to use a small pair of scissors to cut any unwanted stitches out. Using tweezers will help remove the stitches from the fabric. You can also use a little bit of tape to pick up any fuzzies left behind.
• Take notes when you are working on a project. Record the thread colors used, the number of strands, special stitches, and any changes to the pattern. That way, if you have to put it down for a while or want to duplicate it, you have a reference to remind you. By the way, all of my patterns come with a dedicated page just for this.
• Remove the fabric from the hoop when you are not stitching. This helps prevent hoop marks in the fabric. Also, remove your needle from the thread and put it in a safe place. Loose needles are dangerous to children, pets, and bare feet.
• To iron a finished project, place a soft towel down on the ironing board first. Place the finished piece face down to keep the stitches from being crushed. Then place a pressing cloth or clean flour-sack dish towel over the back to protect the fabric. Mist lightly with water if needed, and always iron the backside of an embroidered piece.
