Aster coaster hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 5 colors · 4 kinds of stitch

Aster coaster: preview of the stitched design

A round design for a coaster shows one aster seen face on inside a scalloped edge. Fourteen dark purple front rays, slender and pointed, lie over fourteen longer light purple back rays that show between them; both sets are long and short stitch. The aster eye is a gold disc of satin stitch carrying orange French knots, seven about one knot in the middle. Round the flower runs a ring of fourteen light purple French knots, and outside it the scalloped edge in green stem stitch, with twenty-eight scallops, two to each knot of the ring.

Size and details

Intermediate. Uses long and short stitch; from a 4 inch hoop up the widest satin stitches are long.

5 colors of floss and 4 kinds of stitch:

The stitched size and the widest satin stitch, by hoop
Hoop	Inches	Centimeters	Satin stitch up to
3 in (8 cm)	1.7 × 1.7 in	4.3 × 4.3 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.6 × 2.6 in	6.6 × 6.6 cm	3/8 in (10 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.5 × 3.5 in	8.9 × 8.9 cm	1/2 in (13 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	4.3 × 4.3 in	10.9 × 10.9 cm	5/8 in (16 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	6.1 × 6.1 in	15.5 × 15.5 cm	7/8 in (22 mm)

In a 5, 6 or 8 inch hoop the widest satin stitch shape is 1/2 in (13 mm) or more across. Satin stitches longer than about 12 mm (just under 1/2 in) tend to work loose: divide the shape into sections, or work it in long and short stitch.
In a 3 or 4 inch hoop the French knots are drawn smaller than about 2 mm (a little over 1/16 in). Use one strand of floss for them there, or choose a larger hoop.

The pattern is drawn inside a circle about half an inch (1.3 cm) smaller all around than the hoop.

What you need

DMC 210 Medium LavenderAster back rays and ring of knots
DMC 208 Very Dark LavenderAster front rays
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawAster eye
DMC 922 Light CopperAster eye knots
DMC 986 Very Dark Forest GreenScalloped edge

The floss is six-strand cotton; the stitch guide says how many strands to use. You also need a hoop, an embroidery needle (a size 7 to 9 suits two or three strands) and plain cotton or linen fabric. To frame the piece in its hoop, cut a square 3 inches (8 cm) wider than the hoop: a 9 inch (23 cm) square for a 6 inch hoop.

Stitch guide

Long and short stitch 1 or 2 strandsAster back rays, aster front rays
Satin stitch 2 strandsAster eye
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsAster eye knots, ring of knots
Stem stitch 2 or 3 strandsScalloped edge

Getting it onto your fabric

The PDF holds the pattern twice at actual size: once as drawn, and once mirrored for an iron-on transfer pen. Print it at 100% with scaling off and check the one-inch square (25.4 mm) with a ruler before you trace. How to transfer a pattern explains tracing, carbon paper and the other ways. The files are under Downloads.