KeepTier · fiber arts creator economics

Patreon for stumpwork embroidery creators: wire armature 28–30 gauge couching sequence with catching stitches beside not under wire, detached buttonhole stitch foundation-thread row construction creating free-standing three-dimensional mesh, graduated felt layer pyramid padding projection height mechanics, wired-edge slip construction on separate calico cut out from behind and appliqued with one edge flat and opposite edge free and raised, carved wooden mold bead-cover spherical element method, 17th-century Stuart England casket embroidery tradition, thread families, and the Apple Tax on iOS-heavy needlework audiences from November 2026

Stumpwork embroidery occupies a category of its own in the needlework curriculum: it is the only major European embroidery tradition in which the defining technique — detached buttonhole stitch — never passes through the ground fabric during its construction. Every other raised embroidery form anchors its stitches to the fabric at each unit of work; stumpwork builds an entire needlelace mesh that is carried entirely by the mesh row above it and that hangs from a single foundation thread laid across the element opening. The practical consequence of this structural principle is that stumpwork elements can be lifted slightly at any non-anchored edge, revealing the padding and ground fabric beneath, and that the mesh can be shaped three-dimensionally by adjusting the height and contour of the padding on which it rests. This is the characteristic that makes a stumpwork piece immediately recognizable from any embroidery outside the English raised work tradition: the surface has dimensionality that cannot be achieved by padded surface stitching alone.

This guide covers the complete technical system at practitioner depth: the historical tradition from 17th-century Stuart casket embroidery through the contemporary revival; the wire armature construction and couching sequence; graduated felt layer padding and projection mechanics; the full detached buttonhole stitch construction method; wired-edge slip preparation, cutting, and application; carved wooden mold elements; thread and fabric selection; and the Apple Tax calculation that every stumpwork and raised embroidery Patreon creator needs for planning the platform transition before November 2026.

Historical context: 17th-century Stuart England and the casket embroidery tradition

Stumpwork as a documented tradition is strongly associated with the reign of the Stuart monarchs in England (1603–1714), and more specifically with a burst of domestic needlework production in the period 1630–1690 that produced an extraordinary body of raised embroidery on small decorative objects: embroidered caskets (decorative boxes for needlework tools, jewelry, or correspondence), mirror frames, book covers, small pictures, and cabinet panels. The decorative vocabulary of these Stuart pieces is strikingly consistent across the entire tradition: Biblical scenes (Old Testament stories, especially the story of Esther and Ahasuerus, and the Queen of Sheba visiting Solomon), pastoral garden settings with improbably scaled animals (stags, lions, leopards, caterpillars, and butterflies rendered as large as the human figures they accompany), heraldic devices, flowers (roses, carnations, honeysuckle), and fruit (strawberries, acorns, cherries). The dimensional quality of the work was achieved through exactly the combination of techniques that defines contemporary stumpwork practice: wire-edge elements, padded figures with carved wooden heads, detached needlelace mesh for clothing and foliage, and surface embroidery of flat and raised types within the same composition.

The name “stumpwork” is 17th-century in origin and is most commonly attributed to the use of wooden stumps, wooden molds, or turned bobbins as the structural foundation for the highly raised spherical elements — fruit, crowns, architectural details — that give the Stuart caskets their characteristic three-dimensionality. An alternative etymology attributes the name to the German Stoff (cloth) or to a corruption of “stamp work,” but the wooden mold interpretation is consistent with the construction evidence in surviving pieces examined under microscopy. Contemporary craft literature sometimes uses “raised embroidery” as a synonym for stumpwork, which is acceptable for describing the technique family, though it also encompasses related techniques (Brazilian embroidery, gold or silver repoussé thread embroidery) that do not use the defining stumpwork detached buttonhole method.

The Stuart casket tradition declined in the early 18th century as embroidery fashion moved toward pictorial flat needlework (Berlin woolwork, tent stitch canvas pictures) and away from dimensional raised pieces. The technique was maintained in specialist embroidery schools, particularly through the Royal School of Needlework (founded 1872 in London), which preserved instruction in raised work as part of its curriculum throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. The major contemporary revival of stumpwork as a widely practiced craft began in the late 20th century, driven substantially by the publication of detailed technical instructions by practitioners including Jane Nicholas, Kay Dennis, and Barbara and Roy Hirst, whose books documented the wire armature, detached buttonhole, and slip techniques in sufficient procedural detail for the first time for self-teaching embroiderers. The revival has been further amplified by social media, where the three-dimensional visual quality of stumpwork photographs exceptionally well: the raised elements cast visible shadows on the flat ground, and the dimensional depth is legible even in photographs, giving stumpwork creators strong Instagram and Pinterest performance relative to flat embroidery forms.

