Ribbon Embroidery How To

Learn how to create various ribbon embroidery stitches with our simple tutorial and diagrams.

Straight Stitch
Always use a chenille needle for ribbon embroidery. Be sure the 4mm silk ribbon is needle-locked into the eye to prevent it from slipping out of the large eye. Trim ribbon end at a 45-degree angle before threading. Use any tight even-weave fabric, including moire, douppioni silk, linen, cotton brocade, velvet, and denim. -- Bring your needle up at A, and pull it through. -- Insert your needle down at B, about 1/4 inch from A, and pull it through.

Ribbon Stitch

-- Bring your needle up at A, and pull it through. -- With the ribbon flat on the fabric, insert your needle at B, piercing the ribbon, and slowly pull it through. The ribbon will curl where the needle was inserted so don't pull tightly or you'll lose the effect. To vary the curl, pierce the ribbon to the right or left of center.

Stem Stitch
-- Bring your needle up at A, and pull it through. -- Insert your needle at B, about 1/2 inch from A. Holding ribbon below your stitching line, bring your needle back up at C, about 1/8 inch from B, and pull it through. Continue in the same manner, making sure the ribbon is always held below the stitching line.

French knot

-- Bring your needle up at A, the point where the knot is desired, and pull it through. -- Holding the needle parallel to the fabric, wrap the ribbon around it two to three times. Insert the tip of the needle at B, a thread or two from A. Gently slide wrapped ribbon down the needle to meet the fabric, and pull the needle and trailing ribbon through.

Lazy Daisy Stitch

-- Bring your needle up at A, and pull it through. -- Form a loop of ribbon on the fabric surface. Holding the loop in place, insert the needle at B, a thread of two away from A. Bring the needle tip out at C and cross it over the trailing ribbon, keeping the ribbon as flat as possible. Gently pull the needle and trailing ribbon through until the loop lies flat against the fabric. Push the needle through to the back at D to secure the loop.

Loop Stitch
Bring your needle up and pull it through. Insert your needle tip into the fabric about 1/8 inch from where it came up. Form a loop of ribbon on the surface of the fabric and hold the loop in place as you pull the needle and trailing ribbon through. Continuing to hold the loop in place, bring the needle back up through the ribbon at the base of the loop.

Woven Rose
-- Thread a needle with sewing thread that matches your silk ribbon. Stitch a foundation of five straight stitches in the pattern of wheel spokes. -- Thread a needle with the silk ribbon. Working from the center out, bring the needle up at A, and pull it through. Weave the ribbon through the thread spokes by sliding the needle and ribbon alternately over and under the thread without piercing the fabric. Continue weaving until the spokes are full. Pull the ribbon loosely, allowing twists in the ribbon here and there. -- Insert the needle at D, pull it through, and knot.
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Beautiful Embroidery Projects

Turn ready-made basics into prettily patterned heirlooms with vibrantly hued silk ribbon embroidery.

Pretty Embroidered Heart Table Runner

Enhance your home decor by embellishing a damask runner with hearts and flowers. A water-soluble pattern supplies a wash-away foundation for this charming composition of French knots and lazy daisy stitches. Instructions for Table Runner

Hearts and Flowers Embroidered Table Runner

Enhance your decor by embellishing a damask runner with ribbon-embroidered hearts and flowers. Damask table runner

Table Runners

A table runner beautifully introduces color and texture to your dining room table as it protects the table from scratches and spills. Choose from among the endless colors, patterns, and sizes to buy a table runner that coordinates with your dinnerware and expresses your personal style. Water-soluble marking pen Dissolvable stabilizer Black extra-fine-tip permanent marker Straight pins Beading thread 6-inch embroidery hoop Needles: embroidery and #20 chenille 4-millimeter silk ribbon: light pink, dark pink, yellow, and green Buttonhole silk-twist thread: green Wet cloth Matching sewing thread Lightweight fusible interfacing

Hearts and Flowers Embroidered Table Runner

Enhance your decor by embellishing a damask runner with ribbon-embroidered hearts and flowers.

