Embroidery DIY Home Decor

By Julie on August 29th, 2023
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Getting a little sick of your own home? After a summer of travel and seeing so many new and inspiring faces, I’m feeling inspired to spruce things up in my own home. Lucky for me – I own an embroidery machine (actually 3 😳) which is the perfect tool for upping my home decor game. Are you feeling what I’m feeling??? If so – here are 10 fun machine embroidery DIY home decor ideas that might help you breathe some new life into some old spaces.

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Pillow shams

Pillow shams can elevate a bed or disguise a worn out couch. They can add a pop of color, or even completely set the tone of a room. They are certainly an inexpensive embroidery DIY home project that can have a major impact.

I made the pictured monogrammed pillow shams to coordinate with the blanket. I even digitized this single initial monogram design to enhance the delicate stripes in the throw.

There are a couple of different ways you can go about making some embroidered pillow shams. You can make the shams yourself, or you can buy the shams and add the embroidery later. While making the shams is undoubtedly more work, it’s easier to stitch out the design on a flat piece of fabric rather than a pre-sewn pillow cover.

For the pillow insert – you can certainly purchase them online. But better yet – use the new and improved embroidered pillow sham to cover an old pillow you already own. Or ask around. I just noticed some old throw pillows in a closet at my inlaws house. I would bet that they are stuck up there because my mother-in-law wants to get rid of them and would be happy for me to take them off her hands and turn them into some beautiful new (to me) embroidered home decor.

Throw

Like throw pillows, a throw (blanket) can also add a pop of color to a room. You can find tons of super soft and luxe throws at places like Marshalls, TJ Maxx or even Overstock for between $20-$30. Add a monogram on the corner and get ready for your lifestyle upgrade.

I love these simple throws that are perfect for monogramming that you can Amazon Prime. If you are embroidering on a super plush throw with a significant nap – consider using a knockdown stitch within your design so that your monogram or embroidery design will still be visible.

Sheets and duvet covers

If you are disciplined enough to make your bed every morning, you can add some color and style to your bedroom by embroidering your sheets or a duvet cover. Consider adding a monogram to a top sheet that you fold over the top blanket. A monogrammed sheet is an opportunity to add in a bit of color that help tie a room’s color scheme together.

We don’t have the most prim and proper bed set up. In the winter, our bed is simply topped with a covered duvet. But, I wanted to tie a bit of the red that’s on our wallpaper with the bed, so I stitched out a wreath with a single initial monogram in red at the top of the duvet cover. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.

Plus, solid colored duvet covers are pretty cheap compared to their patterned counterparts. It seems like the duvet covers I usually pick out are over $100, but plain ones are cheap and are perfect to enhance with machine embroidery. If you are feeling particularly ambitious, you could do a multi-hoop project, stitching out an all over design on your duvet cover.

If your are not up for taking on a duvet project, another option is to embroider your pillow cases. Adding a monogram or decorative border can instantly make your bed look more luxe.

Quilt

If you are feeling particularly ambitious about elevating your bedroom decor, you can make an entire quilt full of custom embroidered squares. And get this – you can actually make the quilt squares in-the-hoop! Just imagine how much faster your process will be by letting your embroidery machine do all the work of stitching the squares together. Plus, it will be a heck of a lot more precise!

In addition to using your embroidery machine to make the quilt squares, you can also do the actual quilting using your embroidery machine. Check out this previous post where I cover how to quilt using your embroidery machine. And check out some of the in-the-hoop quilt squares you can buy at McDooDads and Purple Hayes Crafts

Wall art

Stitch out your own wall decor! There are some very elaborate designs that lend themselves to being framed. Ladies in my embroidery groups have boasted about multi-hour stitch outs of some large and elaborate designs. With all the detail and effort that go into producing and stitching out designs, they are certainly worth framing in a prominent position in your home.

Embroidered trees in frame — This is actually embroidery stitched out and framed! Photo provided by Linda Erikson and used with her permission.

Furniture

Sounds a bit crazy, right? But any piece of furniture with upholstery can be reupholstered with an embroidered fabric. So, yes, you can monogram a chair.

In fact, I did just that. I found an old, janky chair for $10 at an “antique store”, removed the cushion and recovered it with a monogrammed cushion. And I love how it turned out. An upholstered bench would be a great candidate for a new embroidered cushion. In fact, you could redo all your dining room chairs with monogrammed cushion. Now, that’s a project I could get excited about.

Placemats and Table Runners

A table runner and placemats add texture and color to a table, and can establish a color scheme in your dining area. They also protect your table from spills and burns from hot plates. Both are easy to embroider since they are flat, and you can actually make them yourselves.

I bought these red placemats (below) at Walmart, but with the monogrammed initial design, they look fancy enough for special occasions.

monogrammed placemats make a great wedding or engagement gift

Dish towels and hand towels

In our house, we often have about 17 damp dish towels floating around our kitchen at any given time. But when company is coming, I like to make sure the nicer of our dish towels are the ones sitting on the bar and hanging from the dishwasher.

Likewise, in the bathroom, I will leave out the elegant monogrammed linens towels I made. Amazing how some fancy towels can really class up a joint.

Lamp shade

Embroidering on a lamp shade? Yes – that’s exactly what I’m suggesting. All you have to do is get a lamp kit and styrene sheets. Then you stitch out a design on some fabric, stick it to the shade material and glue it onto the lamp shade frame.

I actually embroidered on a lamp shade this summer for an article in Creative Machine Embroidery Magazine and it turned out pretty cute.

Coasters

Coasters provide an opportunity to add a pop of color and pattern into any living area. Plus they are super easy to make in-the-hoop on your embroidery machine. I am in love with these modern in-the-hoop coaster designs from Five Star Fonts. But you can also go at the more traditional route and stitch up some ITH monogrammed coasters with an elegant single initial.

I was inspired to create my own in-the-hoop coaster designs that are designed specifically to be stitched on cork and I love the way they turned out.

So are you ready to upgrade your space?

I hope that I’ve provided some inspiration! Take advantage of your embroidery machine to boost your home decor. One or two little projects can really make a difference.

Good luck and happy stitching!

Julie