Wire armature: gauge selection, bending, tail construction, and couching sequence

The wire armature in stumpwork serves as the rigid structural boundary of each raised element and as the outer edge carrier for the buttonhole stitch purl edge. The armature defines the exact outline that the wired element will hold after application, and the wire’s rigidity is what allows wired slips and wired needlelace elements to be shaped three-dimensionally after application to the main design. Wire gauge selection determines how well the armature holds its shape against the tension of the embroidery worked over it: too fine a gauge and the wire distorts under working tension; too heavy and the wire is difficult to bend accurately to small curves and resists three-dimensional shaping after application.

28–30 gauge uncovered brass or copper wire is the standard working range for most stumpwork elements: petals, leaves, small wing shapes, and figure outlines up to approximately 35–40mm in their longest dimension. At this gauge the wire bends cleanly with round-nosed pliers, holds the bent shape reliably against embroidery tension, and can be shaped after application with gentle finger pressure. Uncovered wire (bare metal surface) is used in most contemporary practice; cotton-wrapped wire, which was common in historical practice and is still available from specialist needlework suppliers, provides slightly better adhesion to the embroidery thread but requires more force to bend at tight curves. 26 gauge provides additional rigidity for larger elements (wings over 40mm, broad flower petals that will be shaped at a steep upward angle from the fabric plane) where the 28–30 gauge wire might bow or distort under the leverage of the angled element. 32 gauge is occasionally used for the finest detail work on miniature elements (small butterfly wings under 15mm) where the lighter gauge allows very precise bending to small radii but at the cost of structural rigidity.

Bending the wire to outline shape: transfer the element design onto paper or card and use this as a bending template. Cut the wire to approximately 2.5 times the perimeter of the element — the extra wire provides the tail for anchoring plus a safety margin for adjustment during bending. Use round-nosed pliers (not fingers) for all bending: finger pressure produces irregular kinks at the bend point, whereas round-nosed pliers produce a smooth arc of consistent radius. Work around the template perimeter progressively, bending the wire to follow the design outline at each curve and angle. Where the outline has a tight inward curve (a concave leaf edge, a petal notch), use a single controlled plier movement rather than a series of small adjustments; small adjustments at the same point introduce multiple kink facets rather than a smooth curve.

Tail construction: when the wire has been bent to follow the full element perimeter and the two ends meet at the base, cross the ends and twist them around each other 4–5 complete rotations to form a tightly bound tail approximately 6–10mm long. The twist direction does not matter structurally, but once chosen should be consistent across all elements in a piece for aesthetic regularity when tails are visible during construction. Trim the tail to a consistent length.

Securing the tail through the ground fabric: using a stiletto, make two small pierced holes in the ground fabric at the element base position — the holes spaced 2–3mm apart to correspond to the two wire ends of the tail, or a single larger hole for a twisted tail. Thread the tail through from front to back (the pierced-hole method preserves thread integrity better than a needle hole, which splits warp or weft threads). On the reverse of the ground fabric, bend the wire ends outward and secure with 6–8 firm stitches in strong thread (buttonhole twist, perle cotton No. 8, or 6 strands of stranded cotton). The tail stitching on the reverse must be tight enough that the wire cannot pull back through to the front under working tension; test by applying gentle forward pressure to the wire outline from the front before beginning couching.

Couching the wire outline: thread a needle with matching thread (the thread color should match the planned embroidery color over the wire, or use an invisible-weight thread for elements that will be fully covered). Bring the needle up immediately beside the wire at the starting point. Pass the working thread over the wire surface, then re-insert the needle into the fabric immediately beside the wire on the opposite side. The catching stitch passes beside the wire on both sides and over the wire surface; the thread does not pass beneath the wire. This is the critical technical distinction for stumpwork wire couching: the thread holds the wire against the fabric through over-wire tension rather than through under-wire threading. Interval between catching stitches: 3–5mm on straight sections; 2–3mm on curves of less than 40mm radius; 1–2mm at tight corners where the wire changes direction by more than 45 degrees. At each catching stitch, ensure the wire is pressed flat against the fabric surface before drawing the stitch tight — any slight lift of the wire from the fabric surface at a catching stitch point will produce a visible separation between the wire and the fabric ground after the element is embroidered.

