Easy Breezy Blooms Embroidered Tote

Welcome to our step by step guide for your Easy Breezy Blooms embroidered tote 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 use 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) inside your tote, roughly centering around the area you'd like to work on.
Place the outer hoop on top of the inner hoop, over your tote bag. Make sure you're doing this on a flat hard surface as it ill make it much easier to push the outer hoop down.
Use the screw to tighten the hoop until the fabric as much as you can. With regular embroidery you'll want your fabric taut like a drum, but for your canvas tote you'll just want it as tight as is comfortable. The cotton canvas has more structure than linen, meaning that your hoop can be a little bit looser and not cause the stitches to wrinkle.
Adjusting the hoop can take a bit of time. Start by screwing it a little tighter, then adjust the fabric, then screw again. You want the hoop to feel secure on your tote, so that it won't move about or fall off.
You may need to move your hoop around as you stitch your design - this is totally normal! You can put your hoop over previously stitched areas, so don't be afraid to move your hoop as needed.
Canvas can even be stitched without an embroidery hoop! If you're really not liking how it feels to use a hoop - give that a try too. You might prefer it!

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.
This tote uses 6 strands of thread for each of your designs, meaning you won't need to split your thread for this project. But it's still handy to know for any future embroidery projects you might do!

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 Garden Jars

For this piece you'll be using 5x easy foundation stitches! If you're a newbie this kit is guaranteed to be easy to stitch and these 4x stitches will give you a great foundation to start creating new embroidery pieces when you've finished your tote.

Stitches Included:

Back Stitch
Straight Stitch
Lazy Daisy Stitch
French Knots
Satin Stitch

Step 1

All of the stitches in this design use 6 STRANDS OF THREAD.

You'll begin your tote bag by stitching the green stems of your three flowers. Using #3347 (green) you'll stitch each stem with BACK STITCH. Try to make the stitches look as even as possible for a neat finish.

Back Stitch Video Tutorial - by Mary Corbet

Step 2

Next you'll be using LAZY DAISY stitch to fill in the green leaves on your flowers.

The leaves also use #2247 (green) thread. Try pulling these lazy daisy stitches quite tight to create long, straight leaf shapes.

Lazy Daisy Video Tutorial - By Cutesy Crafts

Step 3

Next we're moving on to our first flower. Using #3771 (light pink) thread you'll use the same LAZY DAISY stitch to fill in each petal. The starting points of your petals don't have to touch perfectly, once you add the yellow french knots you won't be able to see the inside points of your petals.

See step 2 for Lazy Daisy tutorial.

Step 4

After you'll repeat the same LAZY DAISY stitches on the remining two flowers.

These flowers use #356 (dark pink) thread. When you're stitching the petals, try to use rounder lazy daisy stitches than you did for your green leaves. You can create a rounder looking petal by not pulling the daisy so tightly as you make the anchor stitch.

See step 2 for Lazy Daisy tutorial.

Step 5

Now you're going to finish up your flowers by adding your yellow pollen buds.

Using #3822 (yellow) thread, create a single FRENCH KNOT on the right side flower. For these knots you'll only need to twist your thread around your needle once. Tie off your thread before stitching your next pollen bud.

Next create a single french knot in the middle of the left flower. It can be tricky pulling your needle through with 6 strands and a lazy daisy, so be gentle but firm when tugging it through. If your needle gets stuck you can always cut away your yellow thread and try again. Just be careful not to cut your pink flowers.

Finally, fill in the centre space of your middle flower with french knots. We've used 4 knots in our example but you might prefer more or less knots for your flower.

French Knot Video Tutorial - by River Birch Threads

Step 6

Now it's time to create your buzzing bee!

Begin by filling the entire bee with your #3822 (yellow) thread using SATIN STITCH. Then you can go back with your #310 (black) thread and create long straight lines across your bee shape using STRAIGHT STITCH. You can make your bee more black by adding more of these lines, or more yellow by only adding a couple lines. In our example we've made our bee more black with two of these straight stitches next to each other.

To complete your bee, stitch the two wings in #B5200 (white) thread using LAZY DAISY stitch. Try to make the wings a nice round lazy daisy shape.

See Step 2 for Lazy Daisy tutorial.

Straight Stitch Video Tutorial - American Quilting

Satin Stitch Video Tutorial - by Cutesy Craft

Step 7

Onto the last step! Finish off your bee by stitching the white flying lines behind it.
To stitch these lines use #B5200 (white) thread and single STRAIGHT STITCHES.

See Step 6 for Straight Stitch tutorial.

And you're done! Congratulations on creating your very own embroidered tote bag.

You've Finished Your Masterpiece!

Washing Your Piece

If there are 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 lines (or they're small enough not to be noticeable) then you can skip this step!

To wash your lines off, take your hoop off your tote 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 tote 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 Tote

If your tote is very wrinkled, you may want to iron it. Generally, you won't need to do this unless it's very creased because once you start using your tote any wrinkles will go away.

Place your tote inside out 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 tote, to protect it from the direct heat of the iron.

Iron your tote on a medium setting, checking on it 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!

Caring For Your Tote

As with any embroidered piece (even ones that are machine-made) you'll want to take care when using your tote, avoiding excessive wear so that your bag will last as long as possible.

Tips for extending the life of your bag:

When using your bag, keep the stitched side facing out so that it's less likely to rub on your clothes and wear down.
Be careful with and metal hardware from a handbag or jacket in case it gets caught on your embroidery. If this happens, don't worry! You'll have enough extra thread in your kit to restitch that flower.
Don't use it for any wet, greasy or smelly groceries. You don't want your tote getting stained with a BBQ chook!
Be careful where you put your tote bag. Don't put it on the bathroom floor if there is a mess or sit it on the ground if there could be mud. It's hard to remove dark stains from canvas.

If your tote bag needs a wash, simply follow the same steps listed above for removing the ink design. You can also use a stain remover on the blank areas of the tote, but be careful not to get this on your thread as it could impact the colours on your stitches.

Always let it air dry, as using a dryer could damage your stitches.

And you're done! Congratulations on finishing your Easy Breezy Blooms tote bag. I hope you had a fantastic experience stitching it and will get lots of use out of your me-made creation.

Nakisah x

Craft Club's Founder