Su just blogged about her most recent freeform bargello, it’s called Marble Waves. I think it is so totally cool and I’m hoping she publishes it because I want to do one.
The design has a central medallion, which is not symmetrical. This makes it lovely, but also makes it difficult to design the Bargello around it so that, while not symmetrical per se, it looks balanced. She achieved this in several ways, which we can apply to our own projects.
1. The space is divided through the two diagonals. The strong line not only highlight the center, but they also divide the space clearly into equal areas.
2. The swirls just outside the central medallion take up much of the space, and turn, so they fill up enough of the quadrants, so symmetry is less important.
3. The overdye comes next and its changing colors make the color change more important to the eye than symmetrical patterns.
4. She uses the different threads in the same sequence, which creates balance. She also uses similar Bargello lines, curves are always on one side of the swirl, spires on the other, which also creates balance.
This is an absolutely wonderful piece.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
I am in absolute agreement with you there. I thought the same when I saw it