Gerbera ring wreath hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 6 colors · 3 kinds of stitch

Gerbera ring wreath: preview of the stitched design

Four gerberas are evenly spaced round a leafy ring wreath: one at the foot, one at the top and one at each side, joined by one round stem that carries pairs of leaves between each flower and the next. The wreath is closed all the way round, with room in the middle for a name or a monogram. Each gerbera has sixteen rose-pink satin stitch rays round a pale pink satin stitch ring (the small inner florets) and a brown satin stitch eye with a gold French knot; the stem is stem stitch, the leaves satin stitch.

Size and details

Intermediate. Long satin stitches from a 6 inch hoop up.

6 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)	1.9 × 1.9 in	4.8 × 4.8 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.8 × 2.8 in	7.1 × 7.1 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.8 × 3.8 in	9.7 × 9.7 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	4.7 × 4.7 in	11.9 × 11.9 cm	7/16 in (11 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	6.6 × 6.6 in	16.8 × 16.8 cm	9/16 in (14 mm)

In an 8 inch hoop the widest satin stitch shape is 9/16 in (14 mm) 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 986 Very Dark Forest GreenStem and darker half of each leaf
DMC 320 Medium Pistachio GreenLighter half of each leaf
DMC 3350 Ultra Dark Dusty RoseGerbera rays
DMC 152 Medium Light Shell PinkGerbera ring of florets
DMC 3781 Dark Mocha BrownGerbera eyes
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawKnots on the gerbera eyes

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
Satin stitch 2 strandsLeaves (each half slanted to the center vein, in its own color), gerbera rays, gerbera ring of florets, gerbera eyes
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsKnots on the gerbera eyes

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.