DIY Embroidery Hoop Art

These adorable embroidery art hoops are one of my favourites to create. I’ve made a bunch of these in the past, with different quotes or friends’ names for gifts. They’re super cute and customisable!

All you’ll need to know for this beginner tutorial is how to back stitch (though if you’re more advanced at hand sewing, you might consider chain or stem stitches too). If you’re completely new to this, there are plenty of easy videos online to help you get the hang of your basic stitches.

What You’ll Need:- Various colours of embroidery thread- Embroidery needle- Embroidery hoop – this tutorial used a small 4 inch one- A piece of plain calico fabric- A pencil- Fabric scissors- Fabric/craft glueOptional:- A small paint brush- A piece of paper (to draft your design)- An eraser (sometimes your design isn’t perfect first-go!)- A marker pen (to make tracing your design onto the calico easier)Step 1: Using the inner circle of the embroidery hoop, trace a circle onto a piece of paper with a pencil. Inside that circle, draw/write a quote, name, design – anything! Outline with a marker pen.Step 2: Place the paper underneath the calico and trace your design onto it, leaving at least a few centimetres of blank calico around the edges. (If you’re confident about your ability to draw perfectly on your calico your first try, or better yet have a fabric pencil, you can omit these first two steps.)Step 3: Place your piece of calico on top of the inner embroidery hoop, and then place the outer hoop (the one that adjusts) on top of that, so that the fabric is caught in between. Tighten the outer hoop so that the fabric can no longer move around.Step 4: Pick a thread colour, cut to about 60cm long, and thread your needle. Tie a knot in the end by placing the tip of the thread on your index finger, holding it in place with your thumb, wrapping it around your finger once, and then rolling it off.Step 5: Use backstitch to sew over your outline. When you want to switch up colours, thread the needle under your work on the back, tie a knot, cut off your thread and go back to step 4! Keep any long threads you’ve tied off out of the way to avoid them getting caught up in your sewing.Step 6: When you’re all finished with your embroidery, trim the calico outside of the hoop, leaving about a centimetre of a border.