So, you bought a pattern to start your new hobby, but you realized you don't have the supplies needed to get started. On any normal day I would just suggest to hit up your local craft or fabric store and you would be golden! Unfortunately with COVID, going out and about is a bit of an anxiety ridden mess, so picking out your supplies might be more difficult than usual.

I wanted to share with you all suggestions for getting supplies to stitch my patterns, and any others that you might buy from other makers! This post isn't sponsored in any way. I just wanted to share any tips I have to make your stitching process as fun and easy as possible!

CRAFT STORES & THEIR CURRENT STATUS

JOANN Fabric and Crafts

They are offering 40% off your regular priced purchase, and you can select curbside pickup which is pretty awesome!
This is my fave spot to shop for everything (fabric, thread, needles - they have hoops there as well but I usually order in bulk directly from Darice)

Michaels

They are also offering curbside pickup, and 20% off your regular priced purchase!
I love shopping here to snag thread quickly. Perfect for hoops, thread and needles.
They don't have a huge fabric selection, but have quilting fabric.

Hobby Lobby

Increased cleaning for Covid, but are not advertising curbside pickup. They are also advertising slower delivery times.
I don't shop here unless it's convenient. They have a limited selection of fabric, but have thread, fabric and hoops.

All three of these stores do online ordering as well, so if you don't mind waiting, you can always order and wait it out!

MATERIALS TO ORDER

From here on out, I'm going to talk like I'm shopping at JOANN Fabrics, since that is my most frequented spot when I want to get a little bit of everything. I haven't ever shopped from their online store, but I'm going to do my best to find the best options for all your embroidery needs!

FABRIC

For all of my hoops, I typically stitch on either a linen blend, or a Kona cotton. With a linen blend, you get a lot of great options. I found this one bright white linen blend at Joann Fabrics and I instantly fell in love. I always buy a lot of it when I go to bulk up my fabric supply. Here are a few fabrics that are currently available on their website that I would purchase to stitch with.

Sew Classic Slub Linen Fabric - the grey/black fabric is a favorite of mine for necklaces and darker hoops (this fabric is pretty light, so doubling it up when stitching is recommended)
Lyocell Linen Mimosa Fabric - I LOVE stitching on colored fabric, and this mustard color looks fabulous
Lyocell Linen Rosette Solid Fabric - Also this rosy pink. I'm tempted to buy this color right now to stitch some hoops this weekend.
Kona Cotton - This fabric is great if you want to use a light cotton and stay away from linen type fabrics. It's also on the lighter side, so doubling up on the fabric after tracing to stitch is ideal. Kona cotton is also the best bang for your buck price-wise if you're on a budget.

Ordering Fabric Online

THREAD & NEEDLES

This is an easy one. I only use DMC embroidery floss - it's everything I need and more. Plus, all of my patterns are built out with the specific colors I used for each hoop so that allows for easy selecting. Those are all just suggestions, so obviously if they're out of colors, you can always pivot and play with a new palette! If you need inspiration for thread palettes, check out @stitch_palettes on instagram. They are a fantastic resource.

Light Effects
Variegated Thread
Solid Six Strand at JOANN (I had a hard time finding all the options at JOANN online)
Solid Six Strand at Michaels (they had a MUCH better selection and do free pickup at the door)
DMC Needles - I suggest using 3 or 5 to stitch with

Ordering thread online

EMBROIDERY HOOPS

I feel like hoops are more preference based. Some people love stitching with plastic hoops, other with bamboo, or other just straight wood. Like I wrote earlier, I like ordering straight from Darice Crafts.

For speed and ease, JOANN and Michaels both carry hoops in their store.

Ordering hoops online

DON’T FORGET TO BUY LOCAL!

Although I wrote about larger chains, there is definitely a chance that your local craft stores are open! Give them a call and check to see what their inventory is like. If they aren't open right now, buy a gift card from them to use for when we're able to shop with ease and the local businesses are open once again.

DID I MISS ANYTHING?

Any other questions about materials and where to get them? Did I totally space on something important? What day of the week is it anyway? Let me know in the comments or shoot me a DM on Instagram at @lady_scrib! I will be updating this blog post with new links and materials as I learn more.

Thanks and happy stitching!

-Kassie

Embroidery Supply Shopping during Quarantine