Cosmos Floral in DMC - PAT0221 - Downloadable PDF

DMC Cosmos Floral Embroidery Pattern – Secret Garden Collection (PAT0221)

The Cosmos Floral pattern by DMC is a free, downloadable PDF embroidery design from the Secret Garden collection. It features a beautifully detailed cosmos flower motif worked in hand embroidery, designed to a finished size of approximately 10 cm x 11 cm. This intermediate-level project is ideal for embroiderers who are comfortable with foundational stitches and are ready to explore more refined shading and filling techniques.

What Is Being Made

This pattern guides you through creating a single, botanically inspired cosmos flower design in thread embroidery. The cosmos, with its delicate petals and layered centre, is a popular motif in floral needlework and lends itself beautifully to the blended colour effects achievable with stranded cotton. The finished piece is suitable for framing, mounting on a hoop, or incorporating into a larger textile project.

Techniques Used

• Long and Short Stitch (Passé empiétant): This is a classic shading technique used in needle painting and fine embroidery. Alternating long and short stitches are worked in rows, with each successive row interlocking into the previous one. This creates smooth, naturalistic colour transitions — perfect for rendering the gradient tones of flower petals.
• Satin Stitch (Passé plat): Smooth, parallel stitches worked closely together to fill a shape with solid, even coverage. In this pattern, satin stitch is used with 4 strands of thread, giving the embroidery a rich, lustrous finish. It is typically used for more defined areas of the design where clean edges and full coverage are required.

Stitches Used

• Long and Short Stitch – used for blended, shaded areas of the cosmos petals
• Satin Stitch – worked with 4 strands for solid filled sections of the design

Materials and Tools

• Thread: DMC Mouliné Spécial Art 117 stranded cotton embroidery floss. The pattern calls for 7 colours across the design, each requiring one skein. The specific DMC thread codes used are:
  • Code 13
  • Code 988
  • Code 986
  • Code 157
  • Code 796
  • Code 792
  • Code 3806
• Needle: A No. 12 embroidery needle is recommended, which is a fine needle suited to detailed work with multiple strands of stranded cotton.
• Fabric: The pattern recommends using a Magic Sheet alongside a transfer pen and transfer paper to accurately transfer the design onto your chosen fabric. The skein quantities listed are calculated specifically for the stated design size of 10 cm x 11 cm.

Pattern Format and Difficulty

This is a free downloadable PDF pattern, available directly from DMC. It includes a full colour guide, a technical chart, and written instructions in both English and French. The pattern is rated as intermediate in difficulty, making it well suited to embroiderers who have moved beyond beginner basics and are developing their shading and filling skills. The Secret Garden – Cosmos Floral design is part of DMC's broader Secret Garden series, which celebrates botanical and floral subjects in hand embroidery.