Focus on transferring or tracing patterns

Continuing the series where I pick out some of my blog posts to share with you, this month's theme is transferring or tracing patterns. Most of my embroidery patterns require you to trace from the paper or digital pattern onto fabric.  

• There are different pens you can use to trace patterns, this post covers 5 different pens you can use. And this post gives more information about my favourite pen to use.

• If you want to get better at tracing patterns then this post covers my top tips and this post focusses on being more accurate when you trace.

I've got plenty of other blog posts about transferring  (and other aspects of embroidery) so I encourage you to browse through the embroidery tips page on my website.

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How to trace embroidery patterns more accurately

If you’ve ever tried tracing an embroidery pattern onto fabric, you will know that there are some challenges to replicating the design accurately. Here are my top tips to improving the accuracy of any embroidery pattern you trace. 

• Use a thin air/heat/water erasable pen, the thinner the better will allow you to trace more accurately

• Trace slightly inside the pattern lines. When you are stitching you will want to cover the lines (even if you are using an erasable pen) and if these are on or outside the pattern then it will make some elements thicker

• For really thin or small elements such as stems or flower buds, think about whether you need to trace all the lines. For example on a stem, do you need to trace both lines or is one line up the middle enough guidance for direction and you can refer to the pattern for thickness as needed

• Some elements don’t need to be traced as accurately as others, for example in my cornflower pattern the cornflowers are stitched a little bit freeform so the outline shape doesn’t need to be exactly as drawn

• The fabric can slip when tracing meaning that elements are wonky or out of line - trace each element in turn and check the positioning

• The pen can get caught on the warp or weft threads of the fabric, often on curved sections meaning the traced line isn’t

Top tips for tracing embroidery patterns

There are many kits available where the design is pre-printed onto the fabric such as this one. But knowing how to transfer an embroidery design onto fabric gives many more options and isn’t as difficult as you think. Here are my top tips for transferring embroidery patterns:

• Have the fabric super tight in the hoop. It’s really hard to trace accurately if the fabric in the hoop is a bit loose. The pen will catch on the warp and weft threads and the design will end up looking a little wonky. To read my tips about how to get fabric taut in the hoop, have a look here.

• Use a erasable pen. You can use any pen or pencil for transferring a design onto fabric but knowing that you can erase any mistakes really helps when tracing. This blog post covers the different erasable pen options, and this post outlines why heat erasable pens are magic.

• Trace just the crucial elements. Some patterns have a lot of detail and it isn’t always necessary to trace it all. For example a thin stem or branch, you might not need to trace both sides of the outline, instead trace one line in the centre.

• Keep an eye on the position of the hoop. Whatever method used to trace the pattern, the hoop will move during the tracing process. I recommend checking the positioning after tracing each element to make sure the final traced design doesn’t end up wonky.

• Don’t panic if you go wrong. The fabric has 2 sides to it and if you do go wrong then flip the fabric over and have a second attempt.

There are step by step instructions on how to trace from a digital embroidery pattern and how to trace from a paper embroidery pattern along with lots of other embroidery tips on my blog.

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Why heat erasable pens are magic

In a previous post I outlined the different pens and pencils for transferring embroidery patterns onto fabric.

Here I wanted to focus in on heat erasable pens and why these are my go-to for drawing on fabric.

• The tip is fine, but not too fine meaning you can get a nice clean line

• They are robust and don’t rub off or disappear when you stitch or put the project down for a time

• They erase quickly, just a couple of minutes after adding heat, you can snap a picture of the finished embroidery

There are some reports from other embroiders of the lines reappearing, especially when the embroidery gets really cold. However, applying heat again does make them disappear once more. As with all methods of transfer making sure your stitching covers the lines also reduces this issue.

They don’t work well on darker coloured fabrics, but neither do any of the other type of pens - carbon paper or chalk pens are needed for those situations.

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How to combine embroidery patterns

When I design patterns I focus on one type of flower at a time. But in a garden or in the wild, flowers don't grow in isolation, they nestle next to each other.

In this blog post I’ll outline how you can take the elements of different patterns to make your own unique embroidery.

Inspired by this photo snapped during Summer 2020 in Peckham Rye Park, London I combined my cornflower, poppy and daisies patterns.

The approach I suggest is to trace each element onto the fabric in turn to build up your design.

1. Download patterns

Start by downloading the patterns you want to use. I recommend working with the digital versions of patterns to allow you to re-size the different flowers.

If you’ve not used or transferred from a digital pattern before then this blog post guides you through how do to this.

2. Trace the first element

Pick the first flower to trace. I recommend picking the largest flower or the one you want to feature. I started with the poppy. You can either trace one of this first flower or several.

3. Add the next layers

When adding the next layers of flowers consider the following when creating your composition and tracing the elements:

• Size - varying the size can help make one flower stand out more

• Height - you can place all the flowers in a neat row of the same height, but I like to vary the height

• Spacing - I have left a gap between each flower but you can decide to overlap the flowers to make a denser composition

• Colour - consider where you place flowers of different colours, in my design I wanted a scattered natural look so I’ve mixed up the flowers and colours accordingly.

