Hand embroidery guide
How to remove embroidery stitches
On this page 9 parts
To remove hand embroidery, turn the work over, snip the stitches on the back a small area at a time, then pull the cut threads out from the front with tweezers and lift the leftover fuzz with tape. Cut the thread instead of dragging it back out through the cloth, and cut only thread, never the fabric.
Embroiderers call this unpicking, reverse stitching or frogging. It is a normal part of the craft, not a sign that something has gone badly wrong.
Tools for taking out stitches
| Tool | What it does | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Small, sharp scissors | Snip the stitches | Small snips put no pull on the fabric or the stitches around them |
| Seam ripper | The point lifts a stitch and the blade cuts it | The small ball beside the blade helps keep fabric away from the cutting edge |
| Tweezers | Pull out the cut threads | Useful for the smallest bits |
| A needle | The eye lifts stitches and loosens stubborn ends | Use the eye, not the point |
| Tape | Lifts fuzz and thread bits off the fabric | An easy-release tape, such as ordinary clear office tape |
Scissors or a seam ripper is a matter of preference. One experienced embroiderer prefers scissors because they give more control and do not pull upward on the fabric, and keeps a small seam ripper for places where the scissor blades cannot reach at the right angle.
Before you cut
- Cut, do not unpick by pulling. Two embroidery manuals from the early 1900s give the same advice. Dragging the thread back out through the cloth wears and loosens the fabric, and the thread you save is not fit to use again.
- Look at the back first. If you carried one thread from one part of the design to the next, those parts are joined, and taking one out is harder. Parts stitched with their own thread come out on their own.
- Give it a little time, but not too much. It helps to step away and come back with a clear head. One approach is to take the stitches out one day and restitch the next. Do not put it off until a small fix feels like a big one.
How to remove hand embroidery, step by step
- Turn the work over. Solidly stitched areas are easier to pick out from the back than from the front.
- Snip the backs of the stitches. Slide the tip of one scissor blade under the stitches and snip, working a small area at a time. With a seam ripper, use the point to lift a stitch slightly, then slide it further in so the blade cuts the thread, pushing the point away from your body. Never push a blade or a point straight through the fabric.
- Turn to the front and pull the threads out. The first threads usually come away with your fingers. Use tweezers when they get stubborn. It is tempting to grab a bunch and yank, but taking them one at a time keeps the fuzz down.
- Deal with what is left. Carefully cut through the front of any stitches that remain and pull those out too. Spots where a thread was started or ended hold on hardest. Turn the work over and loosen them with the eye of a needle.
- Clean up with tape. Roll a small piece of tape into a tube with the sticky side out and roll it over the fabric, front and back, or dab the sticky side on wherever fuzz remains. A scrap of cloth such as flannel, rubbed over the area in small gentle circles, also picks it up.
- Throw the old thread away and start again with a fresh length.
Stitch by stitch
Stem stitch. Stem stitch is one of the easier stitches to remove. On the back it looks like a row of small back stitches. Slide the tip of your scissors under each one and snip it, then turn to the front and lift each stitch out with the eye of a needle.
Satin stitch. Cut carefully through the satin stitches up the middle of the shape, then pull them out with tweezers, working from one side. If the shape is padded, you may be able to take off only the top layer and leave the padding in place.
Solid filling. A densely filled shape cannot be taken out thread by thread. Work from the back in small areas, snipping and then picking out the bulk of the thread.
Wool thread. Wool leaves a lot of fuzz behind on the fabric. Tape clears it quickly.
What the fabric looks like afterward
This depends a great deal on the fabric.
| Fabric | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Good linen | More forgiving than cotton. It can take stitches being removed several times, and the holes close back up |
| Cotton | The stitches can leave distinct holes |
| Knits, such as T-shirts | Hard to pick stitches out of, the marks can stay visible, and it is easy to snip one of the fabric's own threads |
| Some silks and most synthetics | Like cotton, they do not stand up to much unpicking |
If marks stay after the fuzz is gone, cover them. If you are stitching the same spot again, the new stitches go over the old marks. On clothes, an extension guide to reusing old garments suggests a patch, an appliqué or embroidery over a flawed area.
Hand embroidery on clothes
The method is the same. Turn the garment inside out and work from the back of the stitching.
- If a soft backing was ironed over the inside of the embroidery, take that off first. The advice on the maker's blog is to warm it with an iron and peel it back slowly. Use a press cloth when you iron the spot afterward, in case some adhesive is left.
- On a T-shirt or other knit, go slowly and lift each stitch clear of the fabric before you cut.
- On a worn garment, check for needle marks and fading before you start. The same extension guide lists both among the flaws that may not come out.
Old or inherited embroidery
Do not practice on a piece that matters to you because of its age or who made it. For cleaning, repair or restoration of a precious old textile, look for a textile conservator.
How to need this page less
- Keep a doodle cloth. Try an unfamiliar stitch, thread or color on a spare piece of fabric before it goes on the real thing. Most fabrics cannot take much unpicking, so the scrap saves your good fabric.
- Finish off each separate part of a design instead of carrying the thread across to the next.
Common problems
- Threads will not pull out. Some stitches are still uncut, or you have reached the place where a thread was started or ended. Turn the work over, snip again, and loosen the end with the eye of a needle.
- Fuzz stays on the fabric. Dab it with tape, front and back.
- You can still see where the stitches were. Expect this on cotton and on knits. Stitch over the spot or cover it.
When the fabric is clear and you are ready to stitch again, see how to embroider on clothes for garments, or how to start for the basics.