This project by Clare Albans from Hello! Hooray! is designed to celebrate your inner strength. Featuring three positive mantras, it shows you that you are strong, you are loved and you are enough. It’s super easy to stitch this onto a t-shirt, or you could use it on a bag, some dungarees or even to display in an embroidery hoop. However you decide to stitch and display it, Clare hopes that the process of stitching this design will be a reminder to you that you are amazing, and that you don’t need to compare yourself to anyone else!
Material:
- embroidery thread
- set of embroidery needles
- embroidery ring 9 cm
- needle threader
- "Aquatrick" marker pen
- T-Shirt
- Template “The Power within” [download]
Project instructions:
1. Print out the template, and secure it to a flat surface. Place a piece of creative interfacing over the top, and use the Aqua Trick pen to trace the design. Trim around the design, leaving plenty around the edges so that there is enough of the interfacing to fit in the embroidery hoop.
2.Place the interfacing in position on your t-shirt. Put the inner ring of the hoop inside the garment, with the outer ring on top. Push down and tighten the screw on the hoop, making sure the interfacing stays flat and in the correct position.
3. Stitch the hand using three strands of thread. Using the Prym needle threader means you’ll thread your needle in no time! The design is mainly stitched with backstitch. Make a small stitch to start, and following the lines come up to the side to make one the same size. Go back through the fabric in the same place the previous stitch ended to create a continuous line of stitching. Use a small satin stitch to add some colourful nail polish.
4. After stitching the hand, add some more colour to your project in the lettering. You could really make it your own by choosing your own colours here! The lettering is also stitched in backstitch, but with two strands of thread and slightly smaller stitches.
5. The final details in the stitching can be added by wiping the backstitches. Bring the needle up at the end of your backstitches, and pass it through each stitch (from the same side each time) without going through the fabric. Add a few small French knots to finish.
6. The last step is to rinse off the creative interfacing in water. Leave the t-shirt to dry, before ironing around (but not over) the embroidery. Then it’s ready to wear!
Bio
Clare Albans – Hello! Hooray!
Clare Albans is a maker, blogger and author based in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. She creates colourful, fun embroidery kits, teaches hand embroidery workshops from her studio and runs a small haberdashery shop.