Studio

Welcome to my sewing studio

Here I’ll be adding tutorials & embroidery & sewing tips

Explore designs & collections, watch test sew outs, find alternative colour ways & layout ideas.

I aim to create designs that give you great results, you can create artisan embroidery by mixing & matching designs. My designs are hand drawn & digitally edited for smooth sewing & excellent tension, the images shown are of actual sewn designs.

Embroidery formats .JEF .PES .SEW .VIP .XXX
Designs with over 12 thread changes .HUS replaces .SEW
Designs in different sizes have been individually edited for quality & I recommend you only resize files 10% to limit distortions & alignment issues.

Sewing stuff:
_{Click on the arrows for information & tips}

Colour information

Information sheet

On your information sheet you will find your design image & information including size, number of stitches & colour changes & the total amount of thread required.

Like many of us I have a thread collection from many companies, I have colour matched to Coats Alcazar, rayon thread range so you can match colours with your own threads. Be bold & experiment with colours ranges to suit your preferences.

The design sequence shows you each section & it’s colour to help you plan. Sometimes the same colour is used more than once in a design, this is necessary for building up the layers of the design.
Altering the colour sequence to reduce thread changes isn’t recommended as the sewing order has been carefully planned & tested for the best results

Additional information is a general guide for fabric & stabilizer types similar to that used with my sample sews.

Colour chart

Reference index
_{A handy guide to compare colours}

Hooping hints

Dense embroidery & long stitches can pull in your fabric causing misalignment issues & puckering.
You can prevent your embroidery pulling in by adding 2 sided sticky tape to the outer edges of your inner hoops.
Always check the underneath of your hooped fabric for any stray fabric that may get trapped as you set the hoops.
Tighten carefully, don’t over tighten your hoops & they’ll last longer.
Tape will last for several hoopings depending on how fluffy your fabric is, replace as needed & clean with spirits

Add 2 sided tape to the outer edges of your inner hoop
Cover the center sections on all 4 edges
Remove the tape covers from the inner hoop
Place your stabilizer & fabric over your outer hoop
Place your inner hoop into the outer hoop & pull up the fabric so the tape holds it firm
Set your inner hoop down into place, don’t over stretch the fabric, just pull out until smooth.

Make an iron on patch, quick notes:

Use 2 sided iron on interfacing, hot web or badge glue
Cut a piece of backing slightly larger than the embroidered area of the patch
Use baking paper to protect your patch from scorching
Use a hot iron on cotton setting to set the backing to the patch, using the baking paper to prevent scorching & glue on your iron
Wait until cold to remove the backing paper
Use small curved scissors to cut out close to the edge of the embroidery
Fraying can be trimmed back & neaten the edge with a little heat from a lighter in a well ventilated area. Polyester will shrink back, be careful not to burn.
Your patch is ready to set in place:
Put your patch in place & heat set using baking paper to protect your fabrics from scorching
Use pressure as you iron
Leave to cool, glues will stick to natural fabrics better than synthetics.
Sew around the edge of your patch to attach permanently using free motion or applique stitch.

FSL, quick notes:

Use 1 or 2 layers of wash away stabiliser.
To avoid misalignment issues & puckering, use 2 sided tape on the inner hoop. See hooping hints.
Use the same colour as the outline edge as your bobbin thread
Embroider your design.
Remove from the hoop & trim away excess stabiliser & loose threads.
Rinse away excess stabiliser.
Soak lace in hand hot water for 5-20 minutes, the longer it soaks the more stabiliser residue is removed & the softer it gets.
Squeeze excess stabiliser out until it no linger feels sticky.
Drip dry, re soak if required to soften further.