Graduated felt layer padding: construction, layer sizing, and projection height

Felt padding is the primary structural technique for stumpwork elements that remain attached to the ground fabric throughout — that is, for raised relief elements that project above the fabric surface but whose entire perimeter is secured to the ground (as opposed to wired slips and wired detached elements, which have one free edge). The padding creates the raised dome beneath the surface embroidery, and the projection height of the finished element is determined entirely by the height of the felt pyramid built before any embroidery thread is applied.

Felt selection: carpet felt (a dense, firm felt in a medium weight, available from specialty needlework and upholstery suppliers) is the traditional choice for stumpwork padding. Its density provides structural support for the surface embroidery without compression under stitch tension, and its surface accepts stitch piercing without fraying or distorting at the cut edge. Yellow felt (a bright craft felt, chosen historically because any gap in the surface embroidery would be less visible over a warm-toned padding than over white) is the most common alternative. Contemporary practitioners also use white cotton felt for elements where the padding might be partially visible (open needlelace mesh over a light padding) and where a neutral color is preferred. Do not use acrylic craft felt of thin grade: it compresses under stitch tension and loses its projection height as the embroidery is worked.

Layer construction: cut the first (bottom) layer of felt to the full design outline of the element, following the transfer line precisely. This layer is stitched flat to the ground fabric with a series of running stitches around its perimeter, approximately 1–2mm in from the edge, in matching thread or invisible thread. The stitches must pass through the felt and through the ground fabric and be drawn tight enough that the felt layer lies completely flat against the ground without any lifting at the edges. Cut the second layer 2mm smaller on all sides than the first layer. Stack it on top of the first and stitch through all layers and through the ground fabric in the same manner. Cut the third layer 2mm smaller again (4mm smaller than the first), fourth layer 2mm smaller than the third (6mm smaller than the first), and so on. The final shape is a stepped pyramid of felt layers of decreasing area, whose stepped-pyramid structure creates the dome contour beneath the surface embroidery: the perimeter area of the element (which has only the bottom felt layer) has low projection; the center (which has the full stack) has the highest projection; the stepped layers between create a graduated slope. Projection height as a function of layer count: one layer provides approximately 1–2mm of elevation at the element center; three layers provide approximately 3–5mm; five layers provide approximately 5–8mm; seven layers (near the practical maximum for satin stitch coverage) provide approximately 8–12mm.

Surface embroidery over the felt pyramid: satin stitch is worked over the completed felt pyramid, with stitches radiating from a central point or working in parallel rows across the element surface depending on the design intent. The key principle is that each satin stitch must span the full width of the element at its position: a stitch that falls short of the felt edge leaves the underlying step exposed at the element boundary. On domed elements, this means that the stitches at the element perimeter must extend slightly beyond the bottom felt layer onto the ground fabric, anchoring the edge of the padding and creating a smooth transition from the raised element surface to the flat ground. On lightly padded elements (1–2 layers), this extension is small; on highly padded elements (5+ layers), the perimeter stitches may extend 2–4mm onto the ground fabric beyond the first felt layer boundary, which must be accounted for in design spacing.

Detached buttonhole stitch: the defining technique of stumpwork

Detached buttonhole stitch is the technique that defines stumpwork and distinguishes it from every other European embroidery tradition. Its defining structural property — that each stitch row passes through the previous row rather than through the fabric — is the mechanism by which the completed mesh stands free above the padding and ground rather than lying against them. A Patreon creator who can explain and document this construction at practitioner depth has access to a technical knowledge domain that no general embroidery instruction covers.

