Rubber Plant + Fern in DMC - PAT0001 - Downloadable PDF

Sew & Saunders x DMC Rubber Plant + Fern Embroidery Pattern (PAT0001)

This free downloadable PDF embroidery pattern is a collaboration between Sew & Saunders and DMC, featuring two classic botanical subjects: a Rubber Plant and a Fern. The design is rated as intermediate in difficulty, making it an ideal project for embroiderers who are comfortable with foundational stitches and ready to develop their botanical needlework skills. The finished piece captures the lush, layered quality of indoor foliage through careful colour placement and a combination of three versatile hand embroidery stitches.

What Is Being Made

The pattern produces a botanical embroidery design depicting a Rubber Plant (Arbre à caoutchouc) and Fern (Fougères) worked onto fabric. The design is presented bilingually in English and French throughout the pattern sheets. It is intended as a decorative needlework piece and is suitable for framing, hoop display, or application to textile projects. The PDF includes a full-colour guide, a technical chart with stitch and colour placement codes, and written instructions.

Designs Covered

• Rubber Plant (Arbre à caoutchouc): A bold, broad-leafed houseplant rendered with filled satin stitch leaves and defined outlines, using a structured colour placement system coded across multiple leaf sections.
• Fern (Fougères): A delicate, multi-frond fern design that complements the Rubber Plant, worked using the same stitch vocabulary and colour palette to create a cohesive botanical composition.

Stitches Used

The pattern uses three core hand embroidery stitches, each assigned a letter code in the technical chart to guide placement across the design:

• Stem Stitch (Point de tige) — Code A: A classic outline stitch worked by overlapping stitches along a line, creating a smooth, rope-like effect. It is used here for linear elements such as stems and outlines, adding structure and definition to the botanical forms.
• Satin Stitch (Passé plat) — Code B: A filling stitch worked in parallel straight stitches laid closely together to cover an area completely with a smooth, lustrous surface. In this pattern, satin stitch is used to fill the interior of the leaves, with B2 specified as the filling stitch for all leaf interiors, giving the foliage its solid, polished appearance.
• Backstitch (Point arrière) — Code C: A precise outlining and detail stitch formed by working stitches backwards to create a continuous, unbroken line. It is used here for fine detail work and veining or edging within the design.

Techniques Used

• Colour-coded stitch placement: The technical chart uses a letter and number system (A1, A2, B1, B2, C3, etc.) to map specific thread colours to specific stitches across different areas of the design, allowing precise and consistent results.
• Design transfer: The pattern requires transferring the design onto fabric using a Magic Sheet, transfer pen, or transfer paper, a standard intermediate embroidery technique that ensures accurate placement of the motif before stitching begins.
• Strand management: All stitching is worked using 3 strands of thread, which provides good coverage for satin stitch filling while maintaining detail in stem stitch and backstitch outlines.

Materials Required

• Thread: DMC Mouliné Spécial ART 117 embroidery floss in three colours:
  • DMC 501 (dark blue-green) — 1 skein
  • DMC 319 (very dark pistachio green) — 2 skeins
  • DMC 498 (dark red) — 1 skein
• Needle: A no. 12 needle is recommended, which is a fine embroidery needle suited to working with multiple strands of floss on fabric.