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Bright and colorful embroidery makes a fantastic first impression! Your guests will feel warmly welcomed, even before you answer the door when the screen door is decorated with beautiful embroidery.
Using fiberglass screen fabric, and water soluble stabilizer, you can have the loveliest screen door in the neighborhood!
A creative project by Geri!
Supplies needed:
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Fiberglass screen. Available from most hardware and home improvement stores.
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Design. Geri used the Four Hummingbirds design from Embroidery Library, and edited it to increase the size. She also added the "Welcome" phrase from Embird Alphabet 21, as well as extra flowers and leaves. Her sewout is based on a splitting lesson provided by Rosanne Berkey at http://www.editingwizardry.com. Any design would work well - choose a design that suits your preference, taste, and home decor.
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Stabilizer. Water-soluble stabilizer (two layers of lightweight stabilizer like AquaMagic, or one layer of a medium or heavy-weight stabilizer like Badgemaster).
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Needle. Geri used a size 80/12 embroidery needle, but the needle that you normally prefer will work well.
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Thread. 40 weight rayon or polyester embroidery thread for the top; pre-wound white bobbin thread for the bottom. From the backside of the design, the colors shine through from the front and the white bobbin thread is barely noticeable. Also, sewing thread or thin yarn and hand needle (used for basting guidelines on screen).
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Tools to install screen. Spline to hold screen in frame, spline roller to install spline, exacto knife to cut excess screen after installation.
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Optional Materials
Water-soluble thread (used as a top thread for basting stitches)
Painter's "blue" tape (useful for quickly marking centers of individual hoopings if embroidering a multi-hooped design).
Designs Used
Unlike metal screen, fiberglass screen is very supple and flexible. It is available at hardware stores, and can be purchased on a roll or by the foot. Geri's screen cost 79 cents (US) per foot for a 36" wide piece.
First, mark the screen for design placement. Determine where you want the design to be on your finished screen. You may want to tape a full-size template on the screen door frame to check placement.
Once you know where you want to put the design, measure down from the lower edge of the top metal frame to the top edge of the design (illustrated below as "Measure A"). The top of Geri's design was
11" from the metal frame. This measurement represents where the design will be on the completed screen after the screen has been installed in the frame.
Determine the distance from the top edge of your design to the center point (illustrated below as "Measure B"). Your embroidery software can give you this information. Geri's design center was 5" below the top of the design.
Find the vertical centerline of the screen (illustrated below as "Measure C"). Measure from one side of the screening to the other and divide this number in half. Geri's screening was 36" wide, so the midpoint was 18".
Use needle and thread to hand-baste guidelines from edge to edge on the screen. Basically, you are making a square that will surround the embroidery design, plus 6" on all sides to allow for installation.
Guideline 1: Measure A + 6" (horizontal line for top edge of design)
Guideline 2: Measure B + 6" (horizontal line for center of design)
Guideline 3: Measure C (vertical line for center of the screen)
Lay screen over full size 1:1 template matching lines to double-check that you are satisfied with marking and design placement.
Hoop the water-soluble stabilizer. Use a pen and ruler to mark the center of the hoop on the stabilizer.
Position the screen in the hoop. Geri normally hoops the material with the stabilizer, but for this particular project she chose not to do so. It is possible to hoop the screen - it's flexible and supple enough to do so. Be sure to do whatever you can to keep the screen from scooting around in the hoop, whether it be hooping, pinning, basting, or all three.
Geri used straight pins to pin the screen to the stabilizer.
Roll up and secure the extra screen outside of the hoop. Use straight pins, safety pins, rubber bands - anything that won't damage the screen, and will help keep the extra screen close to the hoop edges and out of the way.
Use a basting stitch to secure the screen to the stabilizer. You can use water-soluble thread in the top (or 40 weight embroidery thread) and bobbin thread in the bobbin. Remove the straight pins as you baste in place.
After basting, change top thread to your embroidery thread. Once you have positioned your needle over the center mark of the hoop, you may partially remove the hand-basted guidelines. Cut the thread and remove part of the thread that is inside the hoop - not the entire guidelines. By leaving the line in place around the outer edges, you will know exactly what line to follow if you need to recreate the guideline. You may have to support the rolled portion of the screen as you sew. Be sure that the embroidery arm and hoop can move freely while sewing.
After the design has finished sewing, remove the water-soluble stabilizer by immersing embroidery section in cool water. Lay flat on a large surface to air dry. You may want to weight the screen as it dries to help flatten and smooth. After screen is dry, carefully clip any jump stitches front and back (including bobbin threads) and remove any basting stitches.
Now it's time to install the screen in the frame. Lay the completed screen over the frame using guidelines to keep screen straight and centered.
Use a spline roller (available at the hardware store where you purchased the screen) to push into groove and hold screen in place. Keep the screen smooth, but don't pull too tight or you can bend the screen frame. Trim excess screen. Insert into door!
Geri's project is a wonderful way to add vibrant color to ordinary screen doors. We'd also like to draw your attention to Rose's fireplace screen. Rose used the Rosanne Berkey's Editing Wizardry lesson, and screen to make this beautiful ornamental fireplace screen. Just let your eyes roam around your windows and doors and fireplaces to find the next great place for embroidery!
