Crystal ball with stars hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 4 colors · 2 kinds of stitch

Crystal ball with stars: preview of the stitched design

A crystal ball rests on its stand: the ball is a ring of stem stitch with a curved shine of stem stitch inside it at each shoulder. In the middle of the glass floats a five-pointed star of ten satin stitch facets with a small satin stitch star between each two of its points. The stand is satin stitch: a cup that takes the ball, a round knop, a bell that flares out and a level base.

Size and details

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

4 colors of floss and 2 kinds of stitch:

The stitched size and the widest satin stitch, by hoop
Hoop	Inches	Centimeters	Satin stitch up to
3 in (8 cm)	1.1 × 1.5 in	2.8 × 3.8 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	1.7 × 2.3 in	4.3 × 5.8 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	2.2 × 3 in	5.6 × 7.6 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	2.8 × 3.8 in	7.1 × 9.7 cm	7/16 in (11 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	3.9 × 5.3 in	9.9 × 13.5 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.

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 BlueBell of the stand, base of the stand, knop of the stand and cup of the stand
DMC 208 Very Dark LavenderBall outline
DMC 210 Medium LavenderShine on the glass
DMC 3852 Very Dark StrawStar and stars

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 strandsBell of the stand, base of the stand, knop of the stand, cup of the stand, star, stars
Stem stitch 2 or 3 strandsBall outline, shine on the glass

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.