Hello fellow embroiderer!
If you’ve found this blog post, then you’re likely someone who has already embroidered for a short while and have learnt the basics, and now you want to challenge yourself and elevate your embroidery projects just that little bit further.

Well you’ve come to the right place, friend!

In this blog post we’ll delve into 3 key aspects that are essential for achieving that extra flair to your overall finished embroidery projects.

Let’s thread our needles and dive right in!

Master the essentials first

Embroidery is a form of art that is built on a foundation of traditional stitches and techniques. These foundation points are the building blocks for all of your future creative endeavours in the embroidery world, whatever it is that you’re working on.

For that reason, it is absolutely essential that you’ve mastered the basics before moving on to anything more advanced.

If you aren’t correctly loading fabric into your hoop or having the correct tension with your stitching background, then I’m afraid the rest of the tips in this blog post may not really help you my friend! Properly loaded fabric ensures a smooth stitching surface, avoids puckering and distortion of your design, and also just helps you to enjoy the overall stitching experience!

Related Post: How to set up fabric in an embroidery hoop

And whilst we’re back to basics, it’s also key to ensure you’re accurately transferring your embroidery patterns. At the end of the day, whatever you get drawn onto fabric is how your design is likely to turn out! Those wonky lines and imperfect circles will certainly show up at the end.



Ensuring you’ve mastered the right tips for transferring your pattern will result in an overall elevated embroidery piece!

Related Post: How to transfer an embroidery pattern with heat erasable ink

Explore advanced stitches

Now that we’ve mastered the basics, it’s time to get to the good stuff!

One of the key ways to elevate your projects is to delve into the world of more advanced stitches. Don’t get me wrong, simple stitches like satin stitch, French knots and back stitch definitely have their place, even in the most complex embroidery designs! But, pushing your creative boundaries can propel your finished embroidery pieces just that little bit further.



Whether you want to explore 3D/textural stitches like the turkey stitch, padded satin stitch or loop stitch, or want to explore simple but quirky stitches like the four-legged knot and woven spider web, the beauty of embroidery are the hundreds of different stitches you can try out for yourself.

P.S. Did you know that we have an Embroidery Academy that teaches a bunch of embroidery stitches and techniques just like this? If you’re feeling overwhelmed to try them yourself, why not come and join us and learn them together, and share your thoughts and questions with our supportive community of like-minded creatives!

Playing with colour and blending

Now that you’ve really honed your stitching skills and techniques and explored a bunch of fun new stitches, another way to elevate your embroidery projects are to truly experiment with colour.

Truthfully, colour is one of my absolute favourite parts of embroidery! I could pick out colour palettes allll day every day. Just you try and stop me!



Anyway, colour choice can totally transform your embroidery, and can even help it go from good to extraordinary. They can truly set the tone of your piece!

Having a base understanding of colour theory can go a really long way here, as well as harnessing the full potential of how colour can evoke different moods, vibes and feelings. Don’t these warm-toned oranges, pinks and rusty browns make you feel so damn cosy?! Agh, I just want to snuggle up under a blanket with a cup of coffee! (and my embroidery project, of course!)



And whilst we’re on the topic of colour, don’t these colours just shout out feelings of an energetic summer, bright, fun and sunny, playful days?



Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and experiment with unique colour combinations that evoke some sorta feeling within you my friend! One of the best ways to develop your own signature style is by picking out colours that speak to you.


Lastly, you can also delve into the world of thread painting and blending your thread colours. The wonderful brand that is DMC have an awesome selection of thread colours, and a lot of them are variations of the same shade and tone. Pick out colours in the same colour families so that you can begin blending your colours for more realistic looking thread painting!



Are you feeling inspired, my friend? I sure am!!

By mastering those early essentials, exploring new stitches and playing around with colour, you can continue to be inspired with every stitch that you make!

Psssstt.. want some help with the above? Come and join us at the Bloom Embroidery Academy! We cover a bunch of fun embroidery stitches, techniques and extra tips and tricks to elevate your embroidery skills. Beginner no more, my friend!

Happy stitching!