I asked a bunch of people on Instagram and Facebook what their most hated embroidery stitch is and here are the results! Read on to learn some tips and view tutorials on some of the internet's least favourite embroidery stitches.
Now, before we get into it, I just want to say that's its absolutley fine to dislike a stitch and avoid it like the plague. I do it myself. But when I was talking to people about these stitches, most of them disliked them because they couldn't get them quite right. So I wanted to mention a few tips and tricks for improving your embroidery.
General Tips
Some general tips for embroidery that will help with any stitches are:
make sure your fabric is drum tight
separate all strands of thread
keep your thread short
make sure you're using the correct needle
get a frame that allows you to stitch with 2 hands
These will honestly make such a difference to your overall embroidery experience.
Satin Stitch and Long & Short
First of all, I think many of you are being a little too harsh on your Satin/Long & Short! Yes the aim is for a satin-y smooth finish, but that's never going to be 100% flat. To get a more satin-y finish though, my advice is to use fewer strands. I know, I know - it takes ages to fill a space then. But this is the price you pay. I usually only thread 1 or 2 strands in the needle for these stitches.
Satin stitch tutorial: https://youtu.be/Cw3WWkoziU0
French Knots
Having 2 hands free to stitch with really helps with this one, because French Knots are all about tension. Keeping tension on the thread will stop that knot getting too tight too quickly and leaving a loop on the top of your knot. You also want to be careful not to be going up and down in the same hole - that's why your knot could be disappearing. And most important of all - only wrap around the needle ONCE!! It'll help to keep your knots uniform and neat.
French Knot tutorial: https://youtu.be/XpxjVbtAMao
Bullion Knots
I have to be honest and say this stitch got my vote and I avoid Bullion Knots at all costs. That being said, I do have some tips for you. As with French Knots, tension is key. Don't wrap too tight or too loose around the needle and don't hold those wraps too tight or too loose. And yes, you should hold the thread that's wrapped around the needle until the end of the stitch. Also, make sure you have enough thread wrapped around the needle to cover the full length of the stitch.
Using a Milliners needle can also help with Bullion Knots.
Bullion Knot tutorial: https://youtu.be/Wy6QGWhewz4
Woven Wheels
I'm afraid I'm gonna mention that t word again - tension! The first round or two you want to pull quite tight to make sure the centre is fully covered. However after that you really want to leave it quite loose. You also need to make sure you have an uneven number of 'spokes' in the wheel, or it really won't go your way at all. Lastly, using a blunt tapestry needle can help to avoid catching threads and pulling them out of place.
Woven Wheel tutorial: https://youtu.be/tefXUrFFGdY
P.S. woven wheels look even better with ribbon than they do with thread in my opinion! https://youtu.be/NOesODF_HO8
So there's some of my top tips for the internet's most hated embroidery stitches! I know you don't want me to say it - but with all of these stitches practice really does make perfect! I have lots more tutorials on the website here too, if there are other stitches I haven't mentioned that you're struggling with. Hope this helps!