Folklore Punch Needle Embroidery
Designed by Debbie von Grabler-Crozier
Hand embroidery with a punch needle is a fiber art technique that involves looping yarn, floss or ribbon in the format of a pattern through fabric.
The Embroidery Stitching Tool and its accessories enable us to apply our desired fiber to any selected fabric easily and precisely.
Give punch needle embroidery a try with this beginner friendly project.
Gather these supplies
Tools
- Embroidery Stitching Tool – Art. No 8800
- Embroidery Stitching Tool Needle Refill (6-ply) – Art. No 8803
- Clover Embroidery Hoop (7in) – Art. No 8812
- Patchwork Scissors (Mini) – Art No. 493/CW
- Patchwork Scissors (Large) – Art No. 493/L
- Chacopen Blue with Eraser – Art. No 5013
- Protect and Grip Thimble (Art No. 6025-6027)
- 7in embroidery hoop for mounting
Materials
Fabric:
- Fat Quarter natural oatmeal twill cloth
- Fat Quarter felt for the backing
Tip: You will see a lot of the background cloth in this design so it is important to choose carefully. Other options might be linen or monks cloth with a fleck.
Everything Else
- Hand Sewing Needle
- Hot Glue Gun
- 6-8in twine for a hanging loop
- Pattern Template
- Threads
- You will need the following colors of thread: Teal in three shades (light, medium and dark), Red, Blue and Green
Here’s How:
Cut a piece of twill cloth larger all around than you 7in embroidery hoop
Tip: A rough square of 14in x 14in will do the trick
Transfer the pattern.
A great way to do this is to hold the template up to a sunny window and put the fabric over the top.
Trace with the Chacopen Blue with Eraser.
Place the pattern into the hoop and stretch so that it is nice and tight,
Thread the Embroidery Stitching Tool with your first color.
The color ideas are:
- For the heart: red
- For the commas: teal 1, 2 and 3 with the darkest on the bottom comma to make an ombré
effect - For the stem and stitch border: green
- For the tulip head: mustard yellow
Tip: You can make these patterns any color at all – black and white for example is non-traditional but really modern looking.
Stitch the design.
I have used only straight stitches for this design but combined in a few different ways.
The comma motifs are straight stitches with either one, two or three rows and the heart is two rows of straight and a cross stitch in the middle
Tip: This cross stitch is not meant to be perfect. It is made with a random zig-zag over the green border too.
Tip: If you are worried about the stitches coming loose, a small amount of white craft glue on the back of the work will fix the problem. This is especially important on bigger stitches like the border zig-zag stitch.
When you have finished stitching, put the embroidery into the bamboo hoop and center it nicely, pulling tight but ensuring that it is not distorted.
Trim the excess fabric to about 1 1/4in wide
Tip: It needs to come all the way around the back and allow a bit for the gathered edge.
Using the hand sewing needle and normal thread, gather the edge of the fabric with a running stitch.
Draw this in when you have reached the start point. Fasten off and trim the thread.
Place the embroidery face down onto a clean surface. Take the felt and the hot glue gun and hot glue the felt to the back to hide the gathering.
Use your scissors to trim the felt so that it follows the curve of the hoop.
Make a hanging loop from the twine.
© Debbie von Grabler-Crozier 2021
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