A Handmade Valentine

One way to make a hand embroidered piece look special and complex is to add layers of interest – even if those layers are very simple - it will work. I started this project with a white piece of fabric cut from an old tablecloth (nothing gets thrown away here that can be stitched upon at some point). I chose the yarn, in this case, (embroidery floss would also work beautifully) I wanted to use. I’ve been drawn to stitching with yarn this winter. This hank is by Koigu.

This beautiful sock yarn by Koigu (P102 240) was my inspiration.

One tip for adding complexity is to allow the talented sock yarn dyer to do some of the work for you. Variegated and hand dyed threads or yarn will always take the level of the finished work up a notch. There is so much visual interest in the color combinations that even a simple stitch will make them shine.

There are so many beautiful colors in this yarn.

I set the yarn near my painting space so I could include the colors of the yarn in the painting of the fabric. After applying the paint, I sprinkled a tiny bit of salt and sprayed the whole thing with water to encourage color blending and swirling. These techniques are frequently used with watercolor paint.

Watercolor paint allows for some really interesting blends of the colors.

It only takes a few hours for the fabric to dry, even after it is soaked with water. I then used three heart cut outs to trace the pattern I wanted onto the fabric. Tracing the shapes on top of the fabric was easier than trying to trace an image through the fabric. If you’re planning a more complex design, you can pencil on your drawing before you do the watercolor paint. Another tip here is to trace the biggest heart first, so you can line them up nicely.

Since my shapes were simple, I cut them out of paper in order to trace them onto the fabric.

The smallest heart is stitched with Whipped Back Stitch. This stitch works great going around tighter curves since the whipped threads smooth out the line. For the next heart I used Chain Stitch, and the largest heart is stitched with Heavy Chain Stitch. All of these are simple stitches that follow curves well.

Using different stitches on each heart helps to add more interest.

The finished project is so cute – nothing hard or complex in the making of it, but the final look has layers of color and interest. I’ll be finishing this one for my neighbor. The weather forecast for the weekend is described as relentless – perhaps they will enjoy a little hoop left on the porch for some Valentine cheer.

A beautiful handmade Valentine for someone special.