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Must-Know Stitches for Felt Appliqué
Self Care
July 30, 2019

When it comes to the art of appliqué, beginning with felt is a great way to learn and practice. Appliqué is
simply attaching a small piece of fabric to a larger piece of fabric, usually to create a decorative bit of
fiber art. Felt is a great fabric for appliqué work because you can cut it however you want and it won’t fray.
This eliminates some additional steps that are needed when using other fabrics for appliqué. In fact, felt
appliqué is so easy that if you’ve never tried it before, you’ll be amazed at how simple and accessible it is.

The two stitches that are used most often in felt appliqué are the whipstitch and the blanket stitch. These
stitches are used primarily to attach one piece of felt to another.

Whipstitch
The whipstitch (sometimes called an overcast stitch) is a simple series of straight stitches that you work in
the same direction, perpendicular to the edge of your felt shape. Often stitchers use thread that matches the
color of the felt they are attaching so that the stitches blend in. But you can also choose to use a contrasting
bit of thread for a more decorative stitch.

The whipstitch here blends in with the purple felt.

To see the whipstitch demonstrated, watch the video below.

Blanket Stitch
The blanket stitch looks like a series of right angles, or letter L’s that were turned on their heads. This stitch is
worked around the edge of your felt shape, tacking it down to the background. Depending on the look you
want, you can also use either a matching color of thread, or a contrasting color.

The blanket stitch here blends in with the blue felt.

To see the blanket stitch demonstrated, watch the videos below.

Whipstitch versus Blanket Stitch in Felt Appliqué

While the whipstitch and blanket stitch are used most often in felt appliqué when attaching felt shapes to the
background felt, there is no limit to the type of stitches you can use. In fact, if you have knowledge of hand
embroidery stitches, you can use an unlimited number of them in your appliqué work. Stitches such as the
back stitch, running stitch, stem stitch, lazy daisy stitch, cross stitch and many, many more can be used not
only decoratively, but to attach your felt shape to its background. It all depends on the look you are going for
and how creative you want to be!

Felt pieces attached using the whipstitch, blanket stitch, back stitch, fly stitches, buttons and more.

Want to join me for my next felt appliqué stitchalong? Sign-up for my

newsletter to stay tuned for the next session!

In Embroidery Tips & Tricks Tags Appliqué August, felt appliqué, felt

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← How to Display Your Felt Appliqué Sampler All You (Really) Need to Begin Hand Embroidery →

Comments (12)
Newest First

Preview POST COMMENT…

Joanna Reid 7 months ago · 0 Likes

Thanks so much for these tutorials! My daughter wants to use felt to put a vintage Bert and Ernie on a
jersey cotton t-shirt. If the edges are all stitched down, would the shirt be washable?

Beth Colletti 7 months ago · 0 Likes

Thanks for stopping by, Joanna! Yes, the shirt should be washable with the felt additions. I
would just wash and dry the felt before using it to make sure it doesn't shrink after stitching and
also to make sure it's colorfast.

Ana Murrugara 10 months ago · 0 Likes

Dear Beth, beautiful work! I have question, where do I find that beautiful "multicolor" thread? Thank
you!

Beth Colletti 10 months ago · 0 Likes

Thank you, Ana! I bought this particular hand-dyed green/blue/purple thread from an
independent shop on Etsy called Bathtub Studios. They unfortunately don't seem to be open
right now but Etsy has a lot of other wonderful hand-dyed thread shops, so I'd explore there!

Katvaz A year ago · 0 Likes

Dear Beth this are beautiful stitches. Thanks so much for the patterns.

Beth Colletti A year ago · 0 Likes

You're so welcome! Thanks for stopping by!

Heather Atencio A year ago · 0 Likes

Yes COVID tends to push us all into arts and crafts mode. But secretly I was doing this before the
virus (he he):D I love the kind of windy stitch with a line across each for applique attachment, how is
that one done?

Beth Colletti A year ago · 0 Likes

Thanks for stopping by, Heather! I think the one you're referring to is the threaded back stitch.
I'll be posting some tutorials for that and the whipped back stitch soon! They are very simple
and add a lovely embellishment to a basic stitch.

Sarah A year ago · 0 Likes

Love this! Thank you! This is what I am doing during this time of covid 19. Your videos are so helpful!

Beth Colletti A year ago · 0 Likes

I'm so glad you found them useful, Sarah! Stitching helps take my mind off of things and relax
as well. ❤

Janine Olson 2 years ago · 0 Likes

Thank you for the videos. They are so helpful. Looking forward to stitching in the month of August.
Thank you for doing Appliqué:) Jan Olson

Beth Colletti 2 years ago · 0 Likes

You are so welcome, Jan! Looking forward to having you stitch along!

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