Step by Step Guides

Buzzing Bouquet

Welcome to our step by step guide for your Buzzing Bouquet embroidery kit! I'm so grateful that you've chosen to try embroidery with one of our kits.

This step-by-step guide can be used in addition to or instead of your paper instructions. The benefit of this guide is that each stitch tutorial is listed below, making it even easier to complete your piece without stress!

If you find yourself having any trouble with stitches, reach out to me at hello@craftclubco.com to book a one-on-one 'help me!' session.

Without further ado, LETS GET STITCHING! 

 

Prepping Your Hoop & Thread

Before beginning your kit, you'll be setting up your hoop and threading your needle.

Setting Up Your Hoop

  • To put your fabric into your hoop, separate the inner and outer hoop by loosening the metal screw at the top. 
  • Place your inner hoop (the one without the metal piece) under your fabric, roughly centering your design in the middle. Then place your outer ring on top of the fabric.
  • Use the screw to tighten the hoop until the fabric is taut like a drum. This can take a bit of time. Start by screwing it a little tighter, then adjust the fabric, then screw again before finally pulling the fabric so it's nice and tight in the hoop.
  • Don't worry if the design isn't perfectly in the middle of the hoop, as you'll be able to adjust it after you've completed!

Threading Your Needle

  • Your thread comes as six individual strands combined to make one string. When stitching we will often split the string and used the desired number of strands for the stitch.
  • Cut approximately 60cm (or roughly an arms length) of thread then separate the number of strands you'll need for the following stitch.
  • For your very first step you'll need 6 strands of your #3052 (Sage Green) thread. Because each string already has 6 strands, this means you won't need to split the strands for this step. When you move on to the satin stitch however, you'll be splitting the thread in half into 3x strands.

  • Use one of your pink needle threaders to thread your needle, pulling the thread partially through the needle. Don't pull the thread all the way through to the middle, just enough so it feels secure and your needle won't slide away.
  • Then tie a knot at the end of your thread. You can do a double knot if you like, but just a single knot is usually enough for the type of linen included in your kit.

 

Beginning Your Buzzing Bouquet

For this piece you'll be using 7x beautiful stitches plus making a cute 3D bow at the end. Each of these stitches is great to have in your stitch 'toolbox' because they're commonly used in other patterns. Meaning that you'll be able to stitch a range of floral pieces after completing your Buzzing Bouquet.

Stitches Included:

  • Straight Stitch
  • Split Stitch
  • Satin Stitch
  • Lazy Daisy Stitch
  • Whip Stitch (aka Whipped Back Stitch)
  • Stem Stitch
  • French Knots

Step 1

We're going to start this piece by stitching your first long stem with leaves. The stem is stitched using SPLIT STITCH with 6 strands of #3052 (sage green) thread. The leaves are filled using a SATIN STITCH with 3 strands of thread.

You'll stitch this style of leaf in a 'fan' shape like this illustration. Each of the stitches will meet at the same point, creating a triangular shape for the leaf.

Split Stitch Video Tutorial - by Penguin & Fish

Satin Stitch Video Tutorial - by Cutesy Craft

 

Step 2

Next you'll stitch the 3x red flowers using LAZY DAISY stitch. These flowers use 6 strands of #3777 (red) thread. The centre of your flowers will be stitched with FRENCH KNOTS, using 3 strands of #3776 (orange) thread. Practice a few french knots on a scrap piece of fabric before stitching these onto your piece. If you're finding them tricky, leave them til the end.

Lazy Daisy Video Tutorial - By Cutesy Crafts

For the Satin Stitch Tutorial, see Step 1. 

 

Step 3

To create your orange flowers, you'll use a SATIN STITCH with 3 strands of #3776 (orange) thread. Stitch your flower petals first before filling in the centre area.

To fill in your middle, you'll be making tiny FRENCH KNOTS using 3 strands of #3822 (yellow). Instead of twisting the thread around your needle 2 times, you'll only twist it around once to make a mini knot. Fill the space as much as you can, there's no specific number of knots you should create. Add more until you feel happy with the look!

French Knot Video Tutorial - by River Birch Threads

For the Satin Stitch Tutorial, see Step 1.

 

Step 4

Now you'll move on to your light and darker orange flowers, using 3 strands for both colours. Start with your #3854 (light orange) thread and fill in the rounded shape of the petals using a SATIN STITCH. Next, use your #3776 (orange) thread to fill in the centres with SATIN STITCH, working vertically.

For the Satin Stitch Tutorial, see Step 1.

 

Step 5

Next you'll be filling in some of the stems in your bouquet using a WHIP STITCH and 3 strands of thread. Begin with the long straight stems of your pink and orange flowers using #936 (olive green). Stitch the leaves using SATIN STITCH, like you did for step 1. But this time your leaves will be a bit more elongated.

Use WHIP STITCH to create the lines of the stems on the right side of your bouquet. Use the same stitch to outline the curved leaves. Make sure to stitch your back-stitches smaller where the lines curve, this will create smooth lines on your piece.

