Realistic Embroidery Techniques
A course by Emillie Ferris, Embroidery Artist
Joined July 2020
Learn how to create realistic embroidered pieces using the long and short stitch technique
Joined July 2020
In the art of needle painting, a needle acts like a brush and the thread as the paint, helping you achieve hyper realistic designs. Learn the techniques of long and short stitch with embroidery artist Emillie Ferris and apply them to the creation of an embroidered Monarch butterfly.
In this course, learn how to embroider realistic images, even if you’ve never used a needle before. Get more confident with your embroidery techniques by completing a pattern and applying them to create your own needle painted designs in the future.
What will you learn in this online course?
17 lessons & 18 downloads
What's included in this course?
Start the course by getting to know Emillie as well as some of her beloved influences and inspirations. She tells you how she discovered embroidery as an art and how the Instagram community supported her journey.
Discover the materials and skills necessary for learning to embroider a monarch butterfly. Emillie helps you shop for materials and shows you how to transfer a pattern to fabric. Then, learn how to paint with thread and how to select your thread colors.
Now, using the techniques learned in the previous units, start working on your final project. Insects are a wonderful place to start as a beginner to needle painting since they can be very forgiving of mistakes. Their symmetrical nature also makes the entire embroidery process very meditative and relaxing.
In the final unit, learn how Emillie applies finishing touches so that her hoop is ready to hang on a wall, give to a loved one, or share on social media.
- 99% positive reviews (1.3K)
- 40,647 students
- 17 lessons (3h 13m)
- 18 additional resources (11 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Spanish (Latam), French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
Embroider a realistic butterfly in a 6” hoop, ready to hang on a wall in your home or give to a loved one.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is suitable for all skill levels, both beginning and experienced stitchers alike.
Requirements and materials
No previous knowledge of embroidery is required.
As for materials, you’ll need different color threads, embroidery needles, hoops, different fabrics, scissors, and a pencil.
Reviews
Emillie Ferris
A course by Emillie Ferris
Emillie Ferris is a self-taught artist using traditional embroidery methods to create contemporary embroidery patterns, kits, pins, and original hoop art.
After some years of embroidering for her own enjoyment, she began receiving custom pet portrait requests, allowing her to start a gradual transition into embroidering full-time. In 2018, she began taking steps to expand her business by teaching others and sharing her love for embroidery.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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What Will We Do on This Course?
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U2
Things to Know before Embroidering the Final Project
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Materials
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Pattern Transfer
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Choosing Floss Colours
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Long and Short Stitch: Painting with Thread 1
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Long and Short Stitch: Painting with Thread 2
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U3
Monarch Butterfly Walkthrough
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Our First Stitches 1
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Our First Stitches 2
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Our First Stitches 3
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The Forewings
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The Hindwings and the Body 1
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The Hindwings and the Body 2
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The Hindwings and the Body 3
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U4
Finishing Your Project
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Finishing Touches
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Share Your Beloved Artwork
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FP
Final project
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Realistic Embroidery Techniques
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Yes, this course is designed for beginners and covers all the basics, including tools, materials, and foundational techniques for realistic nature-inspired embroidery.
You’ll need embroidery floss, needles, cotton calico fabric, an embroidery hoop, scissors, and pattern-transfer tools like pencils or lightboxes. A color palette and reference images are also helpful.
You’ll learn to create realistic embroidered pet and butterfly portraits using long and short stitch, split stitch, color blending, pattern transfer, and tips for sharing your work online.
The course teaches several methods, including tracing with a pencil, using a lightbox, applying white tack, and aligning the pattern securely in your embroidery hoop.
You’ll learn to analyze reference images, use color guides, and blend multiple thread shades to achieve harmonious, realistic color gradients in your embroidery.
Long and short stitch is a technique for blending colors and creating realistic shading. It’s essential for achieving naturalistic effects in animal portraits and butterfly wings.
No prior art or painting experience is necessary. The course covers all basics and guides you through each step to build your skills from scratch.
This was my first experience with needle painting, and I absolutely loved it! Emillie explains each technique clearly and makes everything easy to understand, even for beginners. I really enjoyed that the videos were concise and focused on specific steps instead of being too long. The additional resources were also very helpful. I loved creating the butterfly and would definitely recommend this course to anyone interested in learning realistic embroidery! 🦋 ✨
Bellissimo corso!
Çok iyi
Kurs fantastyczny, pokazuje krok po kroku jak haftować i jak radzić sobie z problemami/błędami. Super, że tyle ujęć jest w zbliżeniach, dzięki temu widać dokładnie gdzie wbić igłę i jak prowadzić nić, żeby uzyskać pożądany efekt. Projekt dość skomplikowany, więc pokazuje wszystkie przypadki z jakimi możemy się spotka, ale jednocześnie nie tak skomplikowany, żeby zniechęcić. Naprawdę polecam!!! I dziękuję za miłą muzykę w tle :)
Me esta gustando el curso aun me falta por terminarlo espero acabar pronto.