This year I did not have time to do all of the handmade gift making I really wanted to do. I had big plans to create all these wonderful handmade items for friends and family... and then life happened, and none of that got done, let alone started. While I was initially bummed, (because handmade gifts are the best), I also decided not to stress about it and add a touch of the handmade in a different way to all my holiday gifts. And really, you can do this for any gift, not just during the holidays!
How to Embroider Easy Gift Tags
Materials you'll need to get started:
Let's get stitching!
1. If you're using pre-cut gift tags, you can skip this step. I had some mis-printed card stock that I wanted to reuse, so I cut it down to the general size of gift tags. Mine look like standard tags, but feel free to get creative with your shapes! There's no right or wrong on this.
2. Next write the name of the recipient in pencil on the gift tag. I found large uppercase letters work best. Lettering that is small and cramped can be hard to embroidery and look muddled.
3. Now use the #18 DMC needle to punch holes along the letters. I spaced my holes about 1/8-1/4 inch away from one another. You'll want a hole for every place you create a stitch. it's also important to have a hole punched where the letters connect to one another, like there the cross bar of the T connected with the mid line.
4. After all your letters are punched, measure a length of DMC embroidery thread. I used DMC 666 because it's a very bright red and festive.
5. Knot the end of the thread, so that the knot is only on one section of the thread.
6. Now use the back stitch to embroider your lettering. Be sure to bring the needle up through the holes you punched into the fabric. Because paper isn't as forgiving as fabric, I found myself flipped the paper over every time I needed to find the next hole to make a stitch.
7. Once all the letters are embroidered, use the slip knot to knot your thread on the back of the card. If you're worries about the thread coming undone or if the knot isn't as close to the paper as you'd like, use a small piece of tape to secure it to the back.
8. Finally, attach the tags to your gifts! Your friends and family will love the personal touch you added to their gifts.
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