Lively Pet Portraits: Fur Embroidery Techniques
A course by Santo CieloDesigner and Textile Artist
A course by Santo Cielo, Designer and Textile Artist
Learn to embroider realistic animal portraits by exploring fur and stitching techniques to give your favorite pet life and texture
Animal portrait embroidery is a creative way to demonstrate our love towards our furry friends. Embroidery artist Santo Cielo specializes in immortalizing photographs and memories of these tiny critters that make our lives happier. From his home in Berlin, he creates commissioned work for clients, hosts workshops for beginners, and shares his embroidery with over 14K followers on Instagram.
In this online course, Santo teaches you how to embroider animal portraits by teaching you his specialized fur techniques. Learn how to make realistic fur with the arrow scheme and a variety of stitches. Pay homage to your animal companion with needle and thread.
What will you learn in this online course?
23 lessons & 26 downloads
The Movement of Fur and Layers
10 minutes, 55 seconds
Color Selection: Threads and Background Fabric
13 minutes, 27 seconds
Preparing the Hoop
7 minutes, 38 seconds
Transferring the Pattern
6 minutes, 21 seconds
A Very Furry Sampler 1
20 minutes, 2 seconds
A Very Furry Sampler 2
17 minutes, 5 seconds
What's included in this course?
Meet Santo Cielo, a designer, textile artist, and your teacher for this course. Hear about his creative journey into the world of embroidery, which started in childhood and led him to his career. He also talks about some of the artists that have inspired him most.
Get an overview of the materials needed throughout the course, before seeing how to choose the right photo for your project. Santo then teaches you **how to make an arrow scheme, **which helps map out the movement of fur and its layers. Next, see how to choose the right color threads and background fabric.
Learn **how to prepare your embroidery hoop, ** before transferring your pattern onto the fabric. Santo takes you step by step through embroidering different types of fur to create a sampler.
Time to start embroidering your pet! Begin by tracing the photo onto the fabric. Next, see how to embroider the eyes and nose, before moving on to the snout, ears, jaw, and forehead. Finish your embroidery piece by stitching the hairs and whiskers.
Santo shows you how to add some finishing touches by adding your pet’s name, the date, or even a message using two simple stitches. Learn how to carefully clean, wash, and iron your piece. Wrap up the course by seeing how Santo finishes his hoop.
What is this course's project?
Create an embroidery piece based on a photo of a pet using realistic fur techniques.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is for anyone with a special furry friend they would like to embroider.
Requirements and materials
No previous experience is necessary.
To take this course, you need an embroidery hoop, fabric, needles, thread, a photograph of an animal, tracing paper, scissors, a pencil, and a permanent marker.
Reviews
- 7 months ago
SUPER GENIAL EL CURSO, MUY CLARO Y CONCISO.
- 7 months ago
I haven't even finished the course yet, and I am loving it. Santo has such a gentle manner of teaching, very thorough and calm. I could listen to him all day!
- 8 months ago
O curso é incrível! E o material de apoio é excelente para dar autonomia! eu amei!
- 10 months ago
A very versatile course! The artist is very sweet and explains everything, even for those who are complete beginners at embroidery.
- 1 year ago
Very methodical and well explained. This course breaks down creating a portrait into smaller parts that seem more manageable and less intimidating.
For the past few years, Santo has been living in Berlin, where he currently works as an embroidery artist. His work ranges from portraits of pets, people, memories, and even imaginary creatures. Apart from taking commissions, he also hosts embroidery workshops for beginners.
Content
- U1
Introduction
- About Me
- Influences
- U2
The First Steps
- Materials
- Choosing the Right Photo
- The Movement of Fur and Layers
- Color Selection: Threads and Background Fabric
- U3
The Sampler
- Preparing the Hoop
- Transferring the Pattern
- A Very Furry Sampler 1
- A Very Furry Sampler 2
- A Very Furry Sampler 3
- U4
Embroidering
- Tracing
- Embroidering the Eyes and Nose 1
- Embroidering the Eyes and Nose 2
- Embroidering the Snout 1
- Embroidering the Snout 2
- Embroidering the Ears, Jaw, and Forehead 1
- Embroidering the Ears, Jaw, and Forehead 2
- Embroidering the Ears, Jaw, and Forehead 3
- Isolated Hairs and Whiskers
- U5
Final Touches and Care Tips
- Adding Names
- Cleaning, Washing, and Ironing the Embroidery
- Finishing the Hoop
- FP
Final project
- Lively Pet Portraits: Fur Embroidery Techniques
What to expect from a Domestika course
Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
Certificates
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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FAQs
This course is ideal for intermediate embroiderers who are comfortable with basic stitches and want to advance their skills, especially in creating realistic pet portraits using photographs.
You’ll need embroidery hoops, cotton twill fabric, DMC threads, embroidery needles, tracing paper, a friction pen, scissors, and a light pad. A hoop stand and color card are also recommended for best results.
You’ll learn to select and analyze suitable pet photographs, transfer patterns, choose thread colors, apply advanced stitching for fur and features, and finish your embroidery hoop for display.
Select a clear, well-lit photo with visible features and natural lighting. Avoid overexposed, blurred, or heavily filtered images to ensure accurate color and detail in your embroidery.
You’ll master straight and blended stitches, color grading, and layered embroidery to replicate various fur types, movement, and textures for lifelike pet portraits.
The course covers using tracing paper, friction pens, and light pads to outline key features and fur direction accurately before stitching.
Yes, the course explores integrating cross stitch, Russian embroidery, and painterly effects like chiaroscuro for added depth and style.