Whenever I talk about stitching on clothes, one question inevitably comes up: doesn't the embroidery feel scratchy on your skin?
It can, but don't let that discourage you from embroidering your clothes! There's a material you can use to ensure that doesn't happen. It's Sulky brand Tender Touch. (It's one of my DOs for upcycling your clothing with embroidery.)
What is Tender Touch? Tender Touch is a lightweight stabilizer meant to protect sensitive skin. It’s not required to add to an embroidery, but it’s nice to have, especially if you’re going to wear the piece against your bare skin.
How to apply: The tender touch has a smooth side and a more textured side. The rougher side is what’s going to adhere to your embroidery. Cut the amount of Tender Touch you need so that it covers the entire embroidery.
Set your iron to a low to medium setting and place the textured side of the tender touch to the embroidery.
Press and hold the iron for a few seconds, checking every so often to see if the Tender Touch has fully adhered to the garment.
Make sure there aren't any loose edges by trying to run your finger under the Tender Touch. If it doesn't budge, you're done! Your embroidered clothing is now ready to wear.
Want a quick video tutorial? Here's a peek into the process on my Instagram account, @bybearbean.
I'm teaching two workshops next month! Join me at Make Apothecary in Bothell, WA, for the following classes:
- ​Turn Your Pet into an Embroidery Pattern on April 5 from 4 PM to 6 PM — Learn to transform your furry (or scaly!) friend into an embroidery pattern using your iPad. I’ll go over how to break down a photo so that it’s suitable for stitching. Then, we’ll print it on stick-and-stitch stabilizer and get to stitching!
- ​Embroider a Menagerie on Clothing on April 12 from 2 PM to 4 PM — Could that cozy shirt use a little animal energy? Transform your clothing into a wearable zoo with my help! I’ll provide a variety of animal patterns that adhere to fabric—in addition to thread, a needle, and a hoop. You’ll just need to bring your garment!
Try all the crafts this summer!
​Tickets are now on sale for Camp Craftaway, the three-day adult craft camp I co-host with Melissa of MCreativeJ! We'll have 30 different workshops throughout the weekend. Join us August 1 - 3 in Des Moines, WA.
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Talk to you next week,
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Sara Barnes
Embroidery illustrator and writer
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