French knot berry wreath hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 3 colors · 3 kinds of stitch

French knot berry wreath: preview of the stitched design

A wreath of berry clusters is a picture to practice French knots on, and the knots do most of the work: every berry is one knot. Twelve clusters sit at even steps around one green stem, raspberry and purple by turns, and each cluster is seven knots: one in the middle and six around it. Between each two clusters a pair of green satin stitch leaves stands on the stem, one leaf pointing out of the wreath and one pointing in, and each leaf is worked in two slanted halves that meet along its middle. The stem of the wreath is stem stitch. The open middle takes a name or an initial.

Size and details

Intermediate. Dozens of French knots.

3 colors of floss and 3 kinds of stitch:

The stitched size and the widest satin stitch, by hoop
Hoop	Inches	Centimeters	Satin stitch up to
3 in (8 cm)	1.6 × 1.6 in	4.1 × 4.1 cm	1/16 in (1.6 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.4 × 2.4 in	6.1 × 6.1 cm	1/16 in (1.6 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.1 × 3.1 in	7.9 × 7.9 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	3.9 × 3.9 in	9.9 × 9.9 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	5.5 × 5.5 in	14 × 14 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)

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 320 Medium Pistachio GreenStem of the wreath and leaves
DMC 3831 Dark RaspberryRaspberry berries
DMC 208 Very Dark LavenderPurple berries

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 strandsStem of the wreath
Satin stitch 2 strandsLeaves
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsBerries

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.