If you ask my husband one motif that I would like for sure, he would answer Fleur de Lis.  It’s not like I am an avid Fleur de Lis collector though.  Occasionally however, I will pick up a stationary or two if I like the design and the colors.  Since my girl scout days, I have been in love with the design.  The Florentine Fleur de Lis is my most favorite of them all.

This project started with a swap.  I am part of a lovely swap group on Flickr where we make tiny 3″ quilt blocks.  The theme of the month was piecing with embroidery and I made this nine-patch quilt block with Fleur de Lis embroidered on it.  It makes me think of colored glass windows.

Here’s a picture of the bunch together.  This was my first time ever making nine-patch blocks and I had to cut 1″ squares!!

Then I got to work on a larger version of the design for the Florentine Fleur de Lis with a combination of chain and back stitch.

A few tips on using DMC satin –  I used DMC satin embroidery floss for the brightness it offers.  I never used it before and I found out very quickly that it is not a very beginner-friendly floss.

• It has very little cohesion.  For the chain stitch, I had to use the thumb of my left hand to hold the floss down to keep the stitch in place while working with my right hand.
• It frays very easily.  I had to keep on trimming the loose ends so they wouldn’t knot up as I pulled the floss through the fabric.
• This embroidery floss left a lot of lint on the fabric.  I used a lint roller to clean up the finished piece.

The file includes both patterns: the simple one and the Florentine one for personal and non-profit use.

Mine is going to be a present for my husband  as a remembrance of our first overseas trip and the wonderful time we had in Florence!

Enjoy!
-Soma