Heart medallion sampler hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 5 colors · 6 kinds of stitch

Heart medallion sampler: preview of the stitched design

A round sampler has a heart in the middle and three rings of ornament round it. The solid heart is raspberry satin stitch, set inside a pink stem stitch heart and a garnet chain stitch heart, with gold French knots following the outline. The first ring is of pink lazy daisy stitches. The second is a waving green vine stem in stem stitch with a fishbone stitch leaf in every bend. The third is a ring of small satin stitch hearts, raspberry and pink by turns, with a gold French knot between each two. Garnet circles of stem stitch and chain stitch part the rings, and the border is garnet chain stitch.

Size and details

Intermediate. Dozens of French knots.

5 colors of floss and 6 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	1/16 in (1.6 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.9 × 2.9 in	7.4 × 7.4 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.8 × 3.8 in	9.7 × 9.7 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	4.8 × 4.8 in	12.2 × 12.2 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	6.7 × 6.7 in	17 × 17 cm	5/16 in (8 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 3852 Very Dark StrawKnots round the heart and knots between the hearts
DMC 815 Medium GarnetChain stitch heart, circles, chain stitch circle and border
DMC 3350 Ultra Dark Dusty RoseStem stitch heart, ring of lazy daisy stitches and pink hearts of the ring
DMC 3831 Dark RaspberrySolid heart and raspberry hearts of the ring
DMC 320 Medium Pistachio GreenVine stem and vine leaves

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

French knot 2 strands, two wrapsKnots round the heart, knots between the hearts
Chain stitch 2 or 3 strandsChain stitch heart, chain stitch circle, border
Stem stitch 2 or 3 strandsStem stitch heart, circles, vine stem
Satin stitch 2 strandsSolid heart, ring of hearts
Lazy daisy stitch 2 strandsRing of lazy daisy stitches
Fishbone stitch 2 strandsVine leaves

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.