Frame an Embroidery – How to Stretch, Mount and Prepare Needlework for Display in a Store Bought Frame

Preparing your needlework for display in a frame looks challenging, but it is actually a very straight forward process. You can get wonderful results with simple techniques and save yourself the cost of professional framing.

I have used this technique to prepare a piece of embroidery completed on felt. If you are interested in making that project, please look at my Instructable: https://www.instructables.com/SeascapeSkyscape-Embroidery-Using-Only-One-Stitch-/

Gather your finished embroidery or needlework stitchery and materials:

• Completed embroidery or needlework project
• Purchased frame for display. I used IKEA shadow box frame 'Vastanhed' measuring 20 * 25cm
• Strong thread. I used Gutermann Extra Strong Thread 000 100m in blue. This thread is strong enough to tension without breaking
• 5cm wide strips of calico, canvas or homespun cotton (optional)
• Sewing machine (optional)
• Boxboard to fit your frame. This is not the same as cardboard (see my notes)
• Off-cut or scrap of wadding or felt to the size of your frame. I used a scrap of bamboo wadding
• Box cutter
• Pins
• Scissors
• Glue stick
• Sewing needle
• Iron
• 2B pencil and metal ruler
• Masking tape or low tack tape

Carefully measure the inside edge of your chosen frame to determine the size of your panel.

Draw the shape of the panel onto your boxboard using a metal ruler and pencil. What is box board? It’s not just ordinary cardboard chopped out of a flimsy box. Boxboard is a really firm cardboard for making rigid boxes. I sourced little off-cuts of mine from a recycling business called “Reverse Garbage” in Brisbane, Australia. My piece cost 50 cents.

Using the boxboard, box cutter and metal ruler, cut out the panel of boxboard.

I like the embroidery to stand out a little from the boxboard surface, so I have added a layer of wadding onto the boxboard. I used a white bamboo wadding off-cut that would not shadow through the work.

Press the wadding under a scrap of cloth to make smooth. Measure and cut a piece of wadding to fit the boxboard. To stop the wadding slipping around while you work, apply a layer of gluestitck onto the boxboard and then evenly press down the wadding. To get the wadding super smooth, press it using an iron on the boxboard. Trim off any excess of wadding that have now stretched beyond the boxboard panel.

Press your completed stitchery well and ensure it will fit the frame you have chosen. My embroidery was just wide enough for the front but not wide enough to have an overhang to the back for stretching the panel. I had to sew some 5cm wide calico strips onto mine using the sewing machine. If you are working with felt I recommend adding the calico strips anyway as these will strengthen your work while you tension the lacing of the back.

Pin long sides first matching one corner point. Machine stitch with around a 5mm seam allowance.

Press the seams and trim excess calico. Pin and stitch calico strips to remaining sides and press your work.

Because embroidery and needlework is a little thicker than paper, you will need to test that your embroidery stretched over the boxboard will fit in the frame.

Lay your embroidery panel onto the boxboard and tape into position using the masking tape. Test to ensure the covered panel will fit your frame. If it is too snug, trim the boxboard panel a little and repeat (make sure you remove your embroidery while cutting!)

My boxboard panel was too big after I put the embroidery panel in to start with (see photo) so I had to trim. This step is definitely worthwhile.

Position your finished stitchery onto the front side of your boxboard (the side with the wadding). Once you are happy with the position, flip the whole thing over carefully so you can see the back. You may want to work on clean paper to protect your finished work.

Using your low tack tape, place a little tape on each of the sides to hold your work.

Using pins, place pins through the work to hold it to the boxboard on the very narrow lip of the boxboard all the way around. Keep the tension even and the work smooth.

Thread a strong needle with the strong polyester thread and cut a long tail. I cut around 60cm doubled over. Make a nice BIG knot in the thread and start lacing the back of your work from one side to the other. I like to start in the centre of a side and work towards a corner. I will also work on both directions at the same time and remove the low tack tape as I work. So my order would be: lace from long-sides of work from the centre to one corner. When the thread runs out, re-thread and start short-side middle to a corner. When that thread runs out return to the long-side and work in the other direction to the corner and so on. I found my stitchery was a just a tiny bit too narrow on one side and had to lace the side of the embroidery panel to get a snug taught fit (refer to my photo).

To remove bulk from the finished piece, trim the corners of your work on a diagonal about 1cm on from each corner. Use pins to tightly fold in the corner a bit like you are making a bed corner using hospital corners.

Use the strong thread and sewing needle to stitch the corners one at a time using ladder stitch.

Don’t worry about neatness of the back. The most important parts are getting reasonable tension in the embroidery to have it sit nicely in the frame.

Pop your finished and laced work into your frame and enjoy the results!

This embroidery panel is mounted in a shadow box because I am going to create a 3 dimensional bas relief work over the next little while called “Frogs Book Nook”. I wanted to continue the back embroidery design to the sides. In an upcoming Instructable I will show you how to do this.