Hex sign rosette hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 3 colors · 4 kinds of stitch

Hex sign rosette: preview of the stitched design

This is the six-petal rosette of the old barn signs, the one a compass draws: six pointed petals that meet in the middle, six more round the rim joining their tips, and a gold French knot in each space between. The petals are satin stitch, navy in the middle and red at the rim, and round them runs a border of twenty-four sawtooth points in back stitch between rings of stem stitch. Every ring repeats evenly, so it can be stitched a wedge at a time.

Size and details

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

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)	1.7 × 1.7 in	4.3 × 4.3 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.5 × 2.5 in	6.4 × 6.4 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.3 × 3.3 in	8.4 × 8.4 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	4.1 × 4.1 in	10.4 × 10.4 cm	3/8 in (10 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	5.8 × 5.8 in	14.7 × 14.7 cm	1/2 in (13 mm)

In an 8 inch hoop the widest satin stitch shape is 1/2 in (13 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 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 BlueInner rosette petals and ring
DMC 304 Medium RedOuter rosette petals and points
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawKnots

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

Satin stitch 2 strandsRosette petals
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsKnots
Stem stitch 2 or 3 strandsRing
Back stitch 2 strandsPoints

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.