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Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe: Spring, Easter,Primitive hand dyed trim bag give-away, enter now!
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Mastering Mary
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| Mary Hurst - The Scarlet Letter |
I have updated the stitching notes to this point.
Mary is a constant delight to work on as each motif comes to life. I hope you are enjoying following her growth.
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A post for Barbara G. EH is Finished.
“EH is done almost entirely in double running stitch. There are a few eyelets and I changed the trellis stitch portions to satin because I liked the effect. I think it gives a more solid look to the piece. I tried the trellis but in some of the teeny tiny areas it just didn’t look right. I usually don’t change anything on a reproduction but I felt this was needed here .
I ran out of thread and I am not sure if it was because of the switch to satin or not so if anyone is doing this sampler make sure you have extra thread available. The bands were not charted across the whole width and I had to do some redrawing and calculating to make them work – another thing to be aware of. I am really pleased with this piece and even though it has only 4 colors I believe it works really well.”
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Mastering Mary
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| Mary Hurst - The Scarlet Letter |
Section 3 is now complete and the files have been updated.
Jeri has stitched part of this section differently (see photo below) and has shared her method with us and it is included within the notes. Thank you Jeri.
Karen has been making great progress and posted a progress shot on Facebook yesterday. Karen, as are a few others, is using Treasure Braid instead of the Silver Bullion thread. You will notice that is sits easier than mine above.
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Beyond the Little X - An Interview with Donna!
For this month’s interview we sit and stitch with Donna! We get to hear her stitching story as she shares with us her beautiful samplers. She enjoys stitching Scarlet Letter samplers and I know you will enjoy seeing them!!
Donna, how old were you when you first picked up a needle and who taught you to stitch?
I first picked up a needle at age 5 or 6. My Mother taught me how to sew a straight line to make a pillow in the evenings while we watched TV in the basement. I then advanced to Paragon kits which were very popular at the time in NY where I was born and raised.
What was the first sampler that you stitched?
It was the Celtic Band Sampler by Homespun Samplar. At the time I thought it was a large project and that I would never finish it. However, I did finish it and it hung on my walls until recently.
What is your favorite time of day to stitch?
My favorite time to stitch is anytime of the day!! I work part time during the school year, so I generally stitch in the late afternoon and early evening then. During the summer, I stitch more often.
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| Jane Parish - Scarlet Letter |
Do you sit in a set place and what tools do you like to have on hand?
Right now I sit on the couch. We are currently in the process of purchasing new furniture, but I think I will still sit on a couch where I have my right arm free like I do now. As for special tools, I have a white seam ripper that came with an old Kenmore sewing machine. I use it to “carefully” rip out mistakes. Even after all these years, it is razor sharp. My scissors, hoop and needles are all inexpensive.
Do you use the stick and stab technique, or a sewing stitch?
I use the sewing method. I turn the linen as needed so all the stitches cross in the correct direction. It is super fast. I would not have completed so many samplers if I didn’t use this technique.
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| Ann How - Scarlet Letter |
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| Ann Grant |
Do you prefer to stitch in hand, or with a hoop or frame?
Right now I am using an inexpensive plastic hoop. It works fine and I have been using it for years. I do have a wooden adjustable frame that I will use for satin stitch or other specialty stitches to get a tighter tension. However, I would like to purchase a wooden one from the Scarlet Letter soon.
What is your favorite linen and thread?
Right now my favorite linen is from Lakeside. I really like Vintage Light Examplar, Vintage Buttercream and Vintage Pecan Butter. Though I do like the thinner linen from R&R and Weeks Dye Works also. It’s all about linen color for me. Most of my samplers have been completed with DMC; I have done others in silks too. I have been stitching all my samplers on 40 count lately. I really prefer large, intricate projects done on a small count linen. I admire the ones that are done in a larger count, I just don’t enjoy stitching them.
Have you tried specialty stitches and do you have a favorite?
Yes, I have tried some specialty stitches on various samplers. However, I really just prefer cross. I do follow the patterns and never substitute easier stitches.
