Jill Horwich, an avid reader of BargelloNeedlepoint.com, sent me several photos about a special needlepoint project she recently completed. I was so impressed with her creativity and clever use of [...]
Bargello and Other Needlepoint Stitches
January 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment
One of the many lessons I learned from the 365 Day Bargello Challenge was that certain needlepoint stitches can be used successfully in bargello needlepoint and produce dramatic results. Several [...]
Day 160: Optical Illusion Bargello Line Design
June 9, 2010 By Leave a Comment
One way to create an optical illusion in Bargello needlepoint is to alternate color schemes while working the pattern [...]
Where Bargello Needlepoint and Cross Stitch Meet
May 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Whenever you search for FREE Bargello needlepoint patterns on the web, a list of cross stitch designs are always included. Not all of these designs can be converted to Bargello needlepoint; but [...]
FREE Needlepoint Pattern Maker
March 29, 2010 By 4 Comments
In one of my quiet moments on the web, looking for free Bargello needlepoint treasures, I came across Pic2Point.com, a FREE needlepoint pattern maker site. This site is truly a find in a million! It lets you turn your photos or images into high-quality needlepoint patterns [...]
Bargello Requires No Artistic Ability
March 26, 2010 By 4 Comments
Being able to draw and draw well is perfect for hand-painting needlepoint canvases; but Bargello needlepoint does not require artistic ability, and that’s good news for folks like me who can’t draw—not one bit [...]
How to Calculate Design Size for Different Canvas Mesh
March 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Bargello patterns are usually charted to make it easy to see the canvas grid and stitches, and are not drawn necessarily to scale. Here’s how you can calculate the design size when using different gauges of needlepoint canvas [...]
Understanding the Step In Bargello Needlepoint
March 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment
A typical Florentine or Bargello needlepoint stitch is vertical and made by working up or down over a specific number of canvas threads. To create variation and movement in a Bargello pattern, two or more of these stitches are either placed side by side or worked by “stepping” across the canvas row by row until the desired design takes shape [...]
Can A New Bargello Stitch Be Invented?
February 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment
It’s highly unlikely that a brand new, never before seen, original and unique Bargello needlepoint stitch can be created! As anyone who has experimented with needle and thread has found, just when you think you’ve “discovered” a new Bargello stitch, you find that someone else invented it years, decades or even centuries before you came on the scene [...]
Day 33: A Colorful Portrait of A Traditional Bargello Needlepoint Design
February 2, 2010 By 2 Comments
It was not my intention to stitch this Bargello needlepoint design because it was too large for a 365-day Bargello Challenge piece; but alas, I couldn’t resist its colorful pattern. The difficult challenge with this pattern was deciding how much of it to stitch [...]
Day 32: Monochromatic Hearts and Diamonds
February 1, 2010 By Leave a Comment
This monochromatic Bargello pattern is a variation on yesterday’s design with changes in thread colors and shades. The use of a monochromatic color scheme produces a totally different Bargello design effect that makes the pattern motifs softer with less definition between them [...]
Day 31: Hearts and Diamonds in Bargello Needlepoint
January 31, 2010 By 2 Comments
Heart-shaped motifs alternate with small diamonds in this Bargello design to make a bold pattern. An optical illusion is also made when using carefully graded shades of colored threads (6 for the hearts, and 3 for the diamonds) [...]
Day 30: Domes and Spires Revisited
January 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment
The pattern in this Bargello needlepoint design is formed similar to the “Domes and Spires” Bargello piece in Day 5. The pattern is formed by reversing and mirroring a row of the Bargello design against itself [...]
Day 29: Victorian Bargello Design
January 29, 2010 By 1 Comment
This design makes me think of England’s Victorian Era. The soft pink and green shades showcase a Bargello pattern that mainly consists of large circular motifs (not an exaggeration, I assure you). I had to increase the width and length of the needlepoint canvas to 4.25″ square in order to fit the Bargello pattern [...]
Day 28: A Typical Old Bargello Design
January 28, 2010 By 1 Comment
Worked in a 4-2 step, this type of design is very typical of vintage Bargello designs. This Bargello needlepoint pattern is found on pp. 76-77 in Bargello: An Explosion In Color by Margaret Boyles [...]
Day 27: A Creative Bargello Design
January 27, 2010 By 3 Comments
This Bargello needlepoint pattern may be of small proportions, but it holds a lot of interest and tells its own story. Stitched in navy blue, green and soft yellow, the different arrangements of the colors tend to accent specific areas of the design [...]
Day 26: Honeycomb Bargello Design
January 26, 2010 By 1 Comment
This honeycomb Bargello design is one of my favorites. It was the inspiration for the Bargello Needlepoint Christmas Lights Ornament, one of 12 designs in the Bargello Needlepoint Christmas Series [...]
Day 25: Eye of The Peacock Bargello Pattern
January 25, 2010 By 1 Comment
It’s amazing the number of Bargello designs that are found in historical needlepoint pieces. This Bargello pattern is often called the “fish scale” or the “eye of the peacock” (pp.72-73 in Bargello: An Explosion In Color by Margaret Boyles) [...]
Day 24: Upside Down Bargello Chevrons
January 24, 2010 By 1 Comment
As the last Bargello chevron design in Bargello: An Explosion In Color by Margaret Boyles (pp.70-71), this motif is turned upside down and worked with only one stitch to the step instead of two. The result is a slope of the slanted line that’s much steeper, while the number of step units is the same as the first chevron on Day 21 [...]
Day 23: Petite Bargello Chevrons
January 23, 2010 By 1 Comment
These cute and petite Bargello needlepoint chevrons are only five sets of 4-2 steps to the lower edge. The pattern for this design can be found on pp. 70-71 in Bargello: An Explosion In Color by Margaret Boyles [...]
Day 22: Interlocking Bargello Chevrons
January 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Today’s Bargello needlepoint chevron pattern seems to interlock rather than stand out alone as in yesterday’s pattern. There are some additional differences as well–the lower edge of the design has nine 4-2 step pairs that make the motif slightly larger [...]
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