Back Stitch Video Tutorial - by Mary Corbet

Whip Stitch (aka Whipped Back Stitch) Video Tutorial - by Cutesy Craft 

For the Satin Stitch Tutorial, see Step 1.

 

Step 6

The next section of leaves will be using a STEM STITCH and 3 strands of thread. Start with the stems on the left side of your bouquet using #3052 (sage green) thread. Then stitch the leaves using LAZY DAISY stitch, these daisies are quite tightly pulled to make them longer and thinner rather than rounded. Next stitch the lazy daisy leaves and stems on the right side, including the ones with #936 (olive green) thread.

Stem Stitch Video Tutorial - by Cutesy Crafts

For the Lazy Daisy Stitch Tutorial, see Step 2.

 

Step 7

Now for your buzzing bees! Begin by stitching the full body with 3 strands of #3822 (yellow) SATIN STITCH, then use 3 strands of #310 (black) to STRAIGHT STITCH the lines on the body and antenna. You'll then use 6 strands of #B5200 (white) thread to make wings using LAZY DAISY stitch. To finish off your bees use STRAIGHT STITCH to make the white lines trailing behind the bee.

Straight Stitch Video Tutorial - by American Quilting

For the Satin Stitch Tutorial see Step 1.

For the Lazy Daisy Stitch Tutorial see Step 2.

 

Step 8

Now onto your yellow blossom flowers! These create a beautiful effect around your bouquet. Begin by stitching the stems using STRAIGHT STITCH and 3 strands of #3052 (sage green) thread.

For your FRENCH KNOT blossoms you'll be using 3 strands of #3822 (yellow) thread, and twisting the thread around your needle 2 times.You can make your knots following the dots on your pattern as a guide, but feel free to add extra knots to add more texture to your piece! Practice makes perfect so you'll be a french knot pro by the time you're done.

For the Straight Stitch Tutorial, see Step 7.

For the French Knot Tutorial, see Step 3.

 

Step 9

You're almost finished! The last step is to tie up your bouquet in a bow ... literally!

Using 6 strands of your #B5200 (white) thread, create a number of lines across the stems of your bouquet using STRAIGHT STITCH. You want it to look like string holding the stems.

Then cut a piece of thread about 30cm long and use your needle to tie it to one of the straight stitches you just made. Tie it in a knot, securing your thread in place leaving about 15cm of thread either side. Tie the tails into a bow. You can make the bow larger at first, and readjust it slowly to make it smaller in size. When you're happy with the shape, trim the tails of the bow and you're done! Yay!

For the Straight Stitch Tutorial, see Step 7.

 

You've Finished Your Masterpiece!

Washing Your Piece

If there are blue lines from the pattern still visible when you've finished your piece, it's time to give it a rinse. If you can't see any blue lines (or they're small enough not to be noticeable) skip this step and go straight to backing your hoop!

To wash your lines off, take your fabric out of the hoop and rinse under warm water. You can gently rub the ink with your fingers to remove it. If the ink is being stubborn you can even rinse your fabric with a mild soap.

Once it's clean, leave your piece to dry on a flat on a hand towel away from direct sunlight. You can also press another hand towel gently on top of it to soak up excess water.

 

Ironing Your Piece

If your piece is very wrinkled, you may want to iron it. Generally, you won't need to do this unless it's very creased because the action of tightening the fabric in your hoop will remove small wrinkles.

Place your embroidered piece upside down on a towel on top of your ironing board. You want the back of your embroidery facing upwards. Next place a tea towel on top of your embroidered piece, to protect it from the direct heat of the iron.

Iron your piece on a medium setting, checking your piece as you go. If the creases are stubborn you can increase the setting of your iron, as linen and cotton are okay with higher temperatures. I always suggest doing this gradually, rather than going in straight away with full heat, as the last thing you want to do is burn your piece!

 

Backing Your Hoop

  • When you've finished your design, it's time to back your hoop so it's ready to display! Before backing, make sure your design is centred in the hoop.
  • With your hoop facing down, cut off your excess fabric, leaving approx. 1.5cm around the edge of your hoop.
  • Using approx. 70cm of any thread colour, thread your needle and tie a knot at the end.
  • Starting at the top of the hoop, we are going to use a running stitch around the hoop, across the excess fabric. When you've reached the top again, you can pull the thread firmly to pull the fabric towards the middle. This will stop it from showing at the front.

  • Once it's tight, secure your thread at the top with a knot. You can even knot the two ends of the thread together - just make sure they're as tight as possible so that the fabric at the back lies flat.
  • If you find the fabric is bunching up a bit, simply sit your embroidery piece under something heavy like a book for a few hours. This will flatten the fabric at the back, and make your hoop sit flush when you want to display it.

 

And you're done! Congratulations on finishing your Buzzing Bouquet embroidery piece. I hope you had a fantastic experience stitching it! 

Nakisah x

Craft Club's Founder

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