Undersea Embroidered Pants

Today, I show you how to use the feather stitch to make this fun pair of deep-sea inspired pants.

**UPDATE: Giveaway closed! Thanks everyone for entering, our winner is Lea Ann who said, "My favorite creature in the sea is the SEAHORSE!!" Great choice Lea Ann :) We'll get in touch with you via email soon!

All you need is a pair of plain old pants, some embroidery floss in coordinating colors, and a needle!

Cut a piece of floss 18-25" long -- shorter is better since it tangles less, but it's frustrating to have to keep rethreading... 

Pull the floss apart into individual strands, one at a time; then, put three strands back together again and thread your needle. This step is a little tedious, but it really cuts down on the number of tangles! Knot your threads together at one end.

Ready to do the feather stitch?

1. Bring your needle up to the right side of the fabric. 

2. Put your needle back down into the fabric, about 1/4" away from where it just exited. Then, bring the point up directly below the initial stitch point. Wrap your floss around the point of the needle. It can help to think that you're drawing an equilateral triangle with each stitch.

3. Gently pull the floss through.

4. For your second stitch, you have two options: stitch again on the same side, or stitch on the opposite side. You can see both options in the picture above. This will change which way the seaweed "branches". I enjoy alternating directions, but throwing in a stitch or two in the same direction every now and then gives a slightly different effect.

5. When you reach the end, bring your thread to the backside, making a tiny stitch to hold the final loop in place. Tie off your floss on the back.

Embroider more rows of feather stitching! You can vary the number of strands used at a time (I stitched with three, two and one strands) as well as the color -- this gives a very interesting, multi-textured look, without taking a terribly long time.

Then, just for kicks, I added a few rows of featherstitching to the back pocket -- and used satin stitch to sew on a tiny fish! (He's entirely optional though :) 

Now your doll has some splashy new pants to wear whenever she feels the urge to pretend she's deep sea diving...

Thanks everybody, and have fun with this!

For Pixie Faire,
Melinda