Gothic quatrefoil rosette hand embroidery pattern

Easy · 4 colors · 4 kinds of stitch

Gothic quatrefoil rosette: preview of the stitched design

This is a Gothic quatrefoil: its four round lobes are drawn as one band, with stem stitch edges and a line of chain stitch down its middle, round a ring worked the same way that sits inside its four cusps. Inside the ring is a rosette of four long and four short fishbone stitch petals round a French knot, and one larger petal lies in each lobe, its round end outward and its point toward the ring.

Size and details

Easy. Simple stitches in four colors.

4 colors of floss and 4 kinds of stitch:

The stitched size, by hoop
Hoop	Inches	Centimeters
3 in (8 cm)	1.6 × 1.6 in	4.1 × 4.1 cm
4 in (10 cm)	2.4 × 2.4 in	6.1 × 6.1 cm
5 in (13 cm)	3.2 × 3.2 in	8.1 × 8.1 cm
6 in (15 cm)	4 × 4 in	10.2 × 10.2 cm
8 in (20 cm)	5.6 × 5.6 in	14.2 × 14.2 cm

In a 3 inch hoop the French knot is drawn smaller than about 2 mm (a little over 1/16 in). Use one strand of floss for it 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 BlueQuatrefoil and middle line of the quatrefoil
DMC 3809 Very Dark TurquoiseRing and middle line of the ring
DMC 304 Medium RedLong petals and petals in the lobes
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawSmall petals and middle

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 strandsQuatrefoil, ring
Chain stitch 2 or 3 strandsMiddle line of the quatrefoil, middle line of the ring
Fishbone stitch 2 strandsLong petals, small petals, petals in the lobes
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsMiddle

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.