This Sprinkles Hoop is the first design for The Happy Stitch Project and I really hope that you enjoy making it to practice the first two stitches, straight stitch and back stitch. I am thrilled with the response to The Happy Stitch Project so far, and we have only just begun! Thank you for all your comments and messages, it’s really brilliant I can’t wait to see what you stitch this year!

The sprinkles hoop for The Happy Stitch Project

Anyway, let’s talk a little bit more about this hoop. The Sprinkles hoop for The Happy Stitch Project was designed as a reminder to hold on to hope as we move into 2021. Last year was so tough, and holding onto hope seemed impossible at times. It still feels hard now, with everything that’s going on in the world doesn’t it? But I’m trying my best to focus on the positives (being creative is one of them) and so the sprinkles here represent the chaos in the world, with the word ‘hope’ standing out in the middle as a reminder that it is still there. We can do this, 2021!

This design brings together the two stitches that we’ve learnt (or revised, if you know them already!) in week 1 – straight stitch and back stitch. It can be stitched in a couple of hours, or you can take your time over it, and please remember that you should stitch at your own pace and do what works for you. There’s no pressure to finish this week, just enjoy the process

Materials list

For this project, you will need the following materials:

• A piece of cotton fabric – I am stitching in a 10cm (4″) hoop and have used an 18x18cm piece, but you can use a larger piece with a larger hoop (see video!)
• A 10cm (4″) embroidery hoop (coming to the haberdashery this week!)
• Needle
• Small pair of sharp scissors (the ones in the video are available here) plus a larger pair to finish later
• A selection of embroidery thread – I have used my loose ends here, but you could use any colours (rainbow or pastel would work well)
• An air erasable pen
• Templates (click to download) if you wish, or just freestyle it!
• Some perle thread to finish the back (this will be in my haberdashery this week too!)

Watch the tutorial video: Sprinkles hoop for The Happy Stitch Project

Full written instructions are below if you prefer, but you can watch the video here:

Step 1

Take the template and place the fabric on top. Using your air erasable pen, trace over the lettering carefully. Then position your fabric in the hoop, making sure that the tension is just right (don’t pull too tightly so it’s out of shape, but don’t leave it too loose either).

Step 2

Thread your needle with 3 strands of embroidery thread (you may find a thread conditioner helpful, as mentioned in the video). Tie a knot in the end, trimming the excess so that it doesn’t accidentally come through the front as you stitch! The, use a small back stitch to stitch the lettering (see my tutorial video for back stitch here).

Step 3

Add the sprinkles by stitching straight stitches in different colours around the edges. You could use your loose ends of thread for this – these are little pieces of thread saved in a jar or a box from previous projects, which minimise waste. You’ll need to use all 6 strands for the sprinkles, to make them stand out.

I started by stitching 3 of each colour sprinkle, and then went back and added more where there were gaps. You can either do this freestyle like I did in the video, or by drawing the lines on first. Just do what works for you!

I personally found that it was best to tie a knot at the end of each sprinkle and trim before repeating the process, as this avoided seeing lines of thread through the front of the fabric. This is around 13:10 on the video if you want to see.

Step 4

When the embroidery is complete, position the fabric so you are happy with how it looks (you could always iron the edges but NOT over the stitching!). Tighten the screw at the top of the hoop, and turn over to the back. With a larger pair of scissors, trim the excess fabric to around 2cm (just under 1″). Thread your needle with a length of perle thread the circumference of the hoop, and tie a not in the end but don’t trim the excess. Stitch a running stitch around the edge of the fabric, pull and tie a knot or two to secure. You’ll find this section from 15:41 on the video if you’d like to watch to see how I did this.

Ta-dah!

A beautifully simple hoop, which will hopefully give you lots of joy to stitch and some comfort during the rest of 2021 and beyond Newsletter subscribers have already received some alternative words to stitch, and with an air erasable pen you can easily make this project your own. I’d really LOVE to see what you stitch, so do share with me on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter – or drop me an email if you’d rather.

So what’s next?!

Next week, we’ll be doing my favourite stitch – satin stitch! It’s the only stitch in my Keep Going kit, and I use it in the Sunbeams kit too. It’s so versatile and lovely and I know you’re going to enjoy it! As you can see above, I’ve got the next few weeks mapped out – January will be the rest of the stitches that I know, and then from February we’ll be learning together. And I can’t wait!

As I said before, please let me know if you have any comments or questions. I’d love to hear what you think and how you’re getting on!

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