With Mother’s Day approaching soon, there’s no better way to express your love and appreciation than with a personalized gift made by your own hands. Today’s project is a DIY Mother’s Day gift idea that you can easily stitch and have ready just in time for the special day.
This beginner-friendly free pattern will introduce you to stitching letters and some of the most beloved embroidery stitches, making it a fun and fulfilling project to take on for the occasion.
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Overview
PROJECT SIZE: approx. 11x7cm (4.3×2.7in)
STITCHES USED: outline stitch, satin stitch, french knot
The old saying “less is more” holds true for this pattern, as we’ll be using just a handful of basic embroidery stitches to create this cute keepsake. These stitches are likely ones that you’re already familiar with, making this project even more approachable.
While there are many ways of stitching letters, if you’re looking for additional inspiration, I recommend checking out my other article on how to embroider letters.
For cursive fonts, some of the best stitches to use are the stem stitch or outline stitch, which we’ll be using in this project today.
Tools and Materials
There is nothing special you’ll need for stitching this pattern, other than the usual. Let’s have a look at the main materials you’ll need.
MATERIALS YOU’LL NEED
- Mum pattern – download from my Free Pattern Library
- Linen, linen blend, or cotton fabric
- Embroidery needle size 5 and Milliners size 3
- Stranded cotton embroidery thread
- Embroidery hoop
- Sharp Scissors
Download the Free Pattern
Download the Mum pattern from my Free Pattern Library.
To get access to the Free Pattern Library fill out the form below and I will send you an email with your password. You can read more about my Free Pattern Library here.
The pattern you have downloaded is full size, so when printed on A4 paper will have the exact size to fit into a 7-inch hoop. You just need to have the Fill Entire Paper option selected.
NOTE: If you don’t have access to a printer, you can just trace the pattern directly from your monitor onto A4 paper, then trace it onto your fabric.
Stitch Color Palette
It’s spring, it’s bright and soft, just like a mother’s touch. For this pattern, I chose a soothing pastel color palette and I used DMC embroidery floss.
You can experiment with colors and create your own color scheme, or just use the following shades: DMC 819 (Baby Pink Light), DMC 352 (Coral Light), DMC 676 (Old Gold Light), DMC 988 (Forest Green Medium), and DMC 3799 (Pewter Gray Very Dark).
If you’re using Anchor threads check out the Mother’s day color palette article for the thread color conversion chart.
Stitching the “Mum” Text
We’ll start by stitching the “Mum” text first. And since we already have the needle threaded with the dark grey shade, we’ll go on and stitch the stems too at this first step.
Use 3 strands of DMC 3799 (Pewter Gray Very Dark) with a needle size 5.
One of the best stitches to use when you’re dealing with cursive fonts is the outline stitch.
The outline stitch is very similar to the stem stitch. The only difference between the two is for the outlines stitch your loop should be above the needle.
The direction of your stitches should follow the arrows in the image above.
Stitching the Leaves and Flower
We’ll be stitching the leaves, regardless of their color, using the basic satin stitch.
For the yellow leaves, use 3 strands of DMC 676 (Old Gold Light) with a needle size 5.
Just create straight parallel stitches and build the satin stitch. There is no need to outline the shapes before the satin stitch.
For the green leaves, thread your needle with 3 strands of DMC 988 (Forest Green Medium).
Stitch the green leaves in the same manner as the yellow ones. Some stitchers call this stitch satin stitch, straight stitch, or leaf stitch.
This type of stitch is basically a satin stitch, but instead of creating parallel stitches, you’ll have to come down in almost the same spot at the base of the leaf.
Start (bring your thread up) from the outside of the shape (top) you’re trying to fill. Then come back down again and again in the almost same spot at the base of the leaf.
When you’re done stitching all yellow and green leaves, stitch the flower using the same satin stitch. As before, there’s no need to outline the petals before stitching the satin stitch.
Use 3 strands of DMC 352 (Coral Light) with a needle size 5.
When stitching the flower work your satin stitches inwards and don’t change abruptly the direction of your stitches. I usually start in the middle of each petal and then build the satin stitch from there.
Adding the French Knot Details
Lastly, let’s add the final details. We’ll use french knots to add the small yellow buds and fill the center of the flower.
Use 6 strands of DMC 676 (Old Gold Light) for the yellow french knots and DMC 819 (Baby Pink Light) for the light pink ones, with a Milliners needle size 3.
The most important thing to remember when stitching french knots is to use the right needles – the Milliners needles are your best friend when stitching knotty stitches. Since we’re using all 6 strands for these last details, a Milliners needle size 3 is ideal and super easy to thread.
After you have stitched the french knots there are no more steps required. You can leave it as is, or mount it on a piece of artist’s mount board.
Your beautiful embroidery is now complete and ready to be given as a thoughtful present.
If you’re looking for more flower inspiration, check out these flower coloring pages. Even though they’re not exactly embroidery patterns, you can totally tweak them for a cool hand embroidery project and use the same technique we covered in this tutorial.
Remember that you can download the floral pattern from the Free Pattern Library. To access it just fill out the form below and I will send you an email with your password.
More Embroidery Projects
Did you try this project? Come over to our Facebook Group and show everyone your magic!
SAVE THIS FOR LATER? ADD THE MOTHER’S DAY PATTERN TO YOUR FAVOURITE PINTEREST BOARD
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