CRAFT PROJECT UPDATE

Once again I've been super busy this week making goodies. I've been considering making some doggy items to sell and donate money towards a local Boston Terrier or dog rescue. This is one of the things I've been working on with some scrap fabric I had laying around. Below are the instructions on how to make this simple embroidered wall hanger. Its a great project, even if your not a great sewer. Enjoy!


This embroidered wall hanger is a really simple project. All you need is a wooden embroidery hoop ($1.50 for an 8" at any craft store); some scrap fabric from the closet or store (can be white, colored or patterned); some embroidery thread and a needle. You may also need tracing paper if you are working with dark fabric.

First find an image you like. You can find something online and print it out at the appropriate size or draw something yourself. If you are working with an image online or a picture then make sure it is something you can easily trace into a recognizable outline, pattern or silhouette. If you have Photoshop and know how to use it, it is easy to convert your picture to a black and white image. You can also find predesigned cross stitch and embroidery patterns at craft stores. Either way your final product should be something that can be easily traced onto paper or fabric.

Since I was working with a thin, light fabric and a distinct black and white image I was able to tape the image and fabric to a window and trace lightly with a fine point fabric pen. If you working with a darker fabric or a detailed image you will want to copy it onto trace paper and pin it to your fabric. You will simply stitch the pattern through the trace paper and remove all pieces when complete. When your pattern is ready to sew, place your fabric on your embroidery hoop.

The next step is to start sewing. On this project I used a simple strait stitch because I wanted a fine outline, but there are all kinds of fun embroidery and cross stitches out there to use. If you are not yet a sewer or familiar with the different stitches click HERE to see examples.

When you are done sewing your image make sure it is centered and tight then cut off the access fabric. If you leave a small edge of fabric you can tuck it to the inside/back of the hoop and secure it with a hot glue gun. I painted my wooden hoop black and covered the back with black felt so it matched all my picture frames. This ended up being a nice touch and helped the image to stand out a bit. In all this project took me about two hours to complete including spraying the frame.

Here are a few other embroidery hoop projects to give you a little inspiration. I am particularly fond of the little hippo which was stitched with scrap fabric and felt on a sewing machine then placed in the hoop.