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| Matilda Charles - Scarlet Letter |
When did you discover the Scarlet Letter?
I did not discover the Scarlet Letter until fifteen years ago. I found the Scarlet Letter on the internet when I was doing a search for Reproduction Samplers. I ordered Marie Abbott and was just amazed at the beauty of this sampler. Since then I have completed 12 Scarlet Letter samplers and many from other designers.
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| Marie Abbott - Scarlet Letter |
What is your favourite period of sampler-making and why?
I really like Scottish samplers and samplers with people and animals. In my opinion, people and animals give the sampler life. I have completed three Scarlet Letter Scottish samplers and plan to stitch more.
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| Margaret Gibson - Scarlet Letter |
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| Marion Robertson - Scarlet Letter |
I like to have a little red in most of my samplers also.
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| Permin Sampler |
Has working with reproduction samplers given you any new insight into the lives of the girls and women in the 17-18-19th centuries that you did not realize before?
I used to think I was born in the wrong time period since I really enjoy sewing, cooking and everything to do with home and children. I don’t like the pressure I feel today to work outside the home either by choice or necessity. There is so much stigma for women today to do it all. I have learned to just enjoy my life and not worry about what society dictates.
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| Mary Allen |
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| Jean Rattray |
How do you display your stitched samplers? Do you frame them? Hang them singularly or in groupings?
I have had some samplers framed and they are hung throughout my home. The other completed samplers are tucked in a cedar lined drawer and wrapped in cotton fabric. I don’t feel the need to frame everything. I am always looking for new ways to display samplers.
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| Rachael Hyde (above) Sarah Hartley (below) |
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| An Amy Mitten design |
Do you collect antique samplers? Or have any other collections special to you?
No I don’t collect antique samplers. I am not a collector. I really don’t like clutter in my home so the samplers I complete are the only collection I own. I live a simple life and really just like the basics.
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| Charlotte Clayton |
What other types of hand work do you enjoy?
I have tried many other forms of needle work and rug hooking. I also enjoy crochet. I recently crocheted an afghan in a deep, dark shade of green. I used a braid technique to join the squares together. I really like the effect of this technique. I have made numerous afghans that have either been given away or sold.
Any guilty secrets to confess?
I generally have ice water or diet soda near me. I wash my hands before handling my needlework. I cut off all the tails when the sampler is completed. After I complete sewing for the day or for an extended period of time, the linen and threads go into a Ziploc bag.
What has been your worst needlework disaster?
I bought a beautiful sampler into my local craft store to get it framed. The sampler came back with a black paint stain in the center. I was devastated. I really didn’t know what to do. I was able to get the stain out with a tiny amount of dish soap and water and a q-tip in that area. I worked very hard to get the stain out. On that sampler I used hand dyed linen and silks.
If you can pick just one, which is your favorite sampler that you stitched? And why?
The sampler that had the paint stain from the frame department….Sarah Siddall by Scarlet Letter. I feel like the linen can make or break the sampler. I like vintage and darker linen. Yes. I have been known to dip the sampler into coffee to age it.
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| Sarah Siddall - Scarlet Letter |
What Scarlet Letter sampler are you currently working on now (or other current sampler)? What do you most enjoy about it?
I am currently working on Hannah Lancaster by The Porcupine Collection. I have admired that sampler for many years. It has the components I like most, people, animals and a little red. I generally just work on one sampler at a time and prefer large samplers.
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| Hannah Lancaster - Porcupine Collection |
What other hobbies or interests do you enjoy?
I enjoy exercising. My husband recently purchased a recumbent indoor exercise bike that I have been using 30 min each day. When the weather is warm, my husband and I walk 2-3 miles each night. We live near the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee and spend a lot of time hiking. It is very peaceful and beautiful here. I spend a lot of time with my 13 year old daughter doing all sorts of fun things, we are very close. Of course, I really like researching and reading sampler blogs to get inspiration and to learn and share with others.
