Midnight Moth

Welcome to our step by step guide for your Midnight Moth 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.

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 Midnight Moth

For this piece you'll be using 6x beautiful stitches. 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 pieces after completing your Midnight Moth.

Stitches Included:

Straight Stitch
Back Stitch
Satin Stitch
Long & Short Stitch
Whip Stitch (aka Whipped Back Stitch)
French Knots

Step 1

We're going to start your piece by stitching the body of your moth. Start with your #433 (dark brown) thread and thread 2x strands. Using a LONG & SHORT STITCH fill the round body shape. Then go in with 2x strands of your #435 (mid brown) thread and use a STRAIGHT STITCH to cover the chevron lines across the body. This doesn’t have to be perfect, especially if you’ve already covered the printed chevron.

Then use 2x strands of your #437 (light brown) thread to stitch the antennae. Use a WHIPPED BACK STITCH for the length and a SATIN STITCH for the round ends.

If its your first time stitching, watch the tutorial for Back Stitch before watching the Whipped Back Stitch tutorial.

Straight Stitch Video Tutorial - by American Quilting

Back Stitch Video Tutorial - by Mary Corbet

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

Long & Short Stitch - by Love Crafts

Satin Stitch Video Tutorial - by Cutesy Craft

Step 2

Now you’ll move on to the filler sections of your moths wings. All of the filler uses only 1x strand of thread, as this allows you to get precise detail with your moth.

Using your #437 (light brown) thread fill in the long shapes inside the top wings using LONG & SHORT STITCH. If the space is too small, you can also use SATIN STITCH to fill in the space as it will blend in nicely with your long & short stitches. Next use #435 (mid brown) to stitch the middle filler area of the top wing, making sure to leave room for the circle detail shapes. Finally use #433 (dark brown) to fill the outside.
Onto the bottom wing! Using SATIN STITCH fill the #435 (mid brown) area in the middle of the bottom wings. Then use LONG & SHORT STITCH and #437 (light brown) to fill the outside, again leaving room for the details.

SPEEDY TIP: If you’re impatient you can also do the background of the wings using 2x strands of thread as it will be faster. However you won’t get the same smooth and fine finish that a single strand will provide, so keep that in mind.

See Step 1 for the Satin Stitch and Long & Short Stitch Tutorials.

Step 3

It’s all about the details in this step - we’ll be taking the time to finish off your moth and stitch the finer details of the wing. It’s a big section but take your time!

Fill in all of the little circle spaces using SATIN STITCH and 1x strand of thread. These include the #437 (light brown) and #728 (deep yellow) circles on the top wing. And the #433 (dark brown) circle on the bottom wing.
Then use 2x strands of your #727 (pale yellow) thread to make FRENCH KNOTS for the dots on the wings. There are 28x little dots on our pattern but feel free to add more or les depending on your own stitching and the space on your wing.
Now you’ll fill in the multi-coloured background of the bottom wing. This looks complicated but it’s actually a simple SATIN STITCH but you’ll fill in the space one section at a time with each colour. Start with #728 (deep yellow) lines, then #435 (mid brown) lines and finally fill in the rest with #437 (light brown) lines. This doesn’t have to be precise at all! The finished design will look beautiful from far away so don’t worry about making each colour in your satin stitch perfect.
Finally let’s stitch the tiger eye shape. Fill in the centre circle with SATIN STITCH 1x strand using #433 (dark brown) thread. Then using BACK STITCH and 2x strands, you’ll make two rows around the circle shape with your #437 (light brown). Follow this with another two rows around with your #433 (dark brown).

See Step 1 for the Satin Stitch and Back Stitch Tutorials.

French Knot Video Tutorial - by River Birch Threads

Step 4

Now the easy bits! Stitch your flower petals using 2x strands of #816 (berry red) thread with a SATIN STITCH. Then using STRAIGHT STITCH make a line down the middle of each petal with 3x strands of #814 (dark red). Using 2x strands of #987 (green) thread you’ll fill in the stem. Use WHIPPED BACK STITCH for the length of the stem, and SATIN STITCH for the leaves and top of the stem. The fill for the leaves is also known as LEAF STITCH and you essentially fill in each side of the leaf with satin stitch, going in the opposite direction.

See Step 1 for the Satin Stitch, Straight Stitch & Whipped Back Stitch Tutorials.

Step 5

You’re on the home stretch - woohoo! Use 2x strands of thread for all the sparkles and starts. Using STRAIGHT STITCHES you’ll fill in the #727 (pale yellow) start bursts and #738 (deep yellow) star shapes. Then use your FRENCH KNOTS to add the #727 (pale yellow) dots above the flowers and #728 (deep yellow) dots amongst the stars.

See Step 1 for the Straight Stitch and Step 3 for French Knots.

Step 6

Time for the cherry on top (or should we say moon on top?) Your crescent moon will be finished off using LONG & SHORT STITCH. Keep these stitches shorter as it will help with the curve of the moon shape. Using 2x strands of #727 (pale yellow) thread stitch around the whole moon.

See Step 1 for Long & Short Stitch tutorial.

You've Finished Your Masterpiece!

Washing Your Piece

If there are white 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 white 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 Midnight Moth embroidery piece. I hope you had a fantastic experience stitching it!

Nakisah x

Craft Club's Founder