This December Meaghan is doing a free embroidery pattern advent calendar. Each day of December she will be releasing a free digital download of a pattern for a 2 1/2 inch hoop to make a cute ornament or holiday decoration. These are great for stash-busting but if you would like specific recommendations for materials see below.
Hoops:
- The samples were made with 2.5 inch hoops that seem to only be available through amazon.
- If you don’t want to support amazon, I would recommend sizing up to a 3 inch hoop, which are readily available online and at local craft stores.
- One final option is to stitch your design at the 2.5 inch size in a larger hoop and finish using a circle of cardboard. I will be posting a video of this method on instagram and facebook so stay tuned for instructions.
Fabric:
- The samples were made using this linen from Ulster Linen. I like this linen a lot because it is quite fine and soft making it quite nice to stitch into. One yard would be enough to complete all 26 designs and have extra left over.
- Alternatively you can use any linen or fabric you have available to you I like the natural background, but I am positive these patterns would be cute on any number of colors or even patterns.
Thread:
- The samples were made using our own Estabrook yarn in Poppy, Spruce, Natural, Goldenrod and Slate. 200 yard skeins in each color would be more than enough to complete all of the designs.
- Another great option are moire wool threads, I tried out a couple of the patterns with them and with two strands together the designs worked out perfectly! Heather at Needle and Purl has put together a listing for us for the 5 colors used in these designs so you can easily pick them up here. I love the colors she picked the green has a little more yellow in it than our Spruce yarn so it gives the patterns a little bit of a vintage vibe.
- One final option is to use your stash! The patterns were designed in our Estabrook yarn, which is a sport/ DK weight yarn so anything similar should work great!
Needles: If you use our Estabrook yarn or a similar sport/ DK yarn i would recommend a size 20 chenille needle. Or any needle that suits the thread you picked out.
Finishing: To hang the hoops I picked up some vintage silk ribbon in holiday colors, but you could use any 3/8 inch ribbon. Additionally you can cover the back of your hoop with a circle of felt attached with hot glue to give them a more finished look or leave them open if you want to try new designs next year!
I hope you will join us this December for our festive stitching! The first pattern will be released on Thursday December 1st, but if you are a newsletter subscriber you may find you get it a couple of days early! You can sign up for our newsletter at the bottom of our home page. Once the patterns start to go live you will be able to find them here.
Happy Stitching!