Powerful Tornado Embroidery Design, Machine Embroidery Pattern, Instant Download

A guy from Oklahoma sent me a message last week, gold thread and black denim was his thing, and he wanted a tornado that looked like it could actually wreck something. The funnel starts at the top as these fine tight concentric spiral loops, almost like an engraving on old copper, then the body drops in with bold directional satin fill that gets more jagged and aggressive as it narrows down. At the ground contact point theres this radiating starburst with spiky lines shooting out sideways. One colour. Done. But because of how the density shifts across the whole thing, from those wispy outline loops up top to the packed satin columns in the middle, it reads like theres alot more going on than a single thread colour can explain.

The fine spiral lines at the top are satin stitch so your topping matters more than usual on textured fabric. Put a layer of water-soluble topping down before you hoop it and the loops will sit clean without the fibres poking through. I use a cutaway stabiliser on most fabrics for this one because of the density in that lower funnel section, it pulls a bit on terry and fleece if you go tearaway. Cotton twill and denim take it brilliantly. On dark navy or charcoal fabric with amber or gold thread it looks realy striking, almost like a foil print.

Pop it on a jacket back at the 6 inch size and it fills the space without crowding. Try the 4 inch across a canvas tote centre front, solid woven canvas means no stabiliser battle and the jagged satin edges pop clean against the fabric grain. Stitch it in burnt orange on cream linen and the vibe shifts completely, more vintage, less dramatic. The jagged underlay in the body section is what gives it that layered texture so dont skip a proper underlay run before the fill or the satin columns wont sit flat against each other.

Flag me down if you want a version without the border.