Part of the Ink & Imaginings Slow Summer series
If you came here from my reel then yes, this is the kit that finally got me to "pick me, choose me, love me'd" into actually learning embroidery. Below is exactly what I have, what I ordered during the sale, and what's still sitting in my wishlist tab refusing to leave.
The sale is live right now: 20% off site-wide, plus an extra 10% off with code INK10. Stack them and these little kits get very, very easy to justify.
Affiliate note: the links below are my Clever Poppy affiliate links. If you buy through them I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Tt's what keeps the Slow Summer series going and allows me to do giveaways. Thank you for using them.
Why I fell for Clever Poppy in the first place
I'm a lifelong cross-stitcher with a very specific dream: to add tiny embroidered bees and little flowers to all the things. The problem is that "real" embroidery always felt like a wall. Too many supplies to source, too many stitches I didn't know, too many tutorials scattered across the internet.
What pulled me in was the all-in-one beginner kit with detailed video tutorials. Everything you need is in one box: the hoop, the fabric, the threads, the needles, the Clever Poppy scissors, even a heat-erasable transfer pen for tracing your pattern. No running to three different shops before you can start.
And here's the part I genuinely love: you scan the included quick-start card and it takes you straight to an in-depth video tutorial. You stitch along with someone, at your pace. No experience required. Clever Poppy has taught 100,000+ stitchers this exact way.
The other quiet magic is that the whole thing lives in a handy storage box. I can throw it in my bag and have everything I need with me which is exactly how it ended up coming on our beach trip last year. It fits the slow-summer thing perfectly: a low-stakes, screen-free project you can pick up for twenty minutes on a porch.
These kits are the perfect audiobook companion. For a limited time get Audible Standard free for 3 months, plus a $20 bonus Audible credit. This is the best Audible deal of the year. If you have been on the fence, this is the moment! If you need ideas to use those credits check out our list of Best Summer Audiobooks.
What I'm stitching right now
Sunset Meadow Beginner Kit
This is the kit I ordered because learning to embroider flowers on all the things is my main goal. It's described as the warmest, most feel-good beginner project, and it teaches the dreamy starter stitches: satin stitch, woven roses, and French knots. (Those French knots are doing a lot of the heavy lifting toward my future bee-and-flower empire.) Estimated 5–6 hours for an absolute beginner, but the point is to take your time and enjoy the process!
What I ordered during the sale (next up)
image of Floral Frame Beginner Kit
Floral Frame Beginner Kit
Up next in my rotation. It's a hand-stitched floral border designed to frame a little 3x3" photo, and it walks you through most of the beginner stitches including that gorgeous Woven Rose. I love that the finished piece is functional — a frame for a memory, not just a hoop on the wall.
Image of Little Bookshelf Beginner Kit
Little Bookshelf Beginner Kit
For my actual bookshelf, obviously. This one's a little different, it combines watercolor painting with embroidery to build a cozy bookshelf scene full of tiny colorful books, a little frame, and a leafy plant. As a book girlie running a book blog, this one feels written for me. (It even comes with a paintbrush and watercolor palette in the box.)
Needle minders are also included in the sale and if (like me) you have ever sat on a stray needle you know these are not just adorable, they are essential. Especially if you also have kids learning. My daughter took over my old one which gave me the perfect excuse to order this cute one!
Stitching together this summer
A summer project for me and my daughter.
Image of Floral Felt Corner Bookmarks
Floral Felt Corner Bookmarks
My daughter is learning to sew, so I grabbed this one for the two of us to make side by side this summer. They're personalized felt corner bookmarks. Sweet, simple, and quick enough to keep a new little stitcher excited, with a finished keepsake she'll actually use. Exactly the slow-summer, screen-free afternoon I was hoping for.