Foundation thread placement: after the wire boundary is couched and any underlying felt padding is complete, lay the foundation thread. This is a single thread drawn across the full width of the element interior, approximately 1–2mm above the base of the element (just inside the wire boundary at the element’s lower edge). Bring the needle up from the fabric on one side of the wire boundary, draw the thread across the element width without pulling it tight (the foundation thread should lie loosely on the surface of the padding rather than pressing down into it), and re-insert the needle at the opposite wire boundary. Bring the needle back up 1–2mm above the re-insertion point and take the working thread back across to the starting side: this second pass doubles the foundation thread, making it more robust as a carrier for the first mesh row. Secure the doubled foundation thread ends with a small locking stitch at each side. The foundation thread is the only part of the detached buttonhole mesh that is connected to the fabric at its beginning; all subsequent mesh construction builds upward from it.

Row 1 — working into the foundation thread: bring the working thread up from the fabric at the left side of the element, just inside the wire boundary. Work across the foundation thread from left to right, making buttonhole stitches into the foundation thread at 1–2mm intervals: pass the needle under the foundation thread from above, draw the working thread through, catch the working thread loop under the needle tip, and tighten. The stitch should lie on top of the foundation thread with its loop on the upper edge. After completing row 1, bring the working thread to the right edge of the element and take a small anchor stitch through the fabric just inside the wire boundary. This anchor stitch is one of the few times the working thread passes through the fabric during mesh construction; it holds the row-end tension and prevents the first row from drifting.

Rows 2 and above — working into the previous row: bring the working thread up from the right side anchor stitch position and work from right to left, making buttonhole stitches into the upper loops of the previous row rather than into the foundation thread. The construction mechanics are identical: pass the needle under the loop from above, draw through, catch the working thread, tighten. The critical discipline at this phase is maintaining consistent stitch tension across the full row: stitches drawn too tightly pull the mesh inward and produce a puckered or contracted surface; stitches drawn too loosely produce a baggy mesh that does not conform to the padding shape beneath it. The correct tension produces a mesh that is relaxed but not slack, lying in gentle contact with the padding surface. At each row end, take an anchor stitch through the fabric just inside the wire boundary and alternate the working direction (right to left on odd rows, left to right on even rows) to maintain equal tension on both sides of the element.

Increasing and decreasing rows: for elements that taper toward a point (petal tips, leaf points), decrease the stitch count at each row by working into every other loop of the previous row in the taper zone, and anchor the working thread more frequently at the element boundary as it narrows. For elements that widen above the foundation (a wing shape wider at the upper edge than the base), increase by working two stitches into selected loops of the previous row. The increase and decrease mechanics are the same as in needlelace construction, and the stumpwork practitioner who learns detached buttonhole stitch for stumpwork is acquiring the foundational skill of needle lace simultaneously.

Final row and lower-edge anchoring: after the last mesh row, anchor the lower edge of the mesh by working the final row stitches directly into the fabric through the lower boundary zone. Bring each stitch in the final row down to the fabric surface and insert the needle through the fabric rather than through the previous row’s loops. This anchors the lower mesh edge to the ground, producing the characteristic stumpwork element in which the upper portion of the needlelace mesh is free and slightly raised, while the lower perimeter is secured.

Mesh density options: a closed mesh with stitches at 1mm intervals produces a nearly opaque surface covering the padding completely; an open mesh with stitches at 2–3mm intervals produces a translucent lace effect through which the padding color is visible beneath. The choice between closed and open mesh is a design decision that controls how much of the padding is revealed and how much visual texture the mesh surface itself contributes. Historically, closed mesh was used for figure clothing, foliage, and large landscape elements; open mesh was used for butterfly wings and fine floral elements where the translucency was the desired aesthetic.

Wired-edge slips: construction on separate fabric, cutting, and dimensional application

The wired-edge slip is a category of stumpwork element in which the complete embroidered element — a flower petal, a leaf, a butterfly wing, an architectural ornament — is worked on a separate piece of ground fabric (the “slip ground”), then cut out and applied to the main design in a raised, three-dimensional position. The separation of the slip from the main ground allows the element to be worked in a small dedicated hoop at a convenient angle and tension independently of the main piece, and the wire boundary couched around the slip perimeter holds the element’s shape after cutting and allows three-dimensional manipulation on the main design.

Slip ground fabric selection: calico (unbleached plain-weave cotton muslin) in a medium weight is the standard slip ground material: its plain weave provides a stable base for couching and embroidery, its neutral color does not show through gaps in the surface embroidery, and it cuts cleanly with sharp scissors. Fine cotton or linen lawn can also be used for slips with detailed fine embroidery; heavier grounds impede the cutting-out process and add unnecessary bulk to the applied element.

