Instructions for Silk Ribbon Embroidery Stitches

Add detail with ribbon embroidery.

Embroidery is an age-old method of adding hand-sewn detail to items like clothing, pillow cases, and other linens. Today, embroidery may be more popular than ever. Embroidered details are found on all sorts of store objects, sometimes adding a premium to their price. Fortunatly, embroidery can be easy to learn, and uses a variety of inexpensive materials that you may already have lurking around your house. Ribbon embroidery is especially beautiful, and can be used to add texture to your project.

Things You'll Need

• Silk ribbon
• Embroidery needle
• Scissors
• Fabric

Instructions

Straight Stitch

1. Pierce the end of the ribbon with your needle, and then thread your needle with the length of ribbon. This will help secure your ribbon while you work.

2. Draw your needle up through your fabric from the wrong side (the side you won't see when your piece is finished). Pull it all the way through, leaving a 2 inch length of ribbon on the wrong side of your work (this will also help secure your finished embroidery).

3. Insert the needle into the fabric, and pull through. You can do this as close to where your drew your needle up as you would like, or as dictated in your embroidery pattern. You have now completed one straight stitch.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until your straight stitch embroidery is the length you would like it or that is stated in your embroidery pattern. To end, bring your ribbon through the fabric as in step 3, and cut it, leaving a 2 inch tail.

Stem Stitch

1. Thread your needle by piercing the end of your ribbon with the needle, then threading the length of the ribbon through the needle's eye.

2. Draw your needle up through the wrong side of the fabric. Pull the ribbon through the fabric, but leave a 2 inch tail on the wrong side to help secure your embroidery.

3. Insert your needle into your fabric horizontally; your needle should go in to the fabric from the right side, and also come out of the fabric on the right side, creating a stitch that is about 1/8 of an inch in length. Make sure this stitch is slightly above where you drew your needle through in step 2.

4. Repeat step 3, making horizontal stitches each very slightly above one another, until you reach your desired length of stitching or the length specified in your pattern.

French Knot

1. Thread your ribbon using the method previously described.

2. Bring your threaded needle through the wrong side of your fabric. Pull tightly, leaving a 2 inch length of ribbon on the backside of your work.

3. Hold your needle horizontally, and wrap the ribbon, loosely, around the needle two or three times.

4. Bring the needle, with the wrapped ribbon, back down through the fabric. Be sure to do this very close to where you drew the ribbon up in step 1. Pull firmly, but gently, until all the ribbon is through to the wrong side of your fabric and you've formed a knot on the right side. Repeat to make more french knots.

Tips & Warnings

• Any type of ribbon will work for ribbon embroidery, but you will achieve the best results with a higher-quality ribbon made from silk.

References

• Threads: Beginnerr's Silk-Ribbon Embroidery: Five Easy Stitches