1. Fold the table runner in half lengthwise and place several marks along the fold

with the water-soluble pen to indicate the center of the runner. Using the photo as a guide, draw a pattern onto two pieces of dissolvable stabilizer with the permanent marker; set one pattern aside. Center the remaining pattern on the front of one end of the table runner; pin in place. Use beading thread to baste the pattern to the runner. Place that end of the runner in an embroidery hoop, if desired, taking care not to tear the stabilizer. All embroidery will be through both the stabilizer and the runner. 2. Starting at the bottom of the design, use light pink ribbon to make French knots, loosely wrapping the ribbon one time around the needle. Complete all the light pink French knots on the pattern. Use dark pink ribbon to embroider the flowers by making six to eight lazy daisy stitches, leaving the centers open. Knot and cut the ribbon before continuing on to the next flower. Stitch four or five French knots at the center of each flower with yellow ribbon, loosely wrapping the ribbon one time around the needle for

each knot. Thread the embroidery needle with a 20-inch length of green silk-twist thread; knot the end. Stem-stitch the leaf stems; knot the thread when stems are complete. For leaves, make lazy daisy stitches with green ribbon. 3. Remove the basting thread from the stabilizer and trim away as much of the stabilizer as possible. Blot the ribbon embroidery with a wet cloth to remove any stabilizer underneath the stitches. Allow the runner to dry. Repeat the embroidery on the opposite end of the runner. When the runner is dry, tack to secure the ribbon ends on the back and trim the tails. Cut a piece of lightweight fusible interfacing and fuse to the back of the runner over the embroidery. Learn to Make These Stitches

Table Runner Detail

For the table runner, one-wrap French knots stitched in pastel pink add punctuation points of interest around deeper rose-hue flowers sculpted from six to eight lazy-daisy petals and French-knot centers. Green silk lazy-daisy leaves complete the heart shape, and silk-twist-thread stems at the base of the heart fill out the botanical grouping.

Monogram Embroidered Pillow

Promote signature style with an oh-so-dainty floral-spray monogram. Use a Victorianstyle initial rubber stamp to create a pillow-top template for embroidered ribbon roses, buds, and leaves. Sweeten the view with a smattering of tiny pearls. Instructions for Pillow

Monogram Ribbon Embroidery Pillow

Promote signature style with an oh-so-dainty floral spray embroidered monogram. Initial rubber stamp Water-erasable ink pad Sheets of white paper Teal douppioni silk pillow 6-inch embroidery hoop Needles: embroidery, #20 chenille, #10 beading Buttonhole silk-twist thread: green Cotton embroidery floss: pink 4-millimeter silk ribbon: pink, light mauve, deep mauve, pale yellow, purple, pale blue, and variegated green 7-millimeter silk ribbon: gold 2-millimeter white or ivory pearls Beading thread Cotton swabs Teal sewing thread

Monogram Ribbon Embroidery Pillow

Promote signature style with an oh-so-dainty floral spray embroidered monogram.

1. Open the seam at the bottom of the pillow and remove the stuffing. Lay the

rubber stamp, design side up, on a hard surface. Press the ink pad onto the rubber stamp. Practice stamping the image onto white paper to ensure that the stamp is properly coated with ink. When you're comfortable with your stamping, determine the center of the pillow front and stamp the initial onto the center of the pillow. Place the pillow front in the embroidery hoop with the initial centered. 2. Thread the embroidery needle with a 20-inch length of green silk-twist thread; knot one end. Stem-stitch the outline of the initial and the small stems and make lazy-daisy-stitch leaves. Make woven rose stitches using pink cotton embroidery floss and one or more of the 4-millimeter silk ribbons in pink, light mauve, and deep mauve. Stitch loop stitches with 7-millimeter gold silk ribbon. Use assorted silk ribbons and the ribbon stitch to make remaining flowers and buds. Embroider all leaves with the ribbon stitch and 4-millimter variegated green silk ribbon. Add the French knots using all the colors of 4- and 7-millimeter silk ribbon, loosely wrapping the ribbon around the needle one time.

Use beading thread and the beading needle to attach a pearl to each gold loop stitch and rose. 3. When the embroidery is complete, remove any visible stamp marks with a dampened cotton swab. Insert the stuffing back into the pillow. Slip-stitch he opening closed with matching sewing thread.

Detail of Pillow
A teal pillow beautifully showcases a chromatic cascade of diverse flower shapes that form the S. Pink and mauve stitched roses highlight the center of the letter. Bellshape and multiple-petal blooms in pink, blue, and mauve ribbon follow the letter's curves. Petite buds, rendered with French knots, line up along embroidered stems sprouting ribbon-stitched leaves.

Pansy Embroidered Napkin

Fresh-faced pansies add touches of good cheer to these special-occasion napkins. These pansies are stitched through a water-soluble pattern. Place the fabric and pattern in an embroidery hoop to stabilize the stitching surface, which will make it easier to create the straight-stitch ribbon petals, French-knot flower centers, and smaller ribbon and silk-thread details. Instructions for Napkin

Pansy Embroidered Napkin

Fresh-faced pansies add touches of good cheer to these special-occasion napkins.

