April 29, 2024

In our recent Spring Catalog we featured two special monogrammed projects. First we created a welcoming door sign on our Modern Pop Porch using a store-bought bundle of greens and a handmade banner with a framed monogrammed initial. The second project, a beautiful version of our Table Top Set, is personalized with an embroidered initial.

Here are the basic steps we followed to create our own monograms:

Step 1: Choose a font for your monogram

If you feel comfortable doing so, you can always draw your letter out freehand. But for those of us who aren’t quite that brave, a printed letter is easy to find! Open up your computer or tablet, and any program that allows you to choose from several fonts. We played around in Google Docs, but you could use any program you have from Microsoft Word to Adobe Illustrator! Type in the letter you’d like to use and try changing the fonts until you find one you love. Play with the sizing to make it bigger or smaller as needed until you’re happy with the size. Now print it out!

If you wish to add other elements to your design, like the flowers we added to our napkins, now is the time! Copy images into the same document as your letter, or do them as two separate printouts. We used one of the flower designs from our Stitch by Stitch kit, but any design with some lines that are easy to trace will work!

Step 2: Transfer your monogram to your fabric

Now it’s time to get that letter onto your fabric! There are a few ways to do this. If you have a light board, you can take the printout from your computer and place it on the light board. Layer your fabric on top, turn on the light, and trace the line with an appropriate tool (fabric marker, chalk, pencil, etc.).

If you don’t have a light board, you can use the tool we all have: a window! Attach the printout to your window with a little tape, fasten your fabric on top, and trace away.

If you’re keen on embroidering your design, you can also use wash away stitch stabilizer. This is a special paper that can go through your printer! Simply print (or draw) your design right onto the stabilizer, then position it on the piece you wish to embroider. Stick it down (it has an adhesive backing) and your pattern is set. It will wash away after you stitch!

Step 3: Start stitching

Now it’s time for the fun part - stitching the monogram! In the case of the wreath, we opted to add Chenille-It to our monogrammed “M”. This is a fun bias tape that you sew to your piece. Then you finish the piece and wash it. Much like when you create chenille fabric, the bias tape frays and blooms. We simply sewed the Chenille-It over our traced letter. A nice perk to the Chenille-It is that it’s going to fluff up, so you don’t have to worry about being too precise. Just echo your traced lines and you’ll end up with a gorgeous monogrammed piece. We used a piece of Essex Linen and then finished off the edges with a simple turn and fold, but this would work for quilt blocks, throw pillows, Christmas stockings, and more - anything you want to monogram!

For our napkins, we stuck to the sewing pattern (Table Top Set). But before we sewed the borders on our napkins, we embroidered the designs on the Essex Linen used for the center panel. We used the stitch stabilizer, a running stitch for the outline of the “M” and then a satin stitch for the flower and leaves. Then we finished sewing our napkins, washed away the stabilizer, and our set was done!

It really is that simple! We hope we’ve given you a few ideas on how to personalize your sewing and quilting projects to make them your own with a monogram. We’d love to see what you make - tag us on Instagram with #msqcshowandtell!

Published by Danae M.