Last year, I shared monthly floral embroidery motifs with my email subscribers, with the aim of turning the 12 embroideries into a string of bunting at the end of the year. I’ve just finished mine and shared the final instructions via the newsletter. Since there’s been renewed interest in the project, I thought I’d share the patterns here as well to make it easier for everyone to download and keep track of. I’m so glad people are enjoying this sweet little project!! π
Find the quick download links below, and read on for more insight into the design process and some more useful links (really just self-indulgent flower talk & pretty photos!).
Floral Garden Patterns & Final Instructions PDFs
January: Blue Anemone
Language of Flowers: Forsaken
(Maybe not the best way to start, but I didn’t choose the flowers according to their meaning in floriography, haha!)
When I started planning this stitch-along, I wanted to draw inspiration from the flowers that surround me throughout the seasons as much as possible. Since everything is covered in snow here for many months, I had to bend the rules a little some months and just go with flowers I liked and that completed each other well. I wanted something soft and blue for January, so I went with the blue anemone. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in real life, but it sure does look pretty as an embroidery!
Helpful post: I published a long & short stitch tutorial specifically for this flower, which you can also refer to for the other patterns that use l & s.
February: Snowdrop
Language of Flowers: Hope
A very apt meaning for this welcome sight, wouldn’t you say? After the bleakness of winter, the emerging snowdrops announce that there is hope for spring! Another one I have yet to see in real life, but I’m always so inspired by all the creative renditions of them, especially as embroidery motifs. They are always so popular, and with good reason. With only 3 thread colours, this little pattern is straightforward to stitch, yet still holds a small challenge in keeping a good stitch direction for the leaves and petals.
March: Primrose
Language of Flowers: Early youth
I had intended at first to keep all flowers designs in blue/white/purple shades for this project. However, after seeing Catherine from Bumpkin Hill‘s sweet little primroses from her Spring Sampler pattern, I was so inspired that I couldn’t help making up my own. I can never resist buttery yellow petals! Turns out the shades fit perfectly well with the previous two designs, and the ones to come.
If you also happen to love yellow flowers, I have a pattern in my shop for a lesser-known but gorgeous wildflower: The Sulfur Cinquefoil. Beginner-friendly if you’d like to give the long & short stitch a try!
April: Crocus
Language of Flowers: Abuse not
(Of what?)
I think the crocus has to be one of my favourite flowers, purely because it’s usually one of the first ones I see once the snow finally melts. It’s the surest sign of spring and warm weather, and forever associated with beautiful things like Easter, bird’s nests, and pastel eggs. Last year, the poor crocuses lasted only about four days. An ice storm over Easter preceded unusually hot weather (like, summer-hot weather!), and the poor darlings didn’t stand a chance. (Maybe the floriography is hinting at the weather to behave, ha!) One more reason why immortalizing blooms in embroidery is so wonderful.
May: Lily-of-the-Valley
Language of Flowers: Return of happiness
Is there anything on this Earth more delicately sweet and so perfectly detailed as the lily-of-the-valley? I pondered how best to embroider the delicate scalloped edge of the flower bells, and decided that simplicity was probably key: a soft line of split stitch. I had done something similar for the bluebells in this wreath design and it worked really well. Someday, I’ll have to stitch a bigger version of this beautiful flower!
June: Lavender
Language of Flowers: Distrust
I’ll tell you what I distrust about lavender – the actual process of growing it! We were lucky to get a few buds on our potted plant last year. But in places where it grows freely and effortlessly, what is there to distrust about it? It’s rather reliable, always smells delightful, and has so many beneficial uses. I love it, and also love seeing the various ways and colours people choose when embroidering it. Mom says mine doesn’t quite look like lavender…maybe the leaves are a little too fat? Next time, I think I’ll go for bullion knots for the flower buds.
If you’re thinking of doing that too but the bullion knot stitch intimidates you, check out the hack I came up with in this post!
July: Hydrangea
Language of Flowers: A boaster. Heartlessness.
(I seem to have a knack for picking flowers with the most *joyful* meanings, haven’t I!)
I’ll admit, the white (cream?) hydrangeas are not my favourites. I much prefer the blue ones, or even the soft pink ones. But since the creamy white ones grow in such abundance around the house, I decided to show them some appreciation – for they are indeed lovely anyways – by including them in this project. The petals are formed with lazy-daisy stitches sewn in clusters of four, much like I did for the lilac in this wreath pattern.
Have a look at my lazy-daisy stitch tutorial if you need a refresher!
August: Dahlia
Language of Flowers: Instability
I think, if I may be able to settle on a favourite from this project, it would be this one. I just love how it came out, and it’s not a difficult stitch (yet it looks quite sophisticated!). The petals are a joy to fill in. Dahlias, as I’m sure you know, come in so many different colours and even different shapes. This particular one is inspired by a lone pale pink dahlia which blossomed in a pot on our front steps. The silky petals surrounding the bead-like center made it such a welcome sight every day.
Helpful post: Satin Stitch tutorial, for those sweet petals!
September: White Asters
Language of Flowers: Variety. Afterthought.
Afterthought indeed! It seems the white asters are often overlooked in favour of the more popular purple ones. But there’s something I dearly love about the wispy, feathery petals and the way the flowers grow in clumps. Nothing says “September” quite like a field full of asters lit by the golden sunlight under a blue sky. A mix of lazy-daisy stitches and straight stitches worked to achieve those thin, wispy petals, but you could stitch them with only straight stitches.
October: Sunflower
Language of Flowers: For a dwarf sunflower, adoration. For a tall sunflower, haughtiness.
What is fall without sunflowers? Absolutely one of my favourite flowers, for their cheerfulness and deep, rich colours. They may be haughty but they are so beautifully welcoming, growing tall around people’s homes and enlivening their gardens. I don’t have any myself, but there is wild Jerusalem artichoke growing in the backyard and the flowers look very similar to sunflowers!
November: Chrysanthemum
Language of Flowers: Condolences
By November, the majority of blooms are gone, the leaves have fallen, and there is often at least a snowstorm or two during the month. Having nothing in the garden to look at for inspiration anymore, I opted for a popular flower, chrysanthemum being the birth flower for November. I rummaged around in my floss box and found the perfect shades of peachy orange for the petals. I wasn’t sure how to stitch them at all, but after watching this lovely video on YouTube by Linh N. W. and remembering how Nicki Franklin of The Stitchery did her dahlias, I decided to try something similar. By layering rows of lazy-daisy stitches I was able to achieve the look I was looking for, and I was overall quite pleased with the final result!
December: Mistletoe
Language of Flowers: I surmount difficulties.
And to conclude this little series, I decided to end with a sprig of mistletoe. Usually depicted upside down, tied with a bow, I decided to stitch mine upright so it wouldn’t look funny beside the other ones. A hint of festivity for December, yet sober enough to blend in beautifully with the other designs. The creamy white berries are similar to the snowberries from my popular Winter Wreath in my shop.
And there we are! Another stitch-along completed, now that all these lovelies have been sewn up into bunting. There are so many things you can do with your finished embroideries (they would look lovely as stuffed hearts too!), but the bunting is a rather easy and fun way to display them all at once!
I really hope you enjoyed this project as much as I did, and thank you so much for your interest and participation. If you read this entire post I thank you sincerely (and you deserve a medal!). And now I must know…which embroidery here is your favourite? Which flowers do you personally associate/love particularly for each month? Comment below!
Fondly
