A Gentle May Bouquet
Inspired by the first days of May, this bouquet evokes a simple, spontaneous gathering, where each flower finds its natural place.
A gentle, understated arrangement, nothing too elaborate, simply the joy of combining a few seasonal flowers, tied together with a subtle ribbon, to create a delicate gift to give… or to treat yourself to.
As usual, you can download the drawing HERE.
Below, you’ll also find a complete list of the yarns used, along with step-by-step instructions for creating this May bouquet.
DMC and House of Embroidery threads
DMC 3865, 3078, 742, 165, 163, 311, 800, 162, 554, 153, 353
67A Apple
67C Apple
30A Cabbage
7C Periwinkle
Mexico 53C
2A Morning Glory
77A Gladiolae
16AC Roses
The tulips are embroidered using long and short stitch, with 1 strand of thread, in colors 3865, 3078, and 165. The daisy petals are also made using long and short stitch, with 1 strand, in colors 162 and 800. Their centers are embroidered using satin stitch, with 1 strand, in color 3865, then delicately outlined using the split backstitch, with 1 strand, in color 2A.
The tulip stems are made using several rows of stem stitch, with 2 strands, in color 163. The lily-of-the-valley bells are embroidered using satin stitch, with 1 strand, in color 3865, over a 2-strand padding. The stem on which the flowers hang is worked in stem stitch, using 2 strands of thread in color 7C, while the leaves are embroidered in satin stitch, using 1 strand of thread in colors 7C and 163. The blue flower accompanying the lily of the valley is embroidered in double lazy daisy stitch, using 2 threads, in color 2A, then embellished with a French knot, using 2 threads and 2 wraps, in color 742.
The violet leaves are embroidered in fly stitch, using 2 strands of thread in color 30A, and accented with a few lazy daisy stitches, using 2 strands of thread in color 67C. The flowers are embroidered in blanket stitch, using 1 strand of thread in color 153. The bottom of each petal is decorated with a few straight stitches in color 554 to add dimension to the design. The center is simply formed of a French knot, using 2 strands and 2 wraps, in color 3078. Finally, add a few French knots, using 2 strands and 2 wraps, in color 554, to represent flower buds that are still closed.
A few pink flowers are interspersed among the lily of the valley, the blue flower, and the tulips. They are embroidered using the satin stitch with 1 strand of thread in color 16A, and their corollas are outlined with a few straight stitches using 2 strands of thread in color 353. I then added depth to the bouquet by embroidering foliage consisting of stems in stem stitch and leaves in lazy daisy stitch stitch, fishbone stitch, or close fly stitch. The entire foliage is worked with two strands of thread in color 67A.
This photo shows the right side of the bouquet, which was created in the same way as the already embroidered section, to form a harmonious and balanced whole.
The leaves that support the bouquet are embroidered starting from the outer leaves and working toward the center: first using thefishbone stitch, then the close fly stitch, and finally the central leaf using the Cretan stitch. The entire design is embroidered with two strands of thread, using various shades of green according to your preference. I mainly used colors 67A and 67C.
