Cloud with raindrops hand embroidery pattern

Easy · 3 colors · 4 kinds of stitch

Cloud with raindrops: preview of the stitched design

A smiling rain cloud has nine raindrops falling from it. The cloud is one line of stem stitch, three round billows over a flat foot, with a second line of pale blue chain stitch just inside it; its eyes are French knots, its smile is a curve of stem stitch and its cheeks are small rounds of satin stitch. The raindrops are satin stitch in rows of five, three and one, large and small by turns along each row.

Size and details

Easy. In a hoop of 6 inches or less: stem stitch, chain stitch and French knots, with some short satin stitches; in a larger hoop the widest satin stitches are long.

3 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)	1.5 × 1.5 in	3.8 × 3.8 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.2 × 2.3 in	5.6 × 5.8 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3 × 3.1 in	7.6 × 7.9 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	3.7 × 3.9 in	9.4 × 9.9 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	5.2 × 5.4 in	13.2 × 13.7 cm	7/16 in (11 mm)

In a 3 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 336 Navy BlueCloud, eyes and smile
DMC 3755 Baby BlueLine inside the cloud's edge and raindrops
DMC 3350 Ultra Dark Dusty RoseCheeks

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

Stem stitch 2 or 3 strandsCloud, smile
Chain stitch 2 or 3 strandsLine inside the cloud's edge
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsEyes
Satin stitch 2 strandsCheeks, raindrops

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.