Thank you for taking the time to read about me this month. I appreciate it. Sewing is a big part of my life. It is peaceful, relaxing and gives me great enjoyment. I really do not feel I would be as content and happy as I am, if it weren’t for this wonderful hobby!
Thank you Nicola, Krista and to all that help to maintain the Our Scarlet Letter Years blog and facebook group!! Thank you Marsha and ALL designers for making all these samplers available for us to stitch and for all you do!!
And Thank YOU, Donna, for sharing your beautiful stitching with us! Such an inspiration! The peacefulness and enjoyment you get from your stitching can be seen through your words and stitching. To keep up on Donna’s future endeavors please visit her blog, Cross Stitch Samplers.
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Introducing Ann Short a new addition to The Scarlet Letter Portfolio
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
Marsha has a new sampler available ANN SHORT. She is a beauty.
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
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| Ann Short - The Scarlett Letter |
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Mastering Mary
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| Mary Hurst |
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| Mary Hurst |
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The Feller Collection
This summer Michael and Elizabeth Feller are opening their Cotswold Manor House to sampler lovers for parties of 15 to 20 to study their fabulous collection.
This is a very special opportunity.
We are organising three tours - two in August and one in July and have places available for the July trip.
If you are interested please can you leave a comment below.
This is a wonderful opportunity and I for one can't wait.
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FINISHED!! A Parrot A leopard A Lion
WOW.. it has been forever since I have posted here....I have been busy stitching away on A Parrot A Leopard A Lion. Put the last stitch in last evening....stitched on 28 ct Lugana 1 over 1 with DMC.... so very pleased with the results and doing a major happy dance!!!
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thanks for letting me share!
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March Progress on Elizabeth Shephard
I spent last weekend working on Elizabeth Shephard and completed the top right hand brown motif with its diagonal border. I also did a fair bit of the Two Birds motif.
Quakers are so addictive, you want to keep going until you finish another motif! It really is inspirational.
March is also Elizabeth's month: she was the solution to the St. Patrick's Day competition and we also have a lovely new finish of her by another Elizabeth from the FB group. She has personalised the design so it looks more balanced in the frame she had. She notes that it throws the symmetry out but as we al know the original Elizabeth was not overly obsessed with symmetry!
You can see all the versions of Elizabeth Shephard on the Gallery blog:
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Mary Hurst
Mary is progressing and Section 5 is now well under way.
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| Mary Hurst The Scarlet Letter Section 5 in progress The files have been updated and can be view via the tab above the banner photo. |
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Beyond the Little X - An Interview with Penelope!
For this month’s interview we sit and stitch with Penelope! While Penelope is a newbie to the Scarlet Letter she has had a long love of stitching and needlework. Her embroidery skills are quite amazing! Please take a look-see as she tells us about her journey…
Penelope, how old were you when you first picked up a needle and who taught you to stitch?
During the war my mother worked in a bakery and after the war she trained as a tailoress. She never worked full time as this, however she constantly sewed, stitched, knitted and made our clothes. I was about 7 when she taught me the basics, but I never really took to it and hated needlework at school. Being left handed didn't help. I finally got the stitchy bug when pregnant with my first child in the late seventies. When mum died in 2004, I found her examination book with all her samples made for the tailoring course, I had never seen it before, she had never showed it to me. The course started in January 1948 and finished in September 1950, the year before I was born.
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What was the first sampler that you stitched?
The first sampler I stitched was actually a printed tea towel when I was about 8.
What is your favorite time of day to stitch?
I like to get my household chores done in the morning and usually settle down to stitch late afternoon. If I am lucky I then get to stitch through the evening as well.
Do you sit in a set place and what tools do you like to have on hand?
A long time ago a doctor told me to have the Television on when I stitch because this encourages you to look up from time to time causing the eyes to refocus which apparently is good for your eyes. My eyesight is not good, I have worn glasses since I was 14, so I try to do this. I always use a magnifier so I have two places in which I stitch regularly, one in my garden workshop (really just a wooden shed!) and one in the house, both equipped with a TV, daylight lamp and magnifier. Since I took this photo I have moved this lamp to our apartment at the sea and I now have an ottlite instead!
