Vintage Butterfly Embroidery, French Knots, Colonial Knots, and…
downloadable designs, stitch inspiration, and more!
Recently, I came across this vintage butterfly embroidery design made entirely of embroidered knots in varying sizes. And so this, of course, sent me down a rabbit hole exploring vintage embroidery butterfly patterns.
What drew me in was the simplicity achieved when French or colonial knots were used either to create the entire design or sprinkled in as accents.
This letter is organized into 5 parts. Read as you like: jump around, read start to finish, or star for later.
Stitch Patterns
How to Embroider a French Knot
How to Embroider a Colonial Knot
An Embroidered Hem
Design Inspiration
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1. Stitch Patterns
Vintage embroidery patterns are easy to find, whether in books or online. Here are some wonderful places to start.
Free stitch patterns: french-knots.com
All the patterns and images on this site date from the 1800s to the 1980s and are available for immediate download by clicking on the image and saving. They are free to share, but you can’t sell them.
🦋 For butterflies, specifically: https://french-knots.com/category/embroidery-patterns/insects/butterflies/
And of course, books!
My daughter picked a design from Vicki Becker’s Vintage Hand Embroidery Patterns Flowers and Butterflies for her dress’s hem, which I share further down.
2. How to Embroider a French Knot
Option 1
Using a knotted thread and a hoop to hold the fabric, bring the needle up from the wrong side.
Place down the hoop, and wrap the thread once around the needle.
Holding the wrapped thread taut, push the needle tip into the hole from which your thread just emerged. Slide the wrap down to the fabric, then push the needle through.
For additional French knots, bring the needle up from the wrong side and repeat.
Option 2 - More wraps!
Try wrapping the thread around your needle twice (or 3 or 4 times) for a larger French knot.
Ending Off
When you’re done, or when you’ve nearly run out of thread, flip your hoop over so you’re working on the wrong side. Slide the needle underneath the nearest 3 or 4 consecutive stitches and pull it through. Then snip off the excess thread.
3. How to Embroider a Colonial Knot
A colonial knot is very similar to a French knot. While French knots involve wrapping the thread around the needle in one direction, colonial knots use a "figure eight" wrapping method.
Using a knotted thread and a hoop to hold the fabric, bring the needle up from the wrong side and form an upside down ‘U’.
Slide your needle over and under the ‘U’.
Then wrap your thread up and around the needle forming a figure 8.
Pull the wrapped thread taut.
Push the needle tip into the hole from which your thread emerged. Slide the wrap down to the fabric, then push the needle through.
For additional knots, bring the needle up from the wrong side, and repeat.
4. An Embroidered Hem
What follows uses a vintage stitch layout from Vicki Becker’s book, Vintage Hand Embroidery Patterns Flowers and Butterflies.
Transferring the Design
After tracing the pattern in the book onto a fresh piece of paper, I used the tried-and-true method of window light, which works well, depending on your fabric or garment’s opacity and size.
I taped both the design and the dress upside down, because, well, gravity. I didn’t want the dress’s sleeves or bodice falling in the way.
Clover’s water soluble pencils work well on dark fabrics.
And lastly, for the knots, I opted for colonial knots.
Why choose a colonial knot over a French knot?
A colonial knot creates a more secure, stable knot that's less likely to unravel and come undone in the wash. An ideal trait for a kindergartener’s dress.
Finished!
5. Design Inspiration
Here’s a little embroidery inspiration featuring knots, including ideas for using them in designs and ways to incorporate them into your own work.
French knots fill the centers of ombré flowers on this traje de tehuana ensemble—a huipil blouse and long skirt traditionally worn by Zapotec women from the Oaxaca region of Mexico.
French knots can create textural impact when you group them together.
The same goes for knots made with varied threads and yarns.
Stitched in small clusters, French knots can take on a dimensional charm.
And back to butterflies… even with pre-made stitch patterns, possibilities are endless.
I hope you enjoyed this letter about vintage butterfly embroidery designs along with French and colonial knots. Thank you for being here, and see you next time!
~Jane
Stunning! Thank you for the inspiration and the instructions.