Embroidery Quick Start Guide

1. Embroidery hoop - choose the size based on the size of fabric being used and how large the design will be

2. Fabric - You can embroider just about any type of fabric' - as long as the hoop you are using is able to fit within the piece of clothing and/or the hoop will not over-stretch the fabric'

3. Embroidery needle - chose your needle based on how thick your fabric is; the thicker the fabric/tighter the grain the sharper the needle

4. Embroidery thread

5. Pencil - often it's easiest to work from a pattern sketched on the fabric

Scissors or thread snips

Unscrew the top of the hoop

Place the inner hoop underneath your fabric

Place the outer hoop on top of the fabric and slip the outer hoop around the inner hoop

Tighten the screw so the two hoops fit snug around one another

Pull the loose edges of the fabric taught around the hoop

Note: the fabric should have a good amount of tension and be completely smooth within the hoops; pull the fabric tight around the hoop but not so tight that the fabric is permanently stretched out

Cut the embroidery thread to your desired length

Note: longer pieces of thread can often get tangled and knotted, start off with a shorter piece of thread - you can always add more later

Pull the thread through the eye of the needle and tie the thread in a knot

Note: leave some slack between the thread and the eye of the needle - this will minimize the chance of the thread coming unknotted and will keep the holes being made in the fabric smaller

Tie a knot or two at the end of the piece of thread to keep it secured against the fabric while embroidering

For the purpose of these demos a pattern will be drawn out on the fabric as a visual guide - you can chose how much space is left between each stitch depending on where you place your needle

Starting from the back of your fabric, poke the needle up into the fabric at the beginning of the dotted line

Pull the needle up through the fabric along with the rest of the thread - you will hear a 'pop' once the needle knot has passed all the way through the fabric

From the top of the fabric poke your needle down into the fabric at the end of the dotted line, again pull the needle and thread completely through the fabric

Repeat

Once you're done with this stitch, tie off the thread with a double knot on the backside of the fabric

From the back, pull the needle and thread up through the fabric starting a bit ahead of the beginning of the drawn line

Pull the needle and thread back down into the fabric, this time starting behind where you just pulled the thread up

For the rest of the stitches, pull the needle and thread up through the fabric a bit ahead of the stitch you just made

When pulling the needle back down into the fabric place the needle into the spot where the previous stitch started

Repeat

When complete, double knot the thread at the back of the fabric

Start by making a back stitch

Make another back stitch, this time inserting the needle into the middle of the previous stitch - this should split the thread of the previous stitch

Pull needle and thread through the split stitch

Repeat

Once complete double knot the thread at the back of the fabric

Start by making a back stitch

For the next stitch, start next to the middle of the back stitch

End this stitch just in front of the back stitch

Repeat this stitch, starting just next to the middle of the previous stitch and ending the stitch just in front of the previous stitch

When complete, tie off the thread in a double knot at the back of the fabric

Bring the needle and thread up through the back of the fabric

Next to the thread just pulled through, insert the needle back into and then up out of the fabric

Continue to pull the needle and thread through, this will create a loop

The needle and thread should be running through the middle of the loop with the loop underneath

Gently pull the thread to finish off the first chain stitch

For the remainder of the stitches, insert the needle next to the thread within the loop - this should be where the thread left off

Repeat the process, gently pulling the needle and thread over the hoop that is created and re-inserting the needle within this hoop -- to finish off this stitch insert the needle into the fabric and pull the thread through the back, tie it off with a double knot

Note: the further the distance between where you inserted the needle and where it comes back up through the fabric, the larger the chain hoop will be once pulled tight

Start by inserting the needle and pulling the thread up through the back of the fabric

Next, like the chain stitch, insert needle into and back up through the fabric, this time starting a bit below and to the right of where the thread was just pulled through

Make sure the needle rests over the thread

Pull the needle and thread through the holes just made - this will make a hoop like shape

Continue pulling the thread tight until an 'L' forms

Repeat

Once complete, insert needle into fabric and pull thread to the back, tie off thread with a double knot

From the back of the fabric, insert needle and pull thread up through the front

Insert the needle back through the front of the fabric a bit ahead of where the thread was just pulled through

The distance between where you insert the needle and where the thread is pulled up is completely up to you and the design

Repeat

Once complete, insert needle and pull thread to the back of the fabric, tie off with a double knot

Start by inserting the needle from the back of the fabric and pull the thread all the way through

Then, re-insert the needle back into the spot where the thread was just pulled from

Gently pull the needle and thread back through the fabric leaving a small loop

Next, push the needle up at the top of the loop and pull the thread through

Re-insert the needle just outside of the loop and pull the thread back down into the fabric - this will secure the hoop in place

Repeat, starting at the same spot where the previous stitch began

Once complete, tie off the thread in a double knot at the back of the fabric