Origami Papercraft Knitting & Crochet Jewelry Stencils & Stamps Metalworking Scrapbooking Bookmaking Quilting Weaving Candles & Soap Making Leatherworking Arts & Crafts WonderHowTo

Everything Else

iOS 18 Tips, Tricks, How-Tos, News

How To: Do the Double Feather Stitch

Variations to the feather stitch make it a versatile stitch for hand embroidery. Like the feather stitch, the double feather stitch is used for foliage, sprigs, greenery, etc., in all types of general surface embroidery, and is especially good for Brazilian embroidery, ribbon embroidery, etc. It works great as a seam embellishment in crazy quilting, and as an edging or border stitch on other work. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the Buttonhole Stitch

The buttonhole stitch is used in many types of hand embroidery - general surface embroidery, crazy quilting, whitework and cutwork, Mountmellick embroidery, needle lace, filet work - you name it, buttonhole stitch fits in somehow. It's a super versatile stitch, and once you have the basic stitch down, it's just a matter of applying it in a variety of ways. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do Buttonhole Wheels

Once you know how to do the buttonhole stitch, it's just a matter of "working it" a bit to master variations of the stitch. In this video from Needle 'n Thread, you'll learn how to work a buttonhole wheel, which can be effectively used in all kinds of embroidery - especially flower-like accents and for adding texture to designs.

How To: Do the Daisy Stitch

The detached chain stitch, also known as the "lazy daisy" or just "daisy" stitch, is a pretty popular embroidery stitch. It's perfect, of course, for flowers, but can be used in lots of different ways. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the Seed Stitch

Here's a video tutorial for the seed stitch used in hand embroidery. This is a very simple filling technique! Seed stitch looks great when it's worked either in a uniform pattern (as it is in the video) or when it's worked randomly. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the Ribbed Spider Web Stitch

The spider web stitch and the ribbed spider web stitch are both "woven" embroidery stitches, either used as isolated accents or used in clusters. They aren't a line stitch or a filling stitch, and they aren't really a "small" detached stitch that can speckle a background lightly, either. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the French Knot

The French knot is used often in hand-embroidery, but a lot of people avoid it, because it intimidates them. Once you work one correctly, you'll find that it's really easy!!! Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the Oyster Stitch

The oyster stitch is an isolated stitch. It is a combination stitch using the twisted detached chain stitch which is "surrounded" by an "open" chain stitch, or even a fly stitch. The oyster stitch makes a filled oval shape, suitable for flower petals or individual buds and accents. Watch this video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do the Woven Picot Stitch

There are many dimensional embroidery stitches , but one of the most fun is the woven picot. You can do a lot with it! It's an easy embroidery stitch - it looks more advanced than it actually is! It's a great stitch for adding texture to your embroidery project, and it doesn't necessarily have to be free standing. See how it's done in this video from Needle 'n Thread.

How To: Do the Fishbone Stitch

As you'll see in this video tutorial (from Needle 'n Thread), the fishbone stitch is an easy embroidery stitch to use for filling in leaves (and other shapes, too). The stitch is a good stepping-stone to satin stitch, as it requires you to keep a neat edge on the outside of your design.

How To: Do Detatched Buttonhole Filling

In detached buttonhole filling, you don't pass through the fabric as you work the buttonhole filling. In attached, you do. Attached buttonhole filling gives you more scope for varying the placement of stitches, so that you can create effective filling patterns. The detached buttonhole, though, gives you a bit more room for dimensional effects, since you can take out part of your foundation fillings and fold the buttonhole area back on itself - or make petals or leaves that stand away from the...

How To: Do the Padded Satin Stitch

Of all the hand embroidery stitches that exist, one of the most beautiful, when done well, is the satin stitch. It does take a little practice to get the hang of satin stitching, and it is true that it is not a very "forgiving" stitch. Watch the video from Needle 'n Thread to see how it's done.

How To: Do Lattice Work

Lattice work is used as filling or for backgrounds. Worked on a plain ground (with only the fabric behind the lattice stitches) it can be easily managed by beginners. Adding a colored background (for example, a background worked in satin stitch) kicks the stitch up a notch to intermediate level. Here's a video tutorial from Needle 'n Thread on working lattice stitch over a satin stitch ground.

How To: Do the embroidery running stitch

For right-handers, work from right to left or top to bottom. For left-handers, work from left to right, or top to bottom. Bring the needle to the front of the fabric at A, and pull the thread through. Now, for the rest of your stitches, you can work them more quickly if you "run" them on the top of the fabric, without taking your hand to the back. Go down at B, and, using your fingers on your non-dominant hand (the one that's not holding the needle!) behind the fabric, encourage the needle to...

How To: Freehand embroider

In this video, we learn how to freehand embroider. Start by finding the image you want, then reduce it down to the size you want. After this, find dissolvable stabilizer and lay it over the drawing. After this, trace the picture with a Sharpie, then choose where you want the image to go on the fabric. Now, take blue Scotch tape and tape it over the edges onto the fabric. Now, grab a freehand stifling foot and place it on the fabric and start to sew the image around the outline. When you are f...