Constructing the slip: transfer the element design onto the calico by light pencil tracing. Mount the calico in a small spring hoop (not a scroll frame — the slip will be cut out, and the accessible tension of a hoop facilitates precise embroidery at the element scale). Couch the wire outline around the element perimeter following exactly the same sequence as for main-piece wire armature: bend the wire to the design outline, twist the tail at the base, push the tail through the calico, secure on the reverse, and couch the full perimeter with catching stitches at 3–5mm intervals. If the slip element is to receive detached buttonhole mesh (a butterfly wing worked in detached buttonhole), work the foundation thread and mesh rows over the interior of the wire outline in the same way as on the main piece. If the slip is to receive surface embroidery (padded satin stitch, stem stitch details, counted thread work), apply any padding layers first and then work the surface embroidery over them within the wire boundary.

Wire edge treatment: before cutting out, decide whether the wire boundary will be visible on the finished slip. If visible, work a row of close buttonhole stitch directly over the wire from the slip-ground surface, with the purl loop of each stitch on the outer face of the wire (the outer edge of the element that will be visible after application). If the wire will be covered by the surface embroidery, ensure the final satin stitch or buttonhole rows extend to the wire boundary and over it, completely enclosing the wire in embroidery thread.

Cutting the slip: remove the calico from the hoop. Turn the slip over so the back is facing up. Using small sharp-pointed scissors with straight blades — not curved embroidery scissors — cut the calico as close as possible to the outer edge of the wire. The correct cutting angle: hold the scissors with the blade nearly flat against the back of the calico, pointing toward the wire, and cut a sliver of calico to reveal the wire edge. The wire itself must not be cut; the objective is to remove all visible calico from outside the wire boundary. Work around the full perimeter at this angle. When the cut is complete, the slip has a wire-bounded perimeter with no calico extending beyond the wire, and no raw fabric edge that could fray.

Applying the slip: position the slip on the main design in its planned location. The base edge (the “stem end” of a petal or the base of a leaf) is secured flat to the main ground fabric with a series of firm stitches passing through the embroidered base of the slip and through the main ground fabric; use the same thread as the slip surface embroidery so the stitching is invisible. The opposite edge — the petal tip, the leaf apex — is left free and unsecured. To shape the slip three-dimensionally, gently bend the wire at a point along the element length using a fingernail or a blunt tool, angling the element upward from the plane of the main fabric. The correct angle depends on design intent: a flower petal at 30–45 degrees projects clearly above the fabric and casts a visible shadow; a leaf at 15–20 degrees lies nearly flat with just the tip lifting; a butterfly wing at 60–80 degrees produces the characteristic near-vertical projection of the full wing above the fabric plane. Once shaped, the wire holds the angle without additional stitching; the element retains its three-dimensional position indefinitely.

Carved wooden molds and bead-cover spherical elements

The spherical raised elements of Stuart casket embroidery — fruit (cherries, strawberries, grapes), heraldic roundels, architectural ball finials, and human heads — were constructed over carved wooden molds: turned wooden shapes of the correct diameter and profile, covered with fabric, and applied to the main design as dimensional solid objects attached by their flat base. Contemporary stumpwork practice uses wooden craft beads, self-hardening clay forms, or commercially available wooden shapes as mold alternatives, with the same covering and application technique.

Selecting the mold: wooden bead diameters commonly available from craft suppliers range from 6mm to 25mm, covering the range of fruit-sized elements found in classical stumpwork compositions. The bead must be unfinished or lightly sanded smooth so that the covering fabric or thread can be secured to the surface; lacquered or varnished beads are difficult to stitch through for the securing stitches. For organic shapes that are not precisely spherical (a blackberry cluster, a knobbly acorn), self-hardening clay can be shaped by hand and dried before covering.

Covering the mold: the simplest method is over-stitching the wooden form directly with closely spaced straight stitches from a base thread wrapped around the mold in a figure-eight or ladder pattern. Work the covering stitches from the base of the sphere (where the element will be attached to the main design) upward toward the apex, packing the stitches closely enough to cover the wood completely with no visible gaps. For elements that will be worked with closely spaced detached buttonhole stitch over the mold, the mold can be covered first with a thin layer of padding fabric (felt, thin batting) applied with a few stitches, and then the detached buttonhole mesh worked directly over the padding, anchoring each mesh-row end to the main design ground around the base of the mold as the element is applied. Alternatively, a small fabric cap (cut from the same fabric as the main ground, domed by cutting a circle slightly larger than the mold hemisphere and gathering the edge with running stitch) is pulled over the mold, gathered and stitched at the base, and then embroidered over in position.

