Water Soluble 'Peel and Stitch' Patterns
Instructions
How do they work?
Steps:
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Decide where you'd like the design to go. Peel the backing off and stick the design onto the fabric.
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Stitch your design. I like to use backstitch for outlines and split stitch to fill in. See embroidery basics and stitch guides to get started.
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Soak the fabric in warm water, and rub away the stabilizer. Make sure to rinse it out thoroughly. Air dry and then enjoy!
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Take a photo and submit it to the online gallery.
The example in this video is stitched with 3 strands of DMC embroidery thread (also called embroidery floss). Watch this video for info about how to cut and split embroidery thread.
Troubleshooting:
Shoot me an email or DM me on instagram and I'd love to chat!
How can I use them?
Which fabric?
These patches are perfect for thicker fabrics like denim, backpacks, and totebags. I don't recommend stretchy fabrics (t-shirts, or knit) or delicate fabrics. If you're working on thin fabric, you may want to use an embroidery hoop to keep the fabric flat and stop the fabric from bunching up as you work.
Here are 4 project ideas to get you started
1: Use these patterns for decoration
Steps:
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find something you own which could use a bit of hand embroidered flare.
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Peel and stick the patch onto the item, and then follow the how to instructions above.
2: Visible mending
Steps:
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Use a scrap piece of fabric to make a patch that is BIGGER than the hole. The fabric should be about 1 inch bigger in every direction. I have a pair of jeans that don't fit that I've cut up to make patches.
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Baste stitch (large, temporary holding stitches that are removed later) the scrap fabric on top of the hole - or inside the garment underneath the hole. The baste stitches hold the fabric in place while you add the embroidered patch. You remove the baste stitches afterwards - so make them really big and easy to see.
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Put the embroidered patch on top of the hole. Remove the backing and stick it to the fabric.
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Stitch on top of the design. You can use backstitch for outlines. If you need to add more stitches to cover the hole, you can outline the embroidered design in rows of running stitch. Adding extra stitches allows you to use a very small embroidered patch to fix a big hole.
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Soak the fabric in warm water, and rub away the stabilizer. Make sure to rinse it out thoroughly. Air dry and then enjoy!
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Take a photo and submit it to the online gallery.
What is visible mending?
Visible mending is when you use bold colours and decorative stitches to fix something. It celebrates that you took the time to fix something instead of throwing it away - which is something to be proud of!
Visible mending also celebrates the life and story of an object. Sometimes we mend clothing because it has sentimental value and reminds us of a specific person or time in our lives. Lovingly fixing it up pays tribute to those memories.
3: Use scrap fabric and water soluble patterns to make a coaster
Let's say you want to try out this technique and practice stitching before you stitch onto your favourite pair of jeans. You can use these patches to make cool coasters out of scrap fabric!
Front:
Back:
Steps:
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Get an old pair of jeans that doesn't fit anymore. Cut a square that is about 5 inches on each side. This gives you 1/2 inch on each side to fold over so you don't have raw edges.
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Put the embroidered patch on top of the fabric. Remove the backing and stick it to the fabric.
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Stitch on top of the design. You can use backstitch for outlines - or any stitch you'd like to try.
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Soak the fabric in warm water, and rub away the stabilizer. Make sure to rinse it out thoroughly. Let it dry.
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Once it's dry, fold about 1/2 inch over on each side and iron the edeges down. Use running stitch to stitch these edges down to 'hem' your coaster. Sometimes when hemming people fold the fabric over twice, so there's no raw edge on the back. I find with denim that 2 folds is not necessary and creates extra bulk that will make it tricky to use as a coaster. But if you're using thinner scrap fabric that frays, you may want to fold it over twice (1/4 inch each fold).
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Enjoy! Take a photo and submit it to the online gallery.
4: Brooches and beyond!
There really is no limit on how you can use these patches.
I've used them to make brooches. To make a stitched brooch, I stitch on to regular fabric, glue the embroidery onto a piece of felt, then cut around the stitching (after the glue dries overnight) and then gluegun a brooch fixing to the back.
Using a blank patch to make your own design
If your kit includes a blank patch - this is so you can use it to create your own patch design! You can use it to add initials, text, or a simple drawing onto fabric clothing and bags!
Use a pencil to write or draw onto your blank patch. I find that a good quality HB or 2B or 4B will show up well. Don't use a marker that will bleed when it gets wet, because the ink might bleed onto your design when you soak it in water to remove the stabilizer. You can use a water soluble pen if you have one - but these don't always show up nicely against dark fabrics like denim. Some people use ball point pens because they're easy to find and show up nicely. There's a small chance a ballpoint might bleed a little bit of ink onto the fabric when it gets wet, but it probably won't be noticeable unless it's a really old gloopy pen.
After you've drawn your design on, trim off excess around your design. Stitch on top of it, and then soak in water to remove the stablizer just like in option 1 and 2.
Embroidery Basics
Do you have a question about embroidery? Is there a video you'd like to see here that doesn't exist yet? Please email me at shannon@creativeconfidence.ca - I would love to hear from you!
Embroidery Stitches
For patches, I recommend backstitch for outlines and text. I like using split stitch to fill in a shape. These are just a few ideas - you can use any stitch you like!
For detailed instructions on how to do embroidery stitches, please check out my stitch tutorials playlist on youtube (work in progress) or visit the Royal School of Needlework RSN stitchbank.
Take a picture and add it to the online gallery!
I would absolutely love to see what you create!
Send in a photo to share your work and inspire fellow stitchers.
How?
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Email a photo to shannon@creativeconfidence.ca
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Or DM me on instagram @creativeconfidence.ca (If you have a public profile you can tag me, but if your profile is private I can't see your photos even if I'm tagged).
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If you like, include a few words along with your photo to go in the gallery. It's great to hear a bit about how you made your piece - what stitches you used, or what inspired your design.
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Let me know if you'd like your name to appear in the gallery or your instagram handle. The default option is to have no name written. I won't post any names or instagram info without permission. Thank you!
Online Gallery
This gallery showcases everyone's creativity. Get inspired by what people have made - and email me a photo of your work to inspire others. Let your creativity run wild!
