The cardinal's crest and tail share a red palette with fifteen winterberries. This digital hand embroidery pattern gives the fruit its own curved shading, with three brown leaves and forest-green ground around the longer feather directions.
Your digital pattern package
- 16-page design-specific Stitch Guide PDF with region key, DMC palette and recommended sequence
- Full-size A3 transfer PDF and matching SVG
- White and transparent 600 dpi linework PNGs
- Colour reference JPG and thread-and-region recipe CSV
- Hand Embroidery Stitch Sampler, Essential Needlework Handbook PDF
- READ_ME instructions
Reading the composition
Cardinal at the Winterberry Flame places the red bird between fifteen winterberries. Work the fifteen fruits individually, keep the small black bib compact, and follow the full crest and tail through short directional feather groups.
Are the bird and berries one continuous red area?
They share a colour family but have separate surfaces. The berries use compact curved shading, while longer feather directions follow the cardinal's crest, body and tail.
The suggested palette
- Suggested ground: deep forest-green linen
- 16 suggested DMC shades, using stranded cotton floss
- Bring your own needles and a hoop or frame
- Test the chosen transfer method and thread colours on your cloth
Working through the thread map
The guide maps 12 working regions with local stitch direction, strand count and DMC colour recipes. Use the region key and recommended sequence to follow the overlaps and changes in shading. Mapped techniques include divided turning long-and-short, fine split, short satin.
Preparing the transfer
Artwork canvas: 232 x 300 mm, portrait, including the open background areas. Print the separate A3 transfer at Actual Size / 100% and check the 50 mm control bar. Guide previews are reduced. These are canvas dimensions, not a finished hoop, cushion or bag size. The Stitch Guide itself uses US Letter pages.
Download format and licence
Digital files only. No fabric, thread, tools or finished embroidery is supplied. Colour references and lifestyle mockups show design and presentation ideas. For personal, non-commercial use. Do not share, redistribute or resell the digital files.
