Free Vintage-Inspired Bloom Embroidery Pattern

It's easy to pick out vintage embroidery patterns ​because they have a style all their own. But sometimes that style shows up in new designs too. A piece of vintage embroidery inspired this free floral border pattern, giving you a classic pattern with a fresh twist. 

The original embroidery was a scattering of flower sprigs, with some flowers in full bloom and some still getting ready to open. The pattern it inspired uses those unopened blossoms to form a wreath of flowers and foliage. To finish it off, stitch the word "bloom" in the center. 

Of course, you can adapt this design by stitching your own choice of words in the center. The romantic words patterns in our ring pillow project would work great, but the possibilities are endless. You might even want to make this a bit more modern by selecting a word or phrase that's edgy or unconventional.

Make your finished embroidery into a pillow or frame it in a vintage embroidery hoop.

Grab some vintage supplies, and get started.

Download, Print, and Mark the Pattern

This pattern comes as a free JPG pattern. Save it to your computer and print it using photo software or place and scale it in a word processing document. Printed horizontally and full size on US letter paper, the design fits within an eight-inch hoop.

Pattern Marking

Use your favorite method to mark the pattern on your fabric. Place the marked fabric in an embroidery hoop and start stitching, following the color and stitch suggestions below.

Note: Although this embroidery would look great in a vintage hoop, it's best to work with a newer embroidery hoop. Older hoops often lose their tension over time.

Pattern Color and Stitch Suggestions

Now that you've printed your pattern, it's time to choose what stitches and colors to use.

Stitches

These suggestions use stitches from the original embroidery that inspired this pattern. Of course, you can always change these to your liking.

• Use a stem stitch for all the foliage stems. Use a detached chain stitch for the leaves.
• Work the flowers with the straight stitch for the base of the blooms and detached chain stitch for the tops. Make the tiny flowers with french knots. 
• Stitch the word "bloom" with chain stitch. If you switch this to another word, you may want to use a different stitch or combination of stitches so that it comes out looking as pretty as possible.

Colors

The example above gives you some ideas to start with, but there's lots of room for color choices in this pattern. Use these suggestions as a basic guide.

• Stitch the flowers with two tones of the same color. Use the darker shade for the straight stitches and the lighter shade for the detached chain.
• Work the stems and leaves in two shades of green to give the piece visual interest and depth. Use an extra color such as light yellow or white for the tiny french knot flowers. 
• Choose your favorite matching color for the center word.
• The flowers would look beautiful all in one hue, but you could also choose nine different colors and create a color-wheel style rainbow of blooms. It would even be a good time to pull out some embroidery floss from your grandma's stash.