Without a compass or circle template

The pattern for the ultra suede donuts can easily be made without the use of a compass or circle template.

First I cut a strip of paper and used it to "measure" the cross stitch design at it's widest point. I chose to make this the size of my inside circle knowing that, because of the curve of the ball, a circular hole cut to the exact size of the design will "fit" the ball leaving approximately a 1/8 inch gap between the design and the circle.

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I cut the strip of paper to this length and folded it in half. I placed a pin through the fold and stuck it through the paper I was using for the pattern. (You'll need to have something like corrugated cardboard under the paper to hold the pin.) I used a pencil to mark the length of the paper as I rotated it around the pin.

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I sketched the circle outlined by the pencil marks.

Then I retrieved the strip of paper that I used to "measure" my ball. I folded it in half,

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and folded it in half again. I unfolded it and marked the center of this fold with a pin hole.

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I poked a pin through this hole and then poked it into the hole in the center of my paper pattern. I used a pencil to mark the length of the paper as I rotated it around the pin. (I did a better job marking this circle.)

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I then used another strip of paper to make a circle about 1/4 inch bigger than the inside circle. Then I was ready to make the 16 "petals" of the pattern.

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Pinwheel 2011