Application to the main design: position the covered mold at its design location and stitch it down firmly through the gathering at the base, with several passes of strong thread through the mold-cover gathering and through the main ground fabric. Ensure the stitching is tight enough that the mold cannot wobble; a mold that shifts position during any subsequent work will misalign adjacent elements. For fruit clusters (a grape cluster of 4–6 individual molds), position the molds touching each other before stitching so they appear as a natural cluster rather than as individually spaced spheres.

Thread families, ground fabric, and equipment

Stumpwork thread selection is guided by the technique being executed: different threads suit detached buttonhole mesh, satin stitch over felt padding, and decorative over-wire stitching, and the practitioner who can document the reasoning behind each selection is providing a level of instructional specificity that general embroidery guides do not reach.

Au Papillon stranded silk: the preferred thread for high-quality stumpwork. The triangular cross-section of the silk fiber reflects light from multiple angles simultaneously, producing the luminous surface quality visible in exhibition stumpwork pieces. Au Papillon is available in a full color range including gradients; the thread separates cleanly into individual strands for single-strand fine work. It is substantially more expensive than DMC stranded cotton and the color range is narrower, but the visual result difference is immediately apparent in photography, which matters for a Patreon creator whose work must perform in social media contexts.

DMC stranded cotton: the most widely accessible choice and the correct recommendation for beginners and for beginners’ Patreon tutorial content. The full DMC color range (450+ colors) covers every stumpwork palette requirement; the thread behaves predictably in detached buttonhole mesh at 2–3 strands, and its wider availability means that subscribers can source materials easily in all markets. For a Patreon creator building an entry-level audience, a tutorial worked entirely in DMC stranded cotton is more replicable by subscribers than one requiring specialist silk suppliers.

Kreinik metallic braid and blending filament: used for decorative accents: the purl edge of wire armature elements (worked in Kreinik #4 braid, which produces a clean metallic line at the element boundary), the couching of goldwork-inspired raised elements within a stumpwork composition, and the occasional metallic ground coverage in background areas. Metallic thread requires a longer length of thread per needle threading than stranded cotton (to minimize abrasion against the needle eye) and a needle with a larger eye to reduce friction drag.

Perle cotton No. 8 and No. 12: useful for open detached buttonhole mesh where the twisted structure of perle produces a more pronounced mesh texture than separated stranded cotton. No. 8 produces a coarser, more visible mesh texture suitable for background foliage elements; No. 12 is finer and more appropriate for petal and wing mesh.

Ground fabric: fine white or cream linen (Belfast linen 32-count, Edinburgh linen 28-count, or unbleached calico as an accessible alternative), silk dupioni, or cotton satin. The ground fabric must be firm enough to anchor the wire tails and slip stitching without puckering under the combined tension of multiple raised elements. Silk dupioni provides a slightly raised texture that complements the dimensional elements but requires pre-shrinking before use. Cotton satin provides a smooth, reflective surface that contrasts with the dimensional elements.

Equipment: a scroll frame for the main piece (providing consistent warp and weft alignment across the full design); a spring hoop for individual wired slips worked separately; round-nosed pliers for wire bending; a stiletto for piercing wire tail holes; sharp-tipped scissors (specifically: one pair for cutting thread, kept very sharp; one pair for cutting-out slips, slightly less fine but with straight blades; these must be kept separate); and a laying tool (trolley needle or laying tool) for smoothing surface satin stitch threads into parallel coverage over felt padding.

Patreon content structure and Apple Tax

Stumpwork’s technique levels map onto a natural three-tier Patreon content structure that corresponds precisely to the progression a practitioner follows from their first raised embroidery experience to accomplished dimensional work. The tier structure is more clearly differentiated in stumpwork than in almost any other embroidery tradition, because the techniques at each level require different materials (felt layers require no wire; wired slips require wire, stiletto, and sharp scissors; carved mold elements require additional materials) and produce visually distinct results that patrons can evaluate before subscribing to the tier where they want to arrive.

