Heart with a Flower Vine Cross Stitch Pattern

About this heart cross stitch pattern

A plump coral heart with a small loop at the top, like a fabric ornament, has a row of lighter dashes just inside its edge that look like running stitches. A green vine climbs diagonally across it from the bottom left, with small leaves and five orange flowers along the way, and trails off past the top right corner.

It’s small and quick, so it works as a Valentine’s Day card insert, an anniversary gift or a hanging ornament finished with felt on the back. For a flower to go with it, the Pink Rose is about the same size; our Valentine round-up has more love-themed patterns.

What you need

• Fabric: 14-count Aida in white, cut to at least 11“ x 11“ (3“ around the design for hooping and framing).
• Thread: 18 DMC colors, about 18 skeins in total, stitched with two strands. The main colors are 3778 Terra Cotta – Light (1,147 stitches), 938 Coffee Brown – Ultra Dark (517) and 356 Terra Cotta – Medium (412).
• Needle: a size 24 tapestry needle.
• Stitches: full cross stitches only, with no backstitch.

Difficulty and stitching time

It’s rated Beginner: the heart is one big shape, and 3778 alone fills 42% of the stitches. At 2,709 stitches it takes roughly 27 to 45 hours at a steady 60 to 100 stitches an hour. Most of the 18 colors are small touches on the leaves and flowers.

Tips for stitching this pattern

• Fill the heart before the vine. 3778 Terra Cotta – Light (1,147 stitches) is the heart’s face. Leave the vine’s squares empty as you fill it, then come back for the greens.
• Stitch the dashed edge as a separate pass. The “running stitch” border is 20 Shrimp (152 stitches) set inside the 356 Terra Cotta – Medium rim (412). Counting the gaps between dashes is easier when nothing else is in that row yet.
• Work the vine from bottom to top. 3013 Khaki Green – Light (102 stitches), 935 Avocado Green – Dark (54), 3053 Green Gray (47) and 3362 Pine Green – Dark (35) shade the leaves. Following the vine along its length keeps the curve smooth.

Size, fabric and framing

On 14-count Aida the finished design measures 4.6“ x 4.3“ (11.7 x 10.9 cm). On 16-count it comes out at 4.0“ x 3.8“, and on 18-count at 3.6“ x 3.3“. An 8“ x 10“ frame leaves room for a mat.

For an ornament, cut the stitching out with a small border, back it with felt and hang it from a ribbon through the loop.

What’s in the free PDF

• A cover page and a one-page overview with a preview of the design
• The chart, split across as many printable pages as you choose, in color or black and white, with a symbol for every DMC color, center lines, a mini-map showing which part of the design each page covers and a color key on every page
• The thread list: DMC number, color name, number of stitches and skeins to buy for each color
• The finished size on 11-, 14-, 16-, 18- and 28-count Aida