A Quick Guide to Hand Embroidery Stitches

Embroidery is a great skill to learn—you can use it to embellish so many items, from garments to pillows. Here’s a look at some basic stitches.

Running stitch | Bring thread up at 1 and down at 2, up at 3, and so on. Several stitches may be made at once by running the needle in and out of the fabric as shown.

Stem stitch | Bring the needle up at 1 and down at 2, up at 3, down at 4. Notice that each stitch begins halfway back by the previous stitch.

Chain stitch | Bring the needle up at 1 and down at the same spot. Looping the thread underneath the needle as shown, bring the needle back up at 2. Insert it in at 2 (inside the loop of the first stitch), and again loop the thread beneath the needle as before, bringing the needle out at 3. Secure the last loop of the chain with a tiny stitch.

To finish off your stitching | Bring the needle through to the wrong side of the fabric and weave it in along the back of the stitches for 1”-2". Trim excess thread.