About

Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more

Contact Mary

Connect with Mary

     

Archives

2025 (80) 2024 (135) 2023 (125) 2022 (136) 2021 (130) 2020 (132) 2019 (147) 2018 (146) 2017 (169) 2016 (147) 2015 (246) 2014 (294) 2013 (294) 2012 (305) 2011 (306) 2010 (316) 2009 (367) 2008 (352) 2007 (225) 2006 (139)
 

Gingham Embroidery Tutorial: Watermelon!

 

Amazon Books

Here’s a fun project for summer stitching! If you’re familiar with chicken scratch embroidery, I think you’ll love this adorable chicken scratch border that features watermelons embroidered on gingham with chicken scratch techniques.

If you’re not familiar with chicken scratch, no problem! It’s a very simple style of embroidery that creates a lacy look on gingham fabric. You can learn all about it through these articles, tutorials, and projects for chicken scratch embroidery. So many possibilities with this humble, pretty, embroidery style!

Gingham Embroidery, chicken scratch tutorial - watermelon
Continue reading “Gingham Embroidery Tutorial: Watermelon!”

Goldwork Jewelry – Kits Give-Away!

 

To kick off the month of August and the first week therein, I thought this morning a good time for a give-away!

On Friday, I mentioned Tanja Berlin’s new Etsy shop, where she’s offering kits and digital downloads for a number of her designs, including some neat little goldwork and metal thread embroidered jewelry pieces.

I can think of several reasons for wanting these kits, though they might not be the reasons you’d expect. I’ll let you in on them below!

Tanja thought I might want to give away a couple of the kits to readers here on Needle ‘n Thread, so today I’m giving away one of each. Read on to see how to enter the give-away. It’s quite simple, I promise.

Goldwork Embroidery Kit: Pendant
Continue reading “Goldwork Jewelry – Kits Give-Away!”

Needlework News Snips – July’s End!

 

Well, we’ve come to the end of July.

I’m not sure exactly where the month went. Probably lost in the dryer with half my socks, I suppose.

Let’s end the month with some needlework news snips for your weekend reading and enjoyment, shall we?

This is the perfect time to pour yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea and pull up for a relaxing little break. I’ll share some information, inspiration, and new stuff out in the embroidery world with you.

Come, join me. Let’s explore!

Needlework News Snips - July, 2015
Continue reading “Needlework News Snips – July’s End!”

Changing the Size of French Knots

 

My little secret pleasure this week has been working on this embroidered tree. When I’m supposed to be doing Other Things, I find myself picking this up and putting in just a few (or so) little stitches.

I overcome the guilt by telling myself that at least I’m accomplishing Something.

Besides, it’s fun to watch it bloom!

Because I’m using a non-divisible thread on this wee tree (specifically, coton a broder #25), I’ve been playing around with different ways to change the size of the French knot blossoms.

I thought I’d share some tips with you on how to successfully vary the size of French knots when you’re working with one thread.

Hand Embroidered Blooming Tree with French Knot blossoms
Continue reading “Changing the Size of French Knots”

Daisy Stitch Petals with Beads – Working Around the Chain Stitch Problem

 

It seems quite a few of us have taken to adding beads to our embroidery lately, incorporating some of the recent Stitch Fun! tutorials here and there in current projects.

I know this is the case – and that I’m not the only fiddling with beads now – because I’m receiving lots of emails with questions about adding beads to this stitch or that stitch, or about how to get this stitch to work right with beads, or about what size bead to use with that thread for this stitch, and other similar bead-related questions. I love these kinds of questions, and thanks for sending them in!

But I can rarely answer them all via email, in detail, so I’ve been keeping a list. If I can work out a tutorial that will answer your question and make it available for everyone here on the website, I will.

One particular question that’s come into the inbox repeatedly is how to make a daisy-stitch-like loop that looks like normal petals or leaves when working it with beads. Since the stitch is a pretty popular one in general, I thought I’d answer that question right here.

There are a couple ways that you can work chain stitch and detached chain stitch with beads and get a decent result. Today, I’m going to show you the simplest approach to making a daisy stitch loops with beads.

flat chain stitch line worked with beads
Continue reading “Daisy Stitch Petals with Beads – Working Around the Chain Stitch Problem”

Branching Out with Split Stitch

 

Split stitch gets a bad rap.

It’s a great little stitch – one of the basic hand embroidery stitches – but every time I bring it up on Needle ‘n Thread, I get an influx of anti-split-stitch commentary.

Some people just don’t like the poor little split stitch!

When I wrote about this monogram worked in split stitch with floche, at least a dozen people commented or wrote in about their dislike of the stitch in general.

So today, I thought I’d write in defense of split stitch, using a small sample project I’m working on to illustrate. I’ll share with you some tips that might make you like split stitch better, and that might encourage you to give this versatile, easy stitch a second chance!

Embroidered tree worked with split stitch
Continue reading “Branching Out with Split Stitch”

Embroidery Design Transitions from Old to New

 

I’m so glad so many of you enjoyed the resources from Antique Pattern Library that I posted last Friday!

Antique Pattern Library is really a gem of a resource, worth bookmarking and checking often for updates. Because they’re entirely a non-profit work, it’s also worth supporting them if you’re able. And they make it very easy to donate through Paypal – it takes about a whole two seconds. If you make use of APL, do consider a donation. No matter the amount, anything helps to keep the endeavor afloat.

Here’s a question that came into my inbox over the weekend:

Mary, you mention using these old embroidery books for inspiration. There are some embroideries in them that I think would make good patterns that I’d like to use, but how do you make them into a design if they don’t have a design in the book? How do you make the designs that you have on your website?

I thought I’d address these two different questions here, in case others are wondering the same thing!

Rose Swirl - Hand Embroidery Pattern
Continue reading “Embroidery Design Transitions from Old to New”