On my wishlist (a.k.a. the tab I won't close)
image of Fall Floral Row Beginner Kit
Fall Floral Row Beginner Kit
I love the idea of having a seasonal hoop I can swap out as the months change and this is the autumn one. It's the third design in Clever Poppy's seasonal floral series: goldenrods, heleniums, pink dianthus, plus the cutest little snails and mushrooms tucked in. The plan is to keep one seasonal piece on display year-round and rotate it.
image of Purrfect Pot Plants Beginner Kit
The "I know EXACTLY who this is for" gift
Purrfect Pot Plants Beginner Kit
I have a specific person in mind for this one. The plant-lover-slash-cat-person in your life knows who they are. It's a cheeky little cat peeking out of a pot surrounded by blooming flowers and leafy greens, and it teaches back stitch, straight stitch, satin stitch, lazy daisy, and French knots. A genuinely perfect, personal, handmade gift.
image of Gingerbread Cottage Beginner Kit
Gingerbread Cottage Beginner Kit
I mean… it's so perfectly festive. A cozy gingerbread house trimmed with little Christmas trees, candy canes, and a cheerful gingerbread man. Beginner-friendly stitches, and the finished piece becomes handmade holiday décor you pull out every December. Filing this one under "future me will thank present me for buying it before the holiday rush."
The Maker's Academy: Where I am heading next
Once the beginner kits got their hooks in me, I found out Clever Poppy runs a whole membership and it's exactly the "keep going" path I was hoping for. The Maker's Academy is a self-paced monthly membership and community built around the same idea: learn embroidery the easy way, at your own pace, in good company.
- 100+ patterns in the library, beginner to advanced, plus a brand-new pattern every single month
- 40+ technique tutorials so you're not bouncing around YouTube mid-project
- Full courses and workshops including a beginners' course and one literally called Bee Happy (my embroidered-bees dream, sorted)
- 30%+ off kits and supplies in the Clever Poppy shop, members say the discount alone can cover the membership
- A supportive community of makers in the private group, plus a 14-day money-back guarantee so you can try it risk-free
A few questions I get asked (because I asked them too)
Is Clever Poppy a real company? Yes, it's a real embroidery-kit company that's taught over 100,000 beginners, with a storefront full of reviews and an actual customer support line. I've ordered from them myself.
Can you buy Clever Poppy in stores? The full kit range lives on their website (that's where the sale and the INK10 code work). You may spot a limited selection elsewhere online, but the complete beginner-kit lineup with the scan-to-watch tutorials is on cleverpoppy.com.
What's the story behind "Clever Poppy"? It's built around one idea: make starting embroidery genuinely easy. Everything-in-one-box kits plus step-by-step video tutorials, so a complete beginner can finish something beautiful on the first try. (Their whole tagline is "learn embroidery the easy way.")
Where does Clever Poppy ship from? Orders ship from their fulfilment centre, with standard delivery to the US generally landing in about 5–12 days, and free shipping once your order is over $70 which, conveniently, is right about where three kits lands you. Always check their current shipping policy at checkout for the latest.
Are Clever Poppy kits good? Yes, especially for a true beginner and this is the part I can speak to personally: the scan-to-tutorial system is the thing that made it click for me after years of only knowing cross-stitch. Everything's included, the instructions are slow and clear, and you end up with something you're actually proud to hang up. That's a big yes from me.
What is the Clever Poppy Maker's Academy?
It's Clever Poppy's self-paced monthly membership and community for learning embroidery beyond the kits. You get a library of 100+ patterns (beginner through advanced), 40+ technique tutorials, full courses and workshops, a fresh pattern every month, and a private community group. Members also get 30%+ off kits and supplies in the shop, and there's a 14-day money-back guarantee. You can explore it here it's the path I'm eyeing once I've worked through my kit stack.
The Tote
This whole obsession lives inside my analogue tote. The screen-free, slow-summer bag I carry everywhere. The Clever Poppy kit is the star of it. If you want to see everything else that rides along (the puzzles, the book, the markers, the whole slow-living kit), here's what's in my analogue tote →
Ready to stitch along with me?
🌸 20% off site-wide + an extra 10% off with code INK10. The sale won't last, and these kits have a way of selling out the cute ones first.
