There are so many things to love about samplers. Most importantly they give you a structured place to try new things. But they also give you a wonderful place to get yourself out of a rut.
In my case, it’s a color rut. I’m not much of a pastel person so I decided that I’d use this little sampler to try working with a pastel palette. My color scheme is going to be based on the Watercolours shade Springtime, above, which is pinks, minty green, and a very pale yellow. I’m not sure at all why it’a in my stash or why I’ve used half a skein of it.
I have a box with a glass top that’s 4×6, made for holding pictures. I bought it at a thrift shop. I’ll put my sampler into it.
I’d like to have it go fast, so I’m not going to make many small areas. I like the spacing in the Texas state flag, above, so I’m going to use that for the basis of my spaces.
Now on to the patterns and then the other threads.
THe biggest problems I’ve had with Bargello are Four-way patterns and Hungarianpoint, so those would be good places for practice. THere aren’t any Four-way patterns here, so I’ll pick three Hungarianpoint patterns. Pattern 5 is a stacked chevron pattern in three colors. I’ll use it for the vertical stripe on the left. Pattern 24 is an interesting combination of zig-zags and diamonds. It’s charted in five colors, but I think it would be great in four for one of the horizontal bands. Pattern 41 is a kind of Hungarianpoint pattern called a stepped wave. Done in three colors it will be the other horizontal band.
The overdye will be the constant in all three. I’m thinking that one will emphasize pink, one green, and one both, but I’ll see how it works out, I’m raiding my stash and will use some of these threads:
Pebbly Perle in P64 & P59
Crystal Braid in CR04 & CR05
DMC Matte cotton in 2912 & 2572
Planet Earth wool in Cloud 097
Planet Earth 6-ply silk in Romance 1017
Vineyard Merino in Pink Pearl M-1172
Dragonfly Lotus Semi-solid in FRosted Carnation
Dinky Dyes Silk in Binda 108
Threasd Gatherer Shepherd’s Silk in Soft Pink SS106
VIsit tomorrow to see how it’s working out!
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
Hi Janet,
It is a great idea to take a twist of a multicolored yarn and use that as a guide for picking needlepoint colors. Even with your preference for non-pastel colors, it appears that you like the look of this yarn. It will be fun to see what magical Bargello sampler you come up with.
Hope you have the happiest of Easters.
Marlene