When you're in search of last-minute machine embroidered gifts for Christmas, birthdays, and holidays, using storebought, pre-made items is the way to go! In this article, we'll show you how to stitch on a canvas flag, an apron, a bucket hat, and a canvas tote! You'll have your gifts squared away in no time.
Supplies & Materials:
- Temporary Spray Adhesive (such as Gunold KK100)
- Air-Erase Pen or similar product for temporary marking on fabric
- Scissors
- Clips (as needed)
- Water and paintbrush (as needed)
- A pre-made item to stitch on
- A machine embroidery design
- Medium-weight cutaway stabilizer
The designs used in this tutorial include:
- Enjoy the Journey Retro Truck
- I'll Be in My Office Quilting & Sewing
- Buzzing with Sweetness Citrus Accent
Embroidering a Pre-made Banner
The beauty of a pre-made banner, is that they are generally constructed with canvas or duckcloth, making them sturdy enough to withstand a variety of machine embroidery designs. This means that you can easily customize it to anyone's taste! We stitched the example below using the I'll Be in My Office  machine embroidery design.
When stitching on a banner like this one, a template of your design can be very helpful. A template is a printout of a design, and it's an excellent tool to plan where to stitch. First pick a design that will fit your hoop and the flag/banner that you will be stitching. Then print a template of the design using embroidery software. Center the template in the shape. Mark the center point and vertical and horizontal axis lines.
If you do not have software, you can also cut out a piece of paper the size of your design to use as a way to place where you'd like your design to be.
Using temporary spray adhesive, smooth a piece of cutaway stabilizer onto the back of your banner. The stabilizer should be larger than your hoop.
Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together, aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric.
Attach the hoop onto the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is directly aligned with the center point on the fabric. Embroider the design.
When the design has finished, unhoop the design. Trim away the excess stabilizer on the backside of the embroidery. To remove the pen marks from your project, follow the instructions listed with the air-erase pen you used. Our pen marks come off with water and light scrubbing using a paint brush.
You're ready to wrap up and give the perfect Christmas, birthday, or holiday gift.
Embroidering a Pre-made Kitchen Apron
Customizing an apron for the bakers and cooks in your life can be a thoughtful and welcome gift! That's what we did with the apron we purchased from Hobby Lobby . It was the perfect canvas for stitching our Grandma's Bakery Sign  design.
Just as you did with the flag project, print a template of the design using your embroidery software. Center the template where you want to stitch on your apron. Mark the center point and vertical and horizontal axis lines.
Using temporary spray adhesive, smooth a piece of cutaway stabilizer onto the back of your apron. As with the flag, the stabilizer should be larger than your hoop.
Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together, aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric.
Attach the hoop onto the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is directly aligned with the center point on the fabric. If needed, use clips to keep excess apron fabric away from the stitching area when embroidering. Embroider the design.
When the design has finished unhoop the design, trim away the excess stabilizer on the backside of the embroidery. To remove the pen marks from your project, follow the instructions listed with the air-erase pen you used. Our pen marks come off with water and light scrubbing using a paint brush.
You're ready to gift a beautiful apron!
Adding Machine Embroidery to a Pre-made Bucket Hat
Bucket hats are a stylish and simple gift that can be whipped up in a stitch, making them the perfect option for last-minute gift ideas. We recommend designs that are 3" x 3" or smaller for this project. Just look how cute the Buzzing with Sweetness Citrus Accent  design looks on this finished hat!
When stitching on a bucket hat, a template of your design can be very helpful, especially in a smaller area like this. Once you've printed out a template using software, center the template in the shape. Mark the center point and vertical and horizontal axis lines.
If you do not have software, you can also cut out a piece of paper the size of your design to use as a way to place where you'd like your design to be.
Using temporary spray adhesive, smooth a piece of cutaway stabilizer onto the back of your bucket hat. The stabilizer should be bigger than your hoop. Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together, aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric.
Attach the hoop to the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is directly aligned with the center point on the fabric. Use clips to keep the excess bucket hat fabric away from the stitching area when embroidering. Embroider the design.
When the design has finished unhoop the design, trim away the excess stabilizer on the backside of the embroidery. To remove the pen marks from your project, follow the instructions listed with the air-erase pen you used. Our pen marks come off with water and light scrubbing using a paint brush.
Attach the hoop to the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is directly aligned with the center point on the fabric. Use clips to keep the excess bucket hat fabric away from the stitching area when embroidering. Embroider the design.
Make a Personalized Machine Embroidered Canvas Tote
Everyone loves a sturdy canvas tote! Customize a storebought bag with machine embroidery designs that fit different aesthetics and personalities. We used our Enjoy the Journey Retro Truck  design.
Just as we did with the other projects listed in this tutorial, you will want to print a template for placement. Once printed using embroidery software, center the template on your tote (or where you would like to embroider your design). Mark the center point and vertical and horizontal axis lines of the template.
If you do not have software, you can also cut out a piece of paper the size of your design to use as a way to place where you'd like your design to be.
To make your bag hoopable, carefully cut along the seam on both sides of the tote to open up the bag, allowing the front side to be laid flat.
Next, using temporary spray adhesive, smooth a piece of cutaway stabilizer onto the backside of your tote. The stabilizer should be larger than your hoop.
Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together, aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric.
Attach the hoop to the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is directly aligned with the center point on the fabric. Use clips to keep the excess tote fabric away from the stitching area when embroidering. Embroider the design.
When the design has finished, unhoop the design, and trim away the excess stabilizer on the backside of the embroidery. To remove the pen marks from your project, follow the instructions listed with the air-erase pen you used. Our pen marks come off with water and light scrubbing using a paint brush.
With right sides together, stitch the back and front together as close to the original seams as possible, leaving around a 1/4" to 1/2" seam allowance. Adding a zig zag stitch on the edges of your stitching will also help prevent any fraying in the future. After stitching closed, turn your tote right-side out.
Now that you've mastered your first tote, you'll be able to use this technique on tote bags of various shapes and sizes, making this project a quick go-to for gift-giving.