Entry tier covers flat and lightly padded surface embroidery: split stitch outlines, padded satin stitch over 1–2 felt layers, and the visual vocabulary of surface raised embroidery including stem stitch stems, French knot seed clusters, and padded leaf and petal shapes. Entry-tier content does not require wire, cutting skills, or detached buttonhole stitch. A subscriber working at entry tier produces finished pieces that photograph attractively as raised embroidery, with the visible dome of padded satin stitch elements projecting clearly above the flat ground. Entry tier is appropriate for embroiderers with basic stitch experience who want dimensional work without committing to the full technical investment of wire and needlelace.

Intermediate tier introduces wire armature, the couching sequence, close buttonhole stitch over wire for element edges, and graduated felt layer padding at up to 4–5 layers. The intermediate tier’s distinctive tutorial content is the full wire armature couching sequence — the gauge selection reasoning, the tail construction, the beside-not-under catching stitch rule, and the interval specification for curved sections — which cannot be found in adequate detail in any general embroidery introduction. The subscriber who wants to work wired elements but is not yet ready for detached buttonhole mesh or wired slips has a complete and visually impressive technique set within the intermediate tier. An intermediate-tier Patreon creator who documents the wire armature at the level of specificity covered in this guide — including the common error modes (wire lifting at catching stitch points, tail inadequately secured through the reverse, plier kinks producing angular wire at curve positions) — is providing technically authoritative instruction that differentiates from general raised embroidery books.

Advanced tier (premium) covers detached buttonhole stitch from foundation thread through all mesh construction mechanics and increase/decrease techniques; wired-edge slips from design through construction, cutting, and dimensional application and shaping; carved mold elements; and the design principles for planning a complete Stuart-style composition integrating flat surface embroidery, padded relief elements, wired elements, and dimensional slips within a unified design field. The advanced tier is the content level at which a Patreon creator becomes a specialist instructor rather than a craft guide: the slip-cutting technique (the flat-blade cutting angle, the close-to-wire objective, the consequence of cutting through the wire accidentally) and the detached buttonhole stitch row mechanics are simply not documented in accessible form in most embroidery literature, and a creator who has documented them at practitioner depth has produced content that is unavailable elsewhere. The specificity and depth of this content justifies premium-tier pricing.

The Apple Tax impact on this audience is substantial. Stumpwork and raised embroidery content sits within the broader hand embroidery and needlework community, whose social media presence is centered on Instagram and Pinterest — both iOS-dominant platforms among needlework and fiber arts content audiences. Instagram iOS share among embroidery, needlework, and fiber arts accounts: 70–83%. Pinterest iOS share for embroidery and needlework boards: 68–82%.

From November 1, 2026, Apple’s 30% in-app purchase fee applies to all Patreon subscriptions processed through the iOS Patreon app. Revenue lost per month: at $150/month with 70% iOS, Apple takes $150 × 0.70 × 0.30 = $31.50/month ($378/year). At $250/month with 74% iOS, Apple takes $250 × 0.74 × 0.30 = $55.50/month ($666/year). At $400/month with 76% iOS, Apple takes $400 × 0.76 × 0.30 = $91.20/month ($1,094.40/year).

A stumpwork creator with 10 patrons averaging $25/month at 73% iOS loses 10 × $25 × 0.73 × 0.30 = $54.75/month ($657/year) to Apple’s platform fee — the equivalent of more than two additional full-price patron subscriptions that the creator must recruit simply to keep the same net income after the fee structure changes.

The mitigation is web checkout routing. A Patreon subscription initiated and renewed through a web browser — Safari on iPhone, Chrome on Android, or any desktop browser — does not pass through Apple’s in-app purchase system and is not subject to the 30% fee. The fee applies only to subscriptions processed through the iOS Patreon app’s in-app subscription flow. A stumpwork creator who adds clear web-browser subscription instructions to their Patreon page, pinned posts, and link-in-bio page can route a significant proportion of their iOS audience through the fee-free pathway before November 1.

KeepTier routes subscriptions through web checkout that bypasses Apple’s iOS in-app purchase system entirely, preserving the full subscription value for creators regardless of patron device. The November 2026 effective date is the planning horizon for every stumpwork, raised embroidery, goldwork, and needlework Patreon creator to complete the transition to web checkout promotion before the fee structure changes.