How to Embroider Any Design on Clothing By Hand (Without Messing Up) (2024)

It turns out learning how to embroider is much easier than you think! And I have a simple hack (and free download) to help you complete your first embroidered piece of clothing.

I’ve been seeing simple line drawings of faces popping up everywhere recently. And I wanted to give this trend a try on a pair of jean shorts to see how it would look, with embroidery.

I ended up loving how they turned out, so I wanted to share the tutorial. Along with a trick I learned along the way that makes embroidered clothing designs pretty much fool-proof.

Click through to see how to make your own embroidered designs on clothing the easy way, etc. AND download this face drawing to copy this look to a tee, if you’re into it.

Learning How to Embroider By Hand

Learning how to do embroidery by hand is much easier than it sounds, especially with this embroidery hack that I’m sharing today.

After you get the hang of beginner embroidery like this, you’ll be skipping the embroidery guides in no time and going straight to freehand drawing on clothing.

And embroidering clothing that way.

This embroidery hack I’m sharing is a great start to embroidery, if you’re new to it.

And you can use this technique to create any design, drawing, or doodle you want. But I have a free download for this design below too, just in case you’d like to use it.

Is it hard to embroider?

There are more advanced embroidery stitches that can be more challenging to get the hang of, but the basics are actually quite easy.

And it’s also a super affordable hobby, considering you only need a few, inexpensive supplies to get started. Speaking of which…

What supplies do I need to get started with embroidery?

Well, for this beginner embroidery technique, you really only need a few supplies (listed below).

But once you give it a try and determine whether or not you want to keep up with this new skill, you can invest in a few more inexpensive items like an embroidery hoop, water soluble pen, etc.

Materials Needed to Embroider

• embroidery thread / floss
• embroidery needle (or any needle with a large enough eye for embroidery floss)
• pair of jeans, t-shirt, etc that you want to embroider on
• scissors
• straight pins
• tracing paper or printer paper
• (optional) face design printable

How to Embroider Clothing the Easy Way

Step 1: Draw a design or print out my free download.

Start by drawing a design onto a very thin piece of paper (tracing paper works great for this).

OR print out the downloadable face design hereonto thin printer paper.

Step 2: Cut around thedesign.

Next cut around the design, leaving some space all the way around, but not too much that you’d have a bulky area to have to sew around.

Step 3: Pin paper to clothing.

Then pin the paper to the clothing that you want to embroider, in the spot that you want the design to go.

Again, this is a moment where using tracing paper for the design comes in handy because you can see through it to figure out the placement of the design, in relation to pockets, seams, etc.

Step 4: Thread needle and knot the end.

Thread a needle with embroidery floss and then double or triple knot the end of a long piece of that floss.

Make it much longer than you think you’ll need and double the width if you want a bold / thick line like you see in the photos.

Step 5: Start embroidering.

Then start on the underside of the piece of clothing you’re using, so the knot won’t be visible.

And hand sew the design through the clothing and paper that has your design on it, as shown in the photo.

You can try any simple stitch that you feel most comfortable with.

The easiest / most basic embroidery stitches to try would be:

• Running Stitch: This stitch is also known as a straight stitch and is the most basic of embroidery stitches. For a running stitch, you will push the needle through one side and then back through the other side, leaving a small space in between each stitch. *This may not be the best stitch for this particular project, if you’re using the tracing paper or printer paper as your guide. Here’s an example of a running stitch.
• Back Stitch: A back stitch will create a solid line, which is perfect for this tracing paper design technique. To create a back stitch, you start with a simple stitch. Then skip the length of the first stitch for the second, and then go backward to attach the second stitch to the first, by going through the end of your last stitch. Here’s an example of a back stitch.
• Split Stitch:This is also a good stitch for the design and technique shared here. For a split stitch, create a simple stitch, then push your needle through the middle of the stitch you just made and create a new stitch. Repeat that process over and over again.Here’s an example of a split stitch.

Step 6: Knot the end of the thread onceagain.

Once the design is complete, tie a double or triple knot on the inside of the garment once again to secure the remaining end.

And snip off excess length.

Step 7: Rip paper away fromdesign.

Then, you can rip off the paper by hand and it’s ready to wear.

Be careful though. You don’t want to aggravate the embroidery floss design or cause it to fray / bunch up in any areas.

Photography Brittni Mehlhoff
Embroidery design and DIYing Cori Maass

Think you’ll give this DIY embroidery project a try? What other designs and or clothing pieces do you think would look cool for this concept?