COMPLEX PATTERN TRANSFER

If you are working on darker fabrics and you do not have a light source for the simple pattern transfer, or if the fabric you want to embroider is too thick, then a more complex pattern transfer is needed. For this method, an embroidery frame is not required, and the pattern is transferred directly onto the right side of the fabric with a carbon tracing paper (I use DMC transfer paper: see Materials & Equipment).

1. Cut a piece of transfer paper to the dimensions of the pattern and place it onto the fabric with the carbon side facing down.

2. Place the pattern, right side facing up, on top of the transfer paper.

3. Pin the pattern and transfer paper to the fabric, making sure not to smudge carbon onto the fabric, which is easy to do if you are not careful.

4. Using a ballpoint pen (or stylus), trace over the pattern, pressing down hard to ensure the pattern transfers to the fabric (1).

5. Remove some of the pins to check that the pattern has transferred successfully; if not, re-pin and go over the pattern again (2).

6. When the carbon outline is visible on the fabric, remove the pattern, and go over the carbon outline with a ballpoint pen to leave a more permanent pen outline; this ensures that the pattern stays on the fabric once you begin stitching, as the carbon can easily be rubbed off over time (3).

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Tropical Patches

Transform almost anything with these tropical iron-on patches! MATERIALS Linen Wool felt Chenille 18 needle Embroidery thread Scissors: fabric and embroidery Heat n Bond Iron 1. Transfer the three patterns onto the linen fabric, leaving sufficient space in between each so that they can be individually cut out in step 3. 2. Stitch the patterns following the keys for the white lotus, the banana leaf and the African violet (see Tropical Plants in Flowers Category : White Lotus, Banana Leaf, African Violet ) . 3. Once the stitching is complete, cut around each patch leaving a little less than 1in (2.5cm) of fabric all the way around. 4. Now cut three pieces of wool felt to match the shape of the embroidered linen patches, making them just a little larger to allow for a felt ‘border’ all the way around the edge. Place the felt pieces behind each of the linen patches. 5. Using a single strand of an embroidery thread of your choice, use whipped back s...

C – VARIATED BACK STITCH

This stitch, like satin stitch, is a filler stitch, albeit a less controlled one. 1. Referring to how to work back stitch (see Back Stitch), fill in the designated space with back stitches, keeping the stitches random with no consistency (1).

MATERIALS & EQUIPMENT

THREAD The embroideries have all been stitched with DMC six-strand embroidery floss (stranded cotton), but there are many other thread choices available, as well as yarns, cords and ribbons. Anything is possible, although some options are trickier than others! NEEDLES Your threading medium determines needle choice: e.g., DMC gold embroidery needles (sizes 1, 3, 5) have smaller eyes for single strands of floss, while the DMC chenille needle (size 18) has a larger eye for thicker thread types, such as cord or yarn, or for stitching with all six strands of floss. A chenille needle (size 18) was used to work all the embroideries here. Explore the options but choose a needle that has a pointed tip, rather than a blunt-tip tapestry needle. FABRIC Anything (and everything) can be embroidered onto: from linen to burlap, to silk, to paper. A favorite for modern hand embroidery, and the fabric used in this book, is a linen-look/linen-blend fabric, which can either be a combination of l...

Embroidery flowers

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