Coloring Fabric for Embroidery

Coloring Fabric is Easy with Crayons

Table of Contents

A small handful of embroidery pdf patterns in my Etsy shop have a bit of color or shading added to them that doesn’t come from thread, and I’ll show you the technique I used to do that. Coloring fabric for embroidery can be done using paints, color pencils, and crayons, each with their pros and cons, but I’m going to focus strictly on crayons which I think is the most beginner friendly option. Plus, crayons are cheap and easy to find.

Using crayons to add color will give you nice soft tints, and while you can push them to give you brighter pops of color it can come out looking a bit waxy and your stitches may not stand out as much as you’d like. It can drown out the beautiful stitches if too much is added.

For that reason, I think crayons look best when used just to accentuate your work, not to be the focus.

What You'll Need

  • Crayola crayons
  • Hooped embroidery pattern
  • Iron
  • Paper towel, Mod Podge, water & paint brush (optional)

Selecting the Right Fabric to Color

Stick to a nice white cotton or linen fabric for best results. If it’s too dark or has a little too much texture the colors may not show up well and it may be difficult to get any color to adhere properly. Test things on a scrap piece of fabric first if you’re not sure, before coloring your actual pattern.

Once you’ve selected your fabric, transfer your design to the fabric and add to your hoop. Try printing onto fabric with your home printer if you have one. It's my absolute favorite way of transferring my patterns because it's quick and gives me precise transfers.

Coloring Fabric

Coloring fabric should always come before stitching. This is very important. If color is added after stitching there could be tight spots that will be difficult to reach and you run the risk of transferring some color onto nearby thread, especially if it’s light in color.

Start with a plan.

It’s good practice to plan out where to add colors and which ones because trying to change colors that are already added to fabric later on may not provide you with wanted results.

Working one section at a time, lightly shade in a layer of color. Color in a direction that’s comfortable for you. There’s really no right or wrong but careful not to force color onto the fabric with a heavy hand or it can end up looking waxy. Instead, feather it in, add a second layer, and continue building up layers until you like how it looks. Adding color in layers will give you better control of where you place color and will prevent you from overdoing it.

If you overdo the layers you can gently scrap excess color away but be warned that it can get very messy, and it’s really best if avoided.

Removing Wax & Setting in Color

The more layers of color you add the brighter your colors will be (makes sense, right?), but it means there will be more wax. Removing wax will take a bit of color out but it really can’t be avoided.

To remove that excess wax just place a piece of paper towel over your colors and run a hot iron over it for several seconds. If there’s any excess wax it will melt onto the paper towel. If you've kept your layers pretty light you may not see much at all.

At this point, you’re ready to stitch!

Using Mod Podge

This step is optional, but I recommend it because crayon isn’t 100% smudge-proof and can still end up on your fingertips as you work which can transfer onto other areas. It’s slight if it happens, but it’s enough to notice. As long as you’re careful you’ll be alright, but I like to add a little extra protection by adding a very thin layer of Mod Podge.

Simply use watered down Mod Podge (matte, not glossy) as a light varnish. Not only will it keep colors from smudging but there's also no obvious film and you won’t notice it as you stitch.

Mix a small dollop of Mod Podge with about 10 mL of water (about a tablespooon) which will look like skim milk and test your mixture out on a scrap piece of fabric to make sure it’s not too thick. This will also give you an idea of how much it will spread on your fabric.

Because it will spread, the best way to apply the mixture to your embroidery is with a small brush. Wet your brush with the mixture and remove excess… the brush shouldn’t be too wet. Add a small dot of Mod Podge in the center of your colors so it has room to spread out. Continue applying the mix in this manner until your colors are covered.

Should it spread past your design, you won’t have to worry. You won’t notice it once it dries as long as you’re using a clean brush.

 

Once it's dry gently run a q-tip over the surface to test it out. If color is still rubbing off give it one more thin layer.

You're ready to stitch when your fabric is completely dry, and your needle and thread should glide through the fabric easy as pie.

Watercolors and acrylic paint are other options for coloring fabric but using crayons is probably the most popular method because it’s definitely beginner-friendly. Crayons offer your embroidery work soft colors which are subtle and lovely. Other methods can give you brighter pops of color they take a bit more control. With a little practice though, you can master them in a short period of time.

I recommend using Crayola crayons to start, and give the other coloring mediums a try down the road.

Have fun!

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