Embroidery on paper is grown-up fun and elegance thanks to talented designers like Erica Fortgens, who create patterns, books and stencils that show you how to easily create stunning embroidered cards, tags and other paper projects. You stitch with fine metallic threads like Kreinik Cord through pre-punched holes, making the designs as simple or as elaborate as you like. If you love stitching but are looking for something new to do — try applying your favorite stitches to paper.

Here, Erica shares project ideas from one of her books so you, too, can make a beautiful baby card or gift tag. These projects are a unique way to share your love of embroidery with others—and make something absolutely stunning!

Materials needed:

• Cardstock to make the card, tag or ornament s desired
• Kreinik Cord in colors to match your project (we suggest 051C Sapphire, 008C Green, 007C Pink, 002C Gold)
• computer mouse pad, cardboard section, or Erica Punch Matt (#4050510)
• very fine and fine punch pen, needle, or Erica Punch Pens (#4050506)
• scissors
• adhesive tape
• needle slightly thinner than the punch pen you have used

Instructions:

SET THE DESIGN: Make a copy of the design, cut it out in a square, place it on the chosen spot on the card, fix it with two pieces of adhesive tape, and place the card with the design on the punch mat. Punch the design accurately with the very fine punch pen (or needle) for the small dots, and a fine or slightly larger needle for the larger dots—the larger dots will be holes with more than one thread going into them repeatedly. Hold the needle/punch pen straight and upright as you are punching for the cleanest hole. Hold the card against the light to see if you have punched everything. Remove the design. Now your design is punched into the card.

Click here for a copy of the design.

BEGIN EMBROIDERY:  Thread your needle with Kreinik Cord. Follow the instructions for this particular shape according to the stitching diagram and the model; for example, start at A. Pull the needle through with your Kreinik Cord and leave a small amount of thread on the back as a tail. Fix this with a piece of adhesive tape. Continue stitching, following the diagram.
a. Do the birds, clouds and ribbons in stemstitch.
b. Pull through the threads of the stakes, the clothesline and the contour of the dress.
c. Do the flowers on the dress, the grass, and the flowers as illustrated in the photo at the top of this page.
d. Make two bows of thread at the points where the dress hangs on the clothesline.

FINISHING: To hide the back of your work, cover it with a card of the same size and color. For a more elegant result, cut the edges with decorative scissors.



Like these ideas?
These projects and many more can be found in these books:
Basics of Embroidery, EF 2000, ISBN: 90 384 1591 5
Extraordinary Embroidery on Paper, EF 2010, ISBN: 97 8802 1337 838
Embroidery on paper is a technique in which holes are pierced in a card following a pattern of pre-printed dots, after which threads are drawn through to create a design. To learn more and see all of Erica's tips and designs, visit www.ericafortgens.nl. Look for Erica's tool package, which contains 3 piercing tools with different sizes (Erica's item number 4050506), and piercing mat (Erica's item number 4050510); for more information, visit www.ecstacycrafts.com.
© Copyright 2008 Kreinik and Erica Fortgens. All rights reserved. Kreinik Consumer Info: 1-800-537-2166 or email info@kreinik.com.