6 things you need to start hand embroidery

Hi everyone!

Over the last few months, there has been a significant increase in the number of people worldwide learning hand embroidery and taking it up as a new hobby. It is a beautiful and mindful art that can be enjoyed with just the knowledge of a few hand embroidery stitches. Many learners who are brand new to this art wonder the materials or supplies required to start hand embroidery. With a few simple tools and just a little investment, you can acquire the few basic things you need to get into this art and keep it a hobby. Most of them are reusable, making it one of the most environmental-friendly hobbies to maintain.

What should my embroidery kit have?

Something to stitch on…

1. Fabric– Hand embroidery can be done over anything that you can get your needle to go through. Linen and cotton are the best fabrics to start with. They are not slippery, have a good texture, and a good feel to it when you stitch.

2. An embroidery hoop–  Embroidery hoops keep the fabric tight and taut while stitching. You can stitch without a hoop, but some of the stitches can be super challenging without one. They come in different sizes and materials. The best size to start off with would, probably, be 6″. It holds patterns that are small and can be finished easily. You can choose whichever hoop fits you the best.

Something to stitch with…

3. Needles– Needles come in all shapes and sizes. Embroidery needles have a longer eye that can accommodate embroidery threads easily. It is good to have a set of embroidery needles in different sizes with you. The higher the size number of a needle, the smaller it will be. I would suggest using needles sized between 3 and 9. I personally like using a size 3-5 needle. Now, keep in mind that size can vary from brand to brand.

4. Threads– You can sew with cotton, silk, rayon, or wool. The best kind of thread for a beginner would be cotton. It can come in the form of stranded cotton, where the thread is made of 6 strands and you can pull out the strands to make a thread of your desired thickness. The other kind of cotton thread is Perle cotton which is nondivisible. They come in different thicknesses which are indicated by the number on the yarn.

Something to stitch…

5. A Pencil– You would need patterns to stitch. You can draw them or trace them out. There are many drawing tools available. But, all you really need to start with is a humble pencil-preferably a 6B pencil. You can draw your patterns directly using it or trace them using the lightbox method. If your fabric is light enough, you can place it over the pattern and trace it without the use of light!

6. Scissors– Don’t forget a small sharp one to cut your threads before and after the stitching.

What are the most basic 6 materials and tools required for Hand Embroidery? Watch and find out!

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Detailed step-by-step instructions on how to use these materials are available in this section: Hand Embroidery for Beginners

Once you are ready with your materials, learn all the stitches you need from here: Stitch Picture Dictionary

If you want simple patterns to start learning to stitch, here is a collection with the video tutorials: 3 Stitches At a Time

Warm regards,

Sarah