The 5 Embroidery Stitches to Learn First
Embroidery looks intricate, but nearly every design is built from a handful of basic stitches. Learn these five and you can stitch most beginner patterns. Here is what each does and how to work it.
- Five stitches cover most beginner embroidery: back stitch, running stitch, satin stitch, stem stitch, and the French knot.
- Back stitch is the workhorse for outlines and lettering; running stitch is the simplest dashed line; both are easy first wins.
- Satin stitch fills shapes with smooth blocks of colour; stem stitch makes a rope-like line for stems and curves.
- The French knot makes little dots (flower centres, eyes) and frustrates everyone at first, wrap, hold tension, and pull through slowly.
- Use an embroidery hoop to keep the fabric taut, separate your floss to the right number of strands, and keep tension even.
The line stitches: back, running, and stem
Start with the stitches that make lines, since most designs are outlines first. The running stitch is the simplest: bring the needle up and down through the fabric at even intervals, making a dashed line. The back stitch makes a solid, continuous line and is the true workhorse for outlines and lettering, come up a stitch-length ahead, then go back down into the end of the previous stitch, so each stitch fills the gap behind it. The stem stitch makes a slightly rope-like, smooth line that is lovely for stems, vines, and curves, work along the line taking small overlapping stitches while keeping the working thread to one consistent side. Master these three and you can outline almost anything.
The fill and the dot: satin stitch and French knot
Once you can outline, you need to fill and to dot. Satin stitch fills a shape with smooth, parallel stitches laid side by side so they look like a block of satin, work them close together with even tension and no gaps, and keep them parallel for a clean sheen. It takes practice to keep the edges neat, so start with small shapes. The French knot is the classic little raised dot for flower centres, eyes, and texture, and it is the one everyone struggles with. Bring the needle up, wrap the thread around it two or three times, hold the wraps snug (not tight) with your other hand, put the needle back down right beside where it came up, and pull through slowly while keeping tension. Loose wraps and yanking are what make it go wrong.
The setup that makes stitching easier
Good results come as much from setup as from the stitches. Use an embroidery hoop to hold the fabric drum-tight, slack fabric puckers and ruins tension. Embroidery floss comes as six strands twisted together; separate it and use the number the pattern calls for (often two or three strands), which changes how thick your lines are. Keep an even tension: pull each stitch snug so it lies flat, but not so hard that it puckers the fabric. Work with a length of thread about the distance from your hand to your elbow, longer tangles and frays. And start on a simple design with clear outlines so you are practising the five stitches, not fighting a complicated pattern.
For a French knot that behaves: wrap the needle only two or three times, keep gentle tension on the thread with your free hand as you pull it through, and send the needle down right next to (not back into) the hole it came up from. Yanking hard or wrapping many times is what makes them collapse or vanish.
Common questions
What embroidery stitches should a beginner learn first?
What is the easiest embroidery stitch?
How do I do a French knot without it falling apart?
How many strands of floss should I use?
Do I need an embroidery hoop?
Gear guides for Embroidery
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