Add Colour with Embroidery on Knit Fabric

If there’s a universal truth in the world of fibre arts, it’s that fibre artists love colour! Embroidery on knit fabric is one of the oldest methods of adding colour because it works perfectly with the structure. As multicraftual makers, we have the skills (or the ability to learn) to combine crafts for that much more joy and colour!

Today I’m going to cover three simple embroidery techniques to enhance your knitted sweaters, socks, hats, and whatever else your imagination can dream up. All you need is a tapestry needle, some knitting, and accent yarn(s) in a similar weight to your knitted fabric. If you need a guide, simple colourwork charts are a great jumping-off point for embroidering your knitting. For colour inspiration, check out Felicia Lo’s Colour Mastery course. The swatches in this tutorial use SweetGeorgia Tough Love Sock, SweetGeorgia Mohair Silk DK, and SweetGeorgia Superwash DK.

Embroidery Swatches
Embroidery on knit fabric is one of the oldest methods of adding colour because it works perfectly with the structure.

Duplicate Stitch

Duplicate stitch is the most obvious type of embroidery to use on knitted fabric. Since it imitates the structure and look of knitted stitches, it can be used to mimic the effect of colourwork. If you love 3-colour colourwork knitting but don’t feel ready to tackle 3-colour stranded knitting, you can enhance your 2-colour colourwork by adding touches of a third colour in duplicate stitch.

Duplicate stitch
Duplicate stitch

To work duplicate stitch, insert your threaded tapestry needle from back to front at the base of the stitch you want to embroider over, then behind the legs of the stitch above it from right to left, then into the base of the stitch you’re embroidering, front to back.

Ruth using duplicate stitch on a knitted sweater
Duplicate stitch can also be used to correct small errors in stranded colorwork, as shown here.

Cross Stitch

The grid structure of knitted stitches is a perfect backdrop for cross stitch. While knitted stitches aren’t perfectly square (like cross stitch canvas), the difference between height and width is usually small enough (especially at a small gauge) that cross stitches still fill the knitted “grid” quite nicely.

Cross stitch.
Cross stitch.

To cross stitch over knitted stitches, insert your needle back to front at the top left-hand corner of the stitch you’re embroidering, between that stitch and the one next to it. Then insert the needle, front to back, at the bottom right-hand corner. This forms the first leg of the cross stitch. Repeat this step across all the stitches in the row you want to embroider. Then, come back and form the second leg, inserting your needle, back to front, at the bottom left corner and then front to back at the top right corner.

Cross stitch design on knitted fabric
If you’re feeling extra creative, try some more complex cross-stitching on a piece of plain knitted fabric!

French Knots

French knots are perfect for adding just a touch of colour and texture to knitting. While they can be delicate and are best used sparingly, they always add just a little something special.

French knot.
French knot.

To make a French knot over a knitted stitch, insert your needle, back to front, on the right side of the stitch. Then, tightly twist your embroidery yarn around the tip of your needle several times, then insert the tip through the yarn, as close to the base where it emerges from the fabric as you can. Then, insert the needle through the fabric, front to back, on the left side of the stitch.

Unexpected Applications for Embroidery on Knit Fabric

While most of these examples are stranded colourwork, embroidery can be used to enhance so many other knitted fabrics. Let your imagination be your guide as you explore the possibilities!

Embroidery on knitted lace fabric
Touches of embroidery can be used to add colour to lace knitting in ways that wouldn’t be possible to do while knitting.

Conclusion: Embroidery is Awesome!

I hope this demo has left you feeling inspired and excited about the possibilities for embroidering your knits! The three embroidery techniques covered in this article are just the beginning. Go forth, learn, explore, and embroider!

Share how you enjoy adding embroidery to your knitted fabric on the School of SweetGeorgia forums or on the SweetGeorgia Discord channel.

Original publication: January 19th, 2022; Refreshed: April 22nd, 2025 

The post Add Colour with Embroidery on Knit Fabric appeared first on SweetGeorgia Yarns.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Crocheting Granny Squares for the Jethro Cardigan

Image
Crochet Granny Squares are just so much fun to make! Just… one… more round… one more square… For today’s Taking Back Friday episode, I talk about the crochet granny squares I have been making at every possible moment for this past month. I’ve recently been inspired by the Jethro cardigan design by Tanis Lavallee from Tanis Fiber Arts. The Jethro cardigan combines both knitting and crochet in one project. You start by crocheting a bunch of classic granny squares, and then join them all together. Then, you pick up for knitting the sleeves and trim. It’s a really fun and easy way to play with colour, especially with making your own palettes and colour combinations. Mini-skein sets work perfectly to allow for fun colour play with these granny squares The goal of making these granny squares is to play with colour, but I didn’t want to go and buy 6 to 10 full skeins of DK-weight yarn in order to get enough of each colour. And so, I feel like the answer here is DK-weight mini-skeins . ...
Read more

Joining Crochet Granny Squares – It’s Easier Than I Imagined!

Image
I recently learned how to continuously “join as you go” (JAYG) for crochet granny squares and I LOVE this technique. And so on today’s Taking Back Friday video , I want to share an update on my Jethro Cardigan project and how I joined the granny squares. As I shared in a previous vlog episode , I’ve been making crochet squares out of three different sets of our Superwash DK Party of Five mini-skein sets. I finished making the 36 granny squares needed, which no two are identical. However, after crocheting all of the squares, I was stuck on how to join them together. They simply sat finished in a pile for a couple of weeks. Luckily, Tanis provided resources with her pattern and one of them was for the “Join as You Go” tutorial. It was fantastic. I’m so proud and excited that I’m almost done. I love how it is turning out, and playing with colours has been the most fun part of this project. If you’re interested in making your own Jethro Cardigan, I want to give you some encouragemen...
Read more

Winterful Weave-Along: Weaving WIPs

Image
Part of the fun of any make-along is to connect with fellow makers — to share your progress, ask questions, and be inspired by others’ work. We’ve absolutely loved seeing all of your photos and the journey of all of the weave-along weavers both at our Discord and SOS Forum spaces. SweetGeorgia Team Member, Greta, has now started weaving her second Kaleidoscope Scarf ! Helping to add some additional needed yardage for the border colour with our SweetGeorgia Individual Mini-Skeins (in Bison), Greta is following her own weft order — adding in some yellow picks and writing the order on a sticky note so the pattern can be easily repeated. Greta’s @gretacornejomakes second Kaleidoscope Scarf in-progress There is more weaving project inspiration to be found at our SweetGeorgia Discord space, in the #winterful-weave-along channel. It’s wonderful to follow along as everyone works through the weaving steps together. Also a fabulous opportunity for community learning, as weavers share ...
Read more