Succulent in a faceted frame hand embroidery pattern

Intermediate · 5 colors · 3 kinds of stitch

Succulent in a faceted frame: preview of the stitched design

A succulent rosette sits in a frame of flat facets: three rings of eight pointed leaves round a bud of four fill the eight-sided middle of the frame, inside a band of sixteen three-cornered facets. The frame is stem stitch, every line of it straight from corner to corner; the leaves are solid, the larger in long and short stitch and the smaller in satin stitch, and the bud is satin stitch. The gold frame gives it the look of a glass terrarium.

Size and details

Intermediate. Uses long and short stitch.

5 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)	1.9 × 1.9 in	4.8 × 4.8 cm	1/8 in (3 mm)
4 in (10 cm)	2.9 × 2.9 in	7.4 × 7.4 cm	3/16 in (5 mm)
5 in (13 cm)	3.9 × 3.9 in	9.9 × 9.9 cm	1/4 in (6 mm)
6 in (15 cm)	4.9 × 4.9 in	12.4 × 12.4 cm	5/16 in (8 mm)
8 in (20 cm)	6.8 × 6.8 in	17.3 × 17.3 cm	7/16 in (11 mm)

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 StrawFrame
DMC 986 Very Dark Forest GreenOuter leaves
DMC 320 Medium Pistachio GreenMiddle leaves
DMC 989 Forest GreenInner leaves
DMC 152 Medium Light Shell PinkBud

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
Long and short stitch 1 or 2 strandsOuter leaves
Satin stitch 2 strandsInner leaves, bud

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.