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How to trace a paper embroidery pattern

When I first started embroidering I used patterns from books and designs I found for free or purchased which I downloaded and printed. However, in order to know what elements to stitch and where you need to transfer the pattern onto the fabric. This is one of the most challenging steps for a novice embroiderer so in this blog post I’ll walk you through how to go about transferring paper patterns onto fabric.

This method works best for thinner and lighter coloured fabrics, if the fabric is too dark or too thick then you’ll need to use another method of transfer such as carbon paper, tissue paper or water soluble paper (blog posts to come on these).

In order to transfer a paper pattern you need a source of light. There are two main options a light box (or light box app on a tablet device) and a window.

I’ll walk you through using a window, if you want more information on using a light box app on a tablet device head over to this blog post that takes you through this method (the only difference being you would just lay the paper pattern on top of a plain white screen in the app).

The benefit of using a window is that you can trace much larger patterns than you can on a tablet.

I recommend using an air, water or heat soluble pen for tracing, for more information about the different pens you can use for transferring patterns take a look at this blog post.

• Start by making sure that you have the ‘right’ side of the fabric facing towards the inner hoop and stretching the fabric in the hoop as tight as possible

• Tape the paper pattern to the window

• Press the hoop up to the window and line it up with any guidelines on the pattern

• Start by tracing the main elements

• If you need to move the hoop to see whether you have missed anything use the main elements to help re-align the fabric on the pattern

• Trace any smaller elements or details

• Loosen the hoop and turn the fabric over so that the ‘right’ side is on the same side as the outer hoop

Need some patterns to practice you tracing? Take a look at my shop where I have some PDF patterns available.

How to trace a digital embroidery pattern on a tablet

When I’m stitching personal projects I prefer to trace the pattern I’m going to use from a digital image rather than a printer one (mainly because I have a very old printed that’s a bit of a faff to set up and never seems to have ink or paper!) This method does only work for projects that are no bigger than your tablet screen. For bigger projects then the paper based method is probably best.

First up take a screenshot of the pattern - how you do this will depend on your type and model of tablet. For iPads there are instructions on the Apple support site. Save this image to your photos.

I have an iPad and use an app called Lightbox Trace. There are other apps out there but I like the simplicity of this app.

When you open up the app you get this rather boring grey screen. Tap on the button in the bottom left of the screen and select the pattern image from your photo library.

Resize the image so that it is the right size for the hoop you are using.

Then click on the ‘padlock’ icon (second from the right on the tool bar.

This will lock the image and stop it moving around. You should also see your screen noticeably brighter.

Make sure that you’ve added your fabric to you hoop and it’s as tight as possible. Flip the hoop over so that you can see the inner ring and the fabric can lie flat on the screen.

Line the hoop up over the screen and press down so the hoop doesn’t move around. You should be able to see the pattern through the fabric. If the fabric is thick or dark then this method probably isn’t going to work.

Using a pencil or air/water/heat erasable pen make smooth rather than sketchy lines as you trace the pattern.

If you need to move the hoop to check that you have traced all parts of the pattern, carefully re-align the hoop before you continue tracing.

Got your own supplies and just need a pattern? I have PDF versions of a selection of my designs in the shop. I also share a free pattern in my newsletter each month - you can sign up here or find past patterns here.

Five pens for transferring embroidery patterns

There are more ways than ever for getting patterns transferred onto fabric to stitch on such as pre-printed fabric, carbon paper, water soluble paper. But if you are drawing your own pattern or just want a basic transfer methods then all you need is a pen. There are 5 main pens you can use for transferring embroidery patterns:

• pencil - whilst not strictly a pen this is a very good option if you are just starting out in embroidery, you just need to draw slow and steady as if you don’t draw accurately you could see the pencil marks show or you have to alter your stitching to cover them up

• biro - I’ve see some embroiderers use a biro but you have to be brave to go with this option! At least with pencil it can fade/wash out, biro is a commitment. The only time I use biro is when working with felt as it draws really well on this surface

• water erasable - this was the first type of specialist pen I tried, in general it works well, but you have to wet your embroidery all over to get rid of it, this can mean that there are wrinkles in the fabric when it all dries. I’ve also found that some pens require more than one wash to remove

• air erasable - the one I bought had a really fine tip which was great for drawing embroideries, however you have to work quickly! The one I had was meant to last 48 hours but the drawing started disappearing in minutes - not helpful

• heat erasable - I’d seen a few embroiderers on Instagram recommend this so I purchased some and I’m really impressed. I just run my hairdryer over the fabric once I’ve finished and the pen marks disappear. I did have once incident when I managed to erase a tracing by accident as it was stuck to another piece I was using the hairdryer on but that was user error rather than the pen!

Overall I’d recommend either a pencil or a heat erasable pen (Pilot frixon is the make I use ) for transferring embroideries.

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