Realistic Hair Basics Class — 6-part Series
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You can download it right after checkout!
Realistic Hair Basics Class — 6-part Series
The small skill upgrade you need.
If you’ve ever wanted to try “real hair” for a Stitch People portrait but don’t quite know how, this class is your next step.
This beginner-friendly embroidery course teaches you how to move beyond cross-stitched hair and start creating styles that feel soft, dimensional, and real. Not hyper-technical or overwhelming—just the fundamentals you actually need to make a visible difference.
Class Details:
🎥 Format: 6 short, focused video lessons (10–20 minutes each)
💇 Content: Straight, wavy, curly, and braided hair techniques + bonus glasses tutorial
🧑 Instructor: Lizzy Dabczynski-Bean, founder of Stitch People
🎨 Canvas: Mother’s Day-inspired portrait (originally created in collaboration with DMC + Michaels)
♾️ Access: Instant access inside your Stitch People account after purchase
🤓 Helpful: You may benefit from the book Realistic Hair Techniques that provides patterns for even more styles.
What You’ll Learn:
- How to choose and mix floss colors for natural-looking hair
- Straight hair techniques (clean, smooth, directional)
- Wavy hair (movement and flow without chaos)
- Curly hair (texture, volume, and shape)
- Braids (structure + detail without over-complicating it)
- Bonus: how to stitch clean, polished glasses frames
Each lesson is designed to give you a working understanding—so you can start applying these techniques immediately to your own portraits.
Before You Start — Prep Work:
- Cross-stitch your base portrait (border, bodies, and faces)
- Have your fabric, hoop, and floss ready
- Choose your hair colors
The embroidery techniques are layered on top of your finished cross-stitch—this is where the transformation happens.
What This Course Is (and Isn’t):
This is a foundations class. It’s designed to give you a clear starting point, demystify different hair types, and help you stop guessing. It’s not an exhaustive masterclass—and that’s intentional. You don’t need 10 hours of theory. You need a few key concepts that actually work.
Follow along with the included Mother’s Day-inspired portrait exactly, or adapt it into your own family portraits—customization tips are built into the pattern.
What You’ll Walk Away With:
- A portrait with noticeably more realistic, dimensional hair
- A repeatable approach to multiple hair types
- The confidence to customize your Stitch People designs more intentionally
Ready to make your portraits feel real? Click Add to Cart and start stitching hair that actually looks like hair today! 💇✨
📥 Digital Course: Video access is delivered instantly after purchase inside your Stitch People account. No physical items will be shipped.
📜 Usage Rights: This course is for personal use only and may not be shared, redistributed, or resold. It is intended solely for the purchaser.
Utah Warehouse
Some of our books are still in stock at our warehouse in Salt Lake City, UT. If you order a book in stock at the warehouse (indicated on the product page) it'll typically ship within 1-2 business days via the shipping method you choose at checkout. Tracking numbers will be sent out once your package hits the mail stream!
Shipping Rates
Shipping rates for products at our Utah warehouse are calculated in real-time at checkout. Within the US, books can be shipped via USPS Media Mail, often in the $5-6 range (though it does take 8-10 business days to arrive). For customers not in the United States, shipping rates do not include any customs/tariffs/duties due when your package arrives in your country, and any such additional fees are the responsibility of the customer.
Print on Demand
Some of our books (and soon, all!) are part of our new Print on Demand program! This means the books you order will be printed and shipped from near where you live, anywhere in the world! This takes 2-3 weeks, and you can use the PDF version in the meantime ☺️ This makes it cheaper for our customers outside the US, and simplifies our logistics so we can keep prices low! If the closest printer to you is outside your country, any duties/customs/tariffs imposed on your order are the responsibility of the customer.
PDF (Digital) Products
Once you complete checkout, you'll get immediate access to any PDF products in your order! And you'll have lifetime access to these files 😁
If you're unhappy with your order, send us an email at hello@stitchpeople.com and we'll make it right! Refunds are given on a case-by-case basis, and we're generous with store credit and exchanges!
Got questions? We've got answers 😉
How soon will my order arrive?
Any PDF products in your order will be available for download immediately after you complete your purchase!
For books in our Print on Demand program, you can expect to receive your book 2-3 weeks after placing your order. Your order is printed at and shipped from the printing facility closest to you.
For books still at our warehouse in Salt Lake City, UT, books typically ship within 1-2 business days. Orders are shipped via the method you choose at checkout, and tracking information will be available once your package hits the mail stream!
Please note: Media Mail, while the cheapest option, can take 8-10 business days to arrive, and the tracking can be spotty. It's a great, reliable option, but the tracking can't always be trusted.
Do you ship internationally?
Yes! For books in our Print on Demand program, those orders are printed at and shipped from the printing facility closest to you, significantly reducing shipping times and costs!
For books still at our warehouse in Salt Lake City, UT, international shipping can be pretty hefty, but it's an option if you'd like it!
Please note: We don't collect or charge any customs duties, import taxes, or VAT (Value Added Tax) on international orders at checkout. Any such fees imposed by your country’s customs office are the sole responsibility of the recipient. Please check with your local customs authority before you place your order if you have any questions.
What's your return policy?
If you're unhappy with your order, send us an email at hello@stitchpeople.com and we'll make it right! We offer refunds on a case-by-case basis, and we're also generous with store credit and exchanges! We're pretty chill people, so as long as you're not trying to take advantage, we'll be accommodating!
Can I sell my finished portraits?
What you CAN sell
You're more than welcome to sell finished, cross-stitch pieces you've stitched using our patterns! Yes, this means you can open a shop and take commissions to stitch someone's family 😘 If you do, we'd love a shout-out! Something like "Inspired by Stitch People" is great—it lets people know about Stitch People without suggesting an affiliation.
What you CAN'T sell
We kindly ask that you don't sell patterns you've designed with Stitch People patterns, or based on the Stitch People style, in any form. (considered "derivative works"). That starts to encroach on our intellectual property (copyright), which is sort of the magic sauce that makes our business work. If you have questions, or would like to discuss designing Stitch People style patterns in collaboration with us, you can reach out to us at hello@stitchpeople.com.
How long will I have access to my digital products?
As long as we're in business! And we're not planning on going anywhere anytime soon! 😁 Even if we update our website or change platforms, you'll always be able to access your digital products from your account. So whether your laptop dies, you drop your iPad in the pool, or your phone is run over by a gang of 4-year-olds on tricycles, you can always come back to your account and re-download!
All we ask is that you don't share your digital products with others who haven't purchased them!
Who's behind Stitch People?
Lizzy and Spencer Bean! Back in 2011, Lizzy saw the idea for cross-stitch portraits in a Martha Stewart Magazine, but didn't like the designs, so she made her own! That year, she made the first Stitch People portrait of her own family—Lizzy, mom, dad, husband, sister, and brother-in-law, and the combined 6 pets between them!
From there, Lizzy started taking commissions online, stitching hundreds of portraits over several years. Then in 2014, Lizzy published the 1st edition of Do-It-Yourself Stitch People book (now in it's 2nd edition!) and that started the next chapter of Stitch People—designing patterns so other stitchers could make their own portraits!
We're still publishing patterns, many of which are collaborations with other talented stitchers! If you're interested in collaborating, send us an email to hello@stitchpeople.com!
