LeMoyne star block hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 3 colors · 3 kinds of stitch

LeMoyne star block: preview of the stitched design

A LeMoyne star quilt block is seamed in back stitch: eight diamonds meet at a French knot in the middle and reach the edges of the block, with a square in each corner and a triangle in the middle of each side. Each diamond has a line down its length, and the half on one side of it, the same side all the way round, is filled with satin stitch laid across, so the star looks folded.

Size and details

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

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)	1.4 × 1.4 in	3.6 × 3.6 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.2 × 2.2 in	5.6 × 5.6 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	2.9 × 2.9 in	7.4 × 7.4 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	3.6 × 3.6 in	9.1 × 9.1 cm	3/8 in (10 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	5 × 5 in	12.7 × 12.7 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 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 304 Medium RedDark halves of the diamonds
DMC 336 Navy BlueSeams
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawMiddle

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 strandsDark halves of the diamonds
Back stitch 2 strandsSeams
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.