Fabrics I use for Embroidery

Let’s start with one of my absolute favorite fabrics, the one I use most often:

Fredrix Unprimed Cotton Canvas 548

Featuring a heavyweight 100% cotton 12-ounce duck, close construction woven to strict specifications

Its texture and weight feel just right, whether I’m working on a miniature picture or a larger, more detailed piece.

The fabric needs bleaching! Store it carefully; avoid folding; keep it either rolled or laid out flat.

So, how to get it?

https://fredrixartistcanvas.com/

1. Use “canvas 548” in the search bar; the company offers different roll-width options.

2. In the section “Store Locator”, US customers can find the list of stores where they can buy Fredrix items. Information for international customers is located at the bottom of this page.

US customers can also buy the Fredrix canvas in chain stores of Plaza Artist Materials. It is available for purchase by six yards in a roll in their online store. When ordering online, please contact them if they can sell the fabric in the exact size you need.

For international customers, I recommend checking eBay. Sellers there may offer this canvas by the yard (meter).

By the way, you can also buy fully prepared pieces of fabric in my store.

If a customer is located outside the United States, they may need to pay a customs duty when receiving the order. The exact amount depends on the rules of the destination country.

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If you can’t buy the fabric I recommended, please focus on the following: the fabric should be white, dense, and tightly woven, i.e., without any visible gaps between the weaves. The texture also shouldn’t be very pronounced, for example, not overly ribbed or with distinct horizontal and vertical lines, like on some linen fabrics.

Below, I’m showing examples of fabrics that might work. You can look at the texture in the photos in more detail.

Please note that lightweight linen fabrics aren’t always suitable for my embroidery style. I use very tiny stitches and French knots, and they can go through the fabric. Look at this photo and compare the textures:

Earlier, I used linen a couple of times for embroidery, but at that time I wasn’t using such thin threads as I do now, and my French knots were larger. I only saw linen clothes that I could embroider on, but I don’t know where to buy this kind of fabric by the yard.

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My next favorite fabric is a specific type of Indian silk - Ahimsa Perfection. In the photo, you can see how fine its texture is. But on this kind of fabric I only embroider miniature pieces; it’s too delicate for larger artworks.

I also plan to try different types of silk and fabrics for my embroidery, but they all need to be dense enough to hold tiny stitches, and their texture shouldn’t be too pronounced. These are the main criteria I use when choosing fabric.