I recently learned a new technique for starting embroidery, and it’s so much easier and faster than the traditional way I learned that I had to share it. It also provides an easy way to anchor a French knot. Continue reading
Category Archives: Projects and Tutorials
Sewing Kits Are Big Again
My favorite gift I received as a kid was a sewing kit. My mom gave it to me when I must have been in about fourth or fifth grade. She had found a metal box with a hinged lid and carrying handles that flip down to the sides so you can pull open the lid. … Continue reading
Face Mask Topstitching Tips
I imagine that most everyone reading this post has a sense of the various styles of face mask sewing patterns out there, each pattern with its own pros and cons. This center seam version is the style I’m focusing on at the moment. I like that there are minimal gaps around the mask. The curved … Continue reading
How to Tie-Dye Your Wedding Chuppah Canopy, Ring Burst Style
Can you tie-dye a wedding chuppah canopy? Yes, you can! Tie-dye is one of the easiest and most fun ways to add color and personality to your chuppah. In this post I’m going to show you how to tie-dye a chuppah canopy in a ring burst pattern using a Sew Jewish silk chuppah canopy. To … Continue reading
How to Make a Cuddly Rag Quilt
Guest sewist Susan Yaskin explains how to make a rag quilt, like these Jewish-theme quilts she made for her granddaughters as Hanukkah gifts. Making a rag quilt is faster and easier than making a classic quilt, and if the idea of quilting a whole blanket at once seems intimidating, then making a rag quilt may … Continue reading
Machine Applique Pointers for Sharp Points – Video Tutorial
When doing machine applique, turning sharp corners can be tricky. I’m talking about the kind of sharp corners you find on a star, like a Star of David. As you approach a pointed corner and the applique narrows to a point, the stitches become wider than the applique. The stitches can end up spilling onto … Continue reading
Cantor Deborah Katchko-Gray Shows How to Make Prayerful Creations with Swedish Weaving in Her New Book
Deborah Katchko-Gray is a professional cantor and accomplished needle artist. When she’s not weaving melodies with her voice she’s weaving embroidery thread, creating Judaica with a technique called Swedish weaving. Swedish weaving is a type of embroidery in which the stitches are worked on the surface of the fabric. Rather than the needle passing to … Continue reading
Embroidering Sacred Texts – A Book of Judaic Needlework Designs from Rachel Braun
This month, when so many students are going back to school, seems like the perfect time to highlight Rachel Braun’s book, Embroidery and Sacred Text: New Designs in Judaic Needlework, in which Rachel draws on principles of mathematics to develop needlework designs that explore Jewish spirituality. Rachel teaches high school math and statistics, and she’s … Continue reading
Make a Hoopla! Add a Back to an Embroidery Project and Hang it Up
Have you ever finished an embroidery project and wanted to hang it up using the hoop as the frame? Use these instructions to add a back to a hooped embroidery project and give it a finished look. Add a ribbon, and it’s ready for hanging on a wall or window. For the hoopla in the … Continue reading
Personalize Your Cell Phone Sleeping Bag
Personalize your cell phone sleeping bag, the cut-and-sew project available at Spoonflower (Cell Phone Sleeping Bag Cut-and-Sew Project), by adding your name with embroidery. You can use an electronic embroidery machine, of course, and you can also embroider a name by hand. If you’re giving the bag as a gift, a hand-embroidered name gives your … Continue reading
How to Sew the Blanket Stitch
The blanket stitch comes in handy for several uses. As an embroidery stitch, you can use it to outline an object and give it a real folk art look. Or use it to hand-sew an applique onto background fabric, like the hamsa in the photo. You can also use it to finish a narrow hem … Continue reading
How to Embroider the Running Stitch
This stitch creates a dashed line. Pass the needle up and down at equal intervals through the layers of fabric or trim. A typical stitch length is about 1/8” (3mm), but you can adjust the length based on the materials you’re working with. If the fabric allows, you can make more than one stitch at … Continue reading
How to Embroider a French Knot
The eye of this little dove is made with a French knot. How to Embroider a French Knot A key to making a French knot is to start with the thread in front of the needle. Then, rap the thread around the needle several times. The more times you wind the thread around the needle, … Continue reading
How to anchor an isolated French knot for embroidery
The French knot is one of the most popular and widely-used embroidery stitches. But sometimes you only need one, as for the eye of this little dove. Here is a technique for anchoring a single French knot. It’s especially useful when the knot is isolated and not conveniently near any other of your stitches. In … Continue reading
Atarah / Embroidery / Free Patterns / Tallit
Free Hand Embroidery Pattern for Tallit Atarah: “We Will Build this World with Love”
I’ve really been inspired by people who’ve put themselves on the line for the sake of building a better world. I’ve been looking for ways to contribute, if only small ways. This is one of those small ways. It’s a pattern for a hand embroidered atarah, a neckpiece for a tallit prayer shawl. The design … Continue reading
![How to Sew the Slip Stitch [Video Tutorial]](https://sewjewish.files.wordpress.com/2018/03/slip-stitch-matzah-cover-video-thumbnail.png?w=290&h=290&crop=1 "How to Sew the Slip Stitch [Video Tutorial]")
How to Sew the Slip Stitch [Video Tutorial]
The slip stitch is a great hand sewing stitch for closing an opening in a seam from the right side of the fabric, or outside of the project. Even though you’re sewing on the outer surface of the project, the stitches are virtually invisible. I use the slip stitch often in finishing projects, including the … Continue reading
What happened when I tried temporary fabric adhesive for applique
When I do machine applique, like the almond blossom in the image above, I typically secure the applique to the background fabric with iron-on adhesive web and then finish the edges of the applique with zigzag stitches. Several sewists have asked me if I’ve ever tried a fabric adhesive stick instead of iron-on adhesive web. … Continue reading
How to sew a reusable coffee sleeve – No button or elastic needed
Reasons to make a reusable coffee sleeve: It saves resources over disposable cardboard sleeves. You can personalize it. You can make a gift of it for someone to let them know you care. Reasons to make this reusable coffee sleeve: It’s reversible. Unlike most coffee cozy patterns, you don’t need to add a button or … Continue reading
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