Online embroidery course: what to look for, and what ours is (and isn't)

What the Stitch Your Dog Course is

It's an online course for one project: a portrait of your own dog, stitched by hand in black thread and finished as hoop art. Everything in it points at that one piece.

• One project: your own dog. After you join, you upload a clear photo of your dog and watch the pattern maker draw it, with every stitch marked by a dot. In a few minutes you download the print file and a small practice piece. It works from one dog per photo.
• Two stitches. Back stitch for every line and satin stitch for the eyes and nose. That's all the portrait needs, and you try both on the little practice piece first.
• The 3D Stitch Simulator. The lessons are narrated and hands-on. You take the needle yourself on a 3D hoop you can turn, zoom and flip, so you see the back of the work as well as the front. You can even practice your own dog's pattern in it before you touch the linen.
• A pattern you stitch right through. You print it on the soft side of a stick and stitch sheet with a home inkjet printer, stick the sheet on the fabric and stitch through it. At the end it rinses away, and only your stitches stay.
• Self-paced, with instant access. There's no schedule and no live sessions. Practice on your phone, tablet or computer, whenever you like.
• $47, one payment, with lifetime access. It's not a subscription, and there's no expiry date. If it isn't right for you, email within 30 days for a full refund, no questions asked.
• More dogs later. Joining includes 30 days in the Pattern Studio, with 3 more patterns from any dog photo you like. There's no card on file for it and no automatic charge.

You gather a short list of supplies: a 6-inch embroidery hoop, linen or cotton fabric, black embroidery floss, a needle and printable stick and stitch sheets. They're easy to find at craft stores or online, and the full list with links is in Module 1. What you need to start embroidery explains why each one is on it.

What it isn't

A narrow course is easier to finish, but it isn't for everyone. Here's what this one doesn't do.

• It isn't a stitch sampler. You learn two stitches, not a long list of them. For French knots, chain stitch, lazy daisies and the rest, our free stitch library has a guide to each.
• It isn't thread painting. The portrait is one color, black, in clean lines, with no shading and no color blending.
• It isn't a live class. There are no class times, no group and no teacher watching your stitches as you go. If your pattern doesn't look like your dog, you can email for help.
• It isn't a kit. Nothing arrives in a box unless you ask for it. You buy the supplies from the short list, and if you add the optional supply kit after you join, it ships within the US only.
• It isn't for cats, yet. The pattern maker only accepts dog photos for now. Stitch Your Cat is next: join the waitlist.
• It isn't machine embroidery. It's hand embroidery: a needle, a hoop and your own two hands. Hand vs machine embroidery explains the difference.
• It isn't a group portrait. The pattern maker draws one dog per photo. Two dogs means two patterns and two hoops.

What to look for in any online embroidery course

Whichever course you choose, ours or another, these are the things worth checking before you pay. Most of them come down to one question: will this course get you all the way to a finished piece?

Lesson format matters too, so look at a sample before you buy. Video shows the needle. A simulator lets you move it yourself. Written steps are easy to come back to. Ours is the simulator kind, and you can try it free right here.

Free · 3D Stitch Simulator

Try back stitch on a 3D hoop

Watch the first stitches, then tap where your needle goes. Turn the hoop, zoom in, and flip it over to check the back.

This is the free 3D Stitch Simulator, the same one the lessons use. Take a few stitches, then flip the hoop to see the back.

Start the simulatorOpen the full simulator

When a different course would suit you better

Ours is narrow on purpose: one project, one color, two stitches. That makes it the wrong pick for some goals, and that's fine. Here's where to look instead.

• You want to learn lots of stitches. A general stitch-sampler course works through many stitches on one practice cloth, from chain stitch to French knots and lazy daisies. It's the better start for flowers, lettering and freestyle designs. Our free stitch library is a good companion to either.
• You want color and realistic shading. That's thread painting: many shades of floss, blended with long and short stitch. A thread-painting course is the right choice for a realistic, full-color pet. A one-color line portrait is a gentler first step, and the even stitches and tidy back it teaches carry over.
• You want a teacher in the room. Look for an in-person class at a local craft or yarn shop, a library or a stitching group. Someone can look at your stitches as you go, which no screen can do.
• You want cross stitch or punch needle. They're different crafts, with their own courses. See embroidery vs cross stitch and embroidery vs punch needle.
• You want everything in one box. A kit is the quickest way to try the hobby with no shopping. Kit vs course vs custom pattern compares the three ways to start.

Can you really learn embroidery online?

Yes. Hand embroidery is a handful of movements repeated, which suits step-by-step lessons. What a screen can't give you is the feel of the needle and a look at the back of your own work. So pick a course that has you practice, not just watch, and turn your hoop over now and then.

Is a course worth paying for when free guides exist? It can be. Free guides, ours included, explain each stitch. A course adds the order of work, a project to finish and, in our case, a pattern of your own dog. If you'd rather start free, read is embroidery hard? first, then come back when you're ready.

Questions people ask

Keep going

• ComparisonEmbroidery kit vs online course vs custom pattern: what should a beginner buy?Kit, online course or custom pattern? What each one gives a beginner, and how to choose the right way to start.
• Free toolThe free 3D Stitch SimulatorPractice back stitch and satin stitch on a 3D hoop you can turn, zoom and flip.
• How-to guideIs embroidery hard to learn? An honest answerAn honest answer for beginners who can't sew: what's easy, what takes practice, and how long a first small piece really takes.
• How-to guideWhat you need to start embroidery (the short list)Six supplies, exactly which ones, and why: the short list for a first hand embroidery project, plus the nice-to-haves and what to skip.
• How-to guideThread painting for beginners (and a simpler way to start)Needle painting with long and short stitch, explained for beginners: the thread, the steps, the time, and when line art is the better start.
• Stitch guidesEmbroidery stitch guidesFree, step-by-step guides to 22 hand embroidery stitches, from back stitch and satin stitch to French knots, with diagrams, common mistakes and strands.
• How-to guideHow to turn a photo into an embroidery pattern (hand embroidery)Trace a photo into hand-embroidery line art yourself, or let a pattern maker draw it with every stitch marked.
• ComparisonHand embroidery vs machine embroidery for a pet portraitDo you need a machine to embroider your dog? How hand and machine embroidery differ, how to tell them apart, and what a beginner needs.