Ribbon Embroidery Instructions

Solvy dissolvable stabilizer Black extra-fine-tip permanent marker White damask napkin Straight pins Beading thread 6-inch embroidery hoop Needles: #20 chenille, #10 embroidery, #10 beading 7millimeter silk ribbon: purple and pink 4millimeter silk ribbon: gold, lime green, and green Buttonhole silk-twist: pink, green, and lime green Wet cloth or cotton swab Lightweight fusible interfacing

Pansy Embroidered Napkin

Fresh-faced pansies add touches of good cheer to these special-occasion napkins. 1. Using the photo as a guide, draw a bouquet pattern onto a piece of dissolvable stabilizer with the permanent marker. Pin the stabilizer pattern to the front of the napkin, positioning it in one corner as desired. Use the beading thread to baste the pattern to the napkin. All stitching will be through both the stabilizer and the napkin. Place the napkin in the embroidery hoop, taking care not to tear the stabilizer. 2. Embroider the large pansies one at a time, beginning at the center of the bouquet and working outward. For each pansy, make seven loose straight stitches for petals, five with purple silk ribbon and two with pink silk ribbon. Add a French knot at the center of the petals with gold silk ribbon, loosely wrapping the ribbon around the needle one time. Use the embroidery needle to make a small straight stitch with pink silk-twist thread on top of the purple petals. For the small pansy buds, make four small straight stitches, one purple, one pink, and two lime green. For the larger leaves use the ribbon stitch with lime green on one side and green on the other side. Using green and lime-green silk-twist thread and the embroidery needle, stem-

stitch stems throughout the design and add small lazy daisy stitches for the leaves on the stems at the center bottom of the design. Make ribbon stitches for the individual leaves on the stems among the flowers with the lime-green and green silk ribbons. 3. Remove the basting thread from the stabilizer and trim away as much of the stabilizer as possible. Blot the embroidery with a wet cloth or cotton swab to remove any stabilizer underneath the stitches. When the napkin is dry, tack to secure the ribbon ends on the back and trim the tails. Cut a piece of lightweight fusible interfacing and fuse to the back of the napkin over the embroidery.

Napkins

Napkins are not only a dining essential but also add color and texture to your dining room or kitchen table. Cloth napkins lend sophistication to a formal meal and offer an environment-friendly option to paper. Available in endless color and pattern choices, cloth napkins suit any style and occasion.

Detail of Napkin
Flowers are always pretty, but the lushly embroidered greenery gives these napkins a realistic air. Applying two different colors of green ribbon with a ribbon stitch adds lifelike dimension to the leafy sprigs that radiate out from the pansies. Meandering

stem stitches, sewn with silk-twist thread in two shades of green, supply stemlike supports for smaller blooms and leaves.

Posy Embroidered Cocktail Coaster

Gussy up linen cocktail napkins with rings of posies stitched along the hemstitch edge. Instructions for Coaster

Posy Embroidered Cocktail Coaster

Gussy up linen cocktail napkins with rings of posies embroidered along the hemstitch edge. 6-inch pink linen napkin Water-soluble marking pen One dime Needles: embroidery, #20 chenille Buttonhole silk-twist thread: variegated green 4-millimeter silk ribbon: pink, yellow, and green Cotton swabs
Ribbon Embroidery Instructions

Posy Embroidered Cocktail Coaster

Gussy up linen cocktail napkins with rings of posies embroidered along the hemstitch edge. 1. Use the water-soluble marking pen to trace around the dime at each corner of the napkin and at the center of each side. Thread the embroidery needle with a 20-inch length of variegated green silktwist thread; knot one end. Beginning at the bottom of a circle, stem-stitch on the drawn line. When the circle is complete, knot the ribbon on the back and cut the thread. Repeat for each circle. 2. Use pink silk ribbon to embroider two flowers at the bottom of each circle. To create a flower, make four or five small straight stitches, each approximately 1/8 inch long, being careful to keep the ribbon from twisting. Knot and cut the ribbon when the two flowers are complete. Add a French knot at the center of each flower, loosely wrapping the yellow ribbon around the chenille needle one time. For the leaves, make tiny straight stitches with green silk ribbon, placing two among the flowers and four pairs around each circle. 3. When the embroidery is complete, remove any visible water-soluble marks with a dampened cotton swab. Trim any ribbon tails on the back of the napkin. Protect your embroidered piece by fusing a piece of lightweight fusible interfacing to the back of the embroidery.

Detail of Coaster
Using variegated silk-twist thread, stem-stitch a circle on each corner of the napkin and midway on each side. Finish each circle with straight-stitch flowers and leaves to create wreaths.