Moroccan tile hand embroidery pattern

Easy · 4 colors · 3 kinds of stitch

Moroccan tile: preview of the stitched design

Four eight-pointed stars meet point to point inside a square frame of two lines, one inside the other, and leave a pointed cross between them, in the star-and-cross lattice of Moroccan tile work. A diamond sits at the middle of the cross. The stars, the smaller stars inside them and the diamond are back stitch, and the frame is stem stitch. A gold French knot marks the middle of each star and of the cross, and one more sits at the middle of each side, between the stars.

Size and details

Easy. Simple stitches in four colors.

4 colors of floss and 3 kinds of stitch, all of them line stitches and knots:

The stitched size, by hoop
Hoop	Inches	Centimeters
3 in (8 cm)	1.4 × 1.4 in	3.6 × 3.6 cm
4 in (10 cm)	2 × 2 in	5.1 × 5.1 cm
5 in (13 cm)	2.7 × 2.7 in	6.9 × 6.9 cm
6 in (15 cm)	3.4 × 3.4 in	8.6 × 8.6 cm
8 in (20 cm)	4.8 × 4.8 in	12.2 × 12.2 cm

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 BlueFrame
DMC 3809 Very Dark TurquoiseEight-pointed stars
DMC 355 Dark Terra CottaInner stars and diamond in the cross
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawMiddles of the stars, and middle of the cross and of each side

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 strandsFrame
Back stitch 2 strandsEight-pointed stars, inner stars, diamond in the cross
French knot 2 strands, two wrapsMiddles of the stars, middle of the cross and of each side

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.