Truth time, Pandas. Yours truly is absolutely horrible with a needle and thread. I’ve certainly tried embroidery in the past, but I was pretty darn bad at it. I was impatient, clumsy, and the furthest you can get away from neatness without leaving Planet Earth. You should see me trying to sew in a button.

Embroidery certainly isn’t my go-to hobby (it’s painting and drawing!), but I really appreciate quality crafts with all of my heart. Especially when they demonstrate amazing results that I myself couldn’t aspire to without putting in years and years of dedication.

Like all skills and hobbies, embroidery requires a lot of patience, the ability to adapt on the fly, and the willingness to embrace your mistakes and move past them.

Learning any new thing or skill will certainly have its frustrating moments. Nobody truly enjoys failing. But developing a different perspective and seeing failure as an opportunity for growth is well worth it. In all aspects of life.

Founded all the way back in early 2010, the r/Embroidery subreddit has enjoyed 12+ years of moderate success. It’s seen massive growth the past two years. The online community is slowly on its way to getting a solid million members. Since Bored Panda’s last feature about the sub, in June, the group has grown from 628k to almost 703k members.

A lot of the subreddit’s growth is down to the current moderator team, running the entire show. Previously, one of the moderators, u/kallisti_gold explained to Bored Panda that they asked to take over the online community via r/RedditRequest. Originally, the sub was created by a spam bot.

After clearing out all of the spam and doing a bit of spring cleaning, the new mod let the community grow organically. "I wanted a place to talk about embroidery, and I've tried to foster that kind of environment for the community to flourish in,” they told Bored Panda earlier.

“[The] community is full of passionate hobbyists and enthusiasts, always ready with a compliment, constructive suggestions for improvement, or to answer any questions for folks who need some guidance,” the moderator said.

"We've seen huge growth in the community since early 2020. Being cooped up inside will make anyone frustrated enough to stab something a couple of thousand times, I guess,” u/kallisti_gold quipped, referring to the subreddit’s tagline, “Embroidery: When you don't know whether to make art or stab something.”

One of the other moderators, redditor u/Zesparia, created a fantastic FAQ page 10 months ago for new members and embroidery enthusiasts both new and veteran alike. In it, the moderator shares tips and tricks that any beginner will find useful. Meanwhile, it’s a nice refresher even for those embroidery enthusiasts who already have years or even decades of experience under their belts.

The subreddit only has three rules. First of all—don’t be a jerk. That one’s pretty straightforward. Just treat others like you’d expect to be treated. Follow the Golden Rule and suddenly the internet becomes a far friendlier place.

Secondly, you should always strive to give credit where it’s due. If you aren’t the original embroiderer of a particular project, you have to mention the original artist. And finally, self-promotion ought to be limited to mod-posted mega threads.

The best way to start embroidering is to get some supplies. The basics include a hoop, a needle, some fabric, and some 6-stranded embroidery floss. A pair of scissors is also useful.

The FAQ notes that “a very good way to start from the absolute beginning is to order an embroidery kit. It will have your thread, a needle, a hoop, and a design already worked onto the fabric provided. No analysis paralysis as you stare at the 60+ shades of red, wondering which one might be the best.”

What’s more, these embroidery kits also explain what stitches you should be using in what section. “Once you complete your kit you then have a hoop and needle to use for other projects as well. When finding a kit, it's a good idea to buy from and support a small business rather than purchasing off of Amazon. Almost all of the embroidery kits on Amazon contain stolen patterns from other embroidery artists,” moderator u/Zesparia writes.

Have you ever given embroidery a shot, dear Pandas? How did you enjoy it? Perhaps you’re an embroidery grandmaster with tons of experience? We’d love to hear your thoughts about the hobby as a whole, as well as the works we’re featuring in this list, so drop by the comments and share your two cents. Meanwhile, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a couple of buttons to try and sew on… Go on without me, this might take a while.