Do you use the stick and stab technique, or a sewing stitch?
I mostly use a sewing stitch but I always use a frame, wooden hoops being my favourite. However, I keep the linen slightly looser in the hoop than most stitchers, that makes a sewing motion possible.
What is your favorite linen and thread?
If I have to choose a favourite thread there is no contest, I love the gloriana silks but living on a pension means I don't get to use them too often. My standard to go thread is DMC. Linen depends on the project. Sometimes I will choose a stiff linen, great for smalls it retains its shape and makes up well. Sometimes a more open weave which is easy on the eyes and just occasionally a more dense weave. If I use a dense weave I cannot manage anything finer than 28 count. On the open weave linens I can go to 32 comfortably and 35 or 40 for a special and not too big project. I would find it difficult to quote a make of linen I use most of them and there are so many overdyes out there. I love weeks dye linen, especially the 30 count parchment and the R and Rs. I try and avoid evenweave unless it is 100% flax or cotton, I just don't like the feel of the man made and modals, touch is everything to me.
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Have you tried specialty stitches and do you have a favorite?
If I find a new type of stitch or stitching technique I just have to try it so there is not much I have not tried from stumpwork to hardanger and most stitches. I first discovered stumpwork at a class with Marsha Papay Gomela of Ladybug creations at Sampler Gathering in Plymouth MA in 2004. I really enjoy this as a break from counting.
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| Stumpwork embroidery |
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| Stumpwork embroidery |
This is the class I took, a three sided cardinal bell with pineapple and fircones on the other sides.
When did you discover the Scarlet Letter?
I only found The Scarlet Letter a few years ago and I now own about 6 patterns. I have the Ann Lawle Sampler and the Unicorn, kitted ready to go. These two appealed because of the different technique at the top of the samplers. I have Rebecca Cullin, I love birds and my daughter's name is Rebecca. I bought Boscobel Oak, we used to live near there and SDW just because I liked it! I also have Dorcas Haynes. I have a few on my wish list as well, including Elizabeth Shephard's quaker sampler.
What was the first Scarlet Letter sampler you stitched?
I am ashamed to say that I have never completed even one! I am working on Dorothy Walpole at the moment which will be my first one completed. I then intend to do The Unicorn.
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| Dorothy Walpole in progress |
What is your favourite period of sampler-making and why?
I have not really thought about this but looking on the ones I like I have to say the 17th century. Whilst at a goldwork course in Hampton Court Palace, at the Royal school of Needlework many years ago, I left class and wandered around (I am always getting into trouble for curiosity). I found an office, the door was open and there, on the wall, was the most beautiful sampler I have ever seen, 17th Century. Of course I went in and whilst engrossed in examining it, someone tapped me on the shoulder and said what are doing in here, this is the Principal's office? I apologised, commented on the beautiful sampler and beat a hasty retreat back to class. Later on someone arrived in the classroom with the sampler and the back had been glassed as well! It was virtually reversible, an amazing piece and we had the opportunity to look at it in detail, both back and front!
Which designs appeal to you the most?
I am very taken with quaker themes. We have 3 rescue dogs and three stray cats so I love animals motifs too. I am a qualified dog trainer although I have not done that for years now.
Has working with reproduction samplers given you any new insight into the lives of the girls and women in the 17-18-19th centuries that you did not realize before?
One of my favourite haunts whilst living in the UK was Quarry Bank Mill. This is a national trust property near Manchester where you can see the houses, the factory and how the mill orphan girls lived. I have never visited Ackworth, its definitely on my bucket list....
How do you display your stitched samplers? Do you frame them? Hang them singularly or in groupings?
A lot of my pieces are on the walls.....
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... and even more sit in a large plastic box! There are over 100 pieces in that box! I just do not have room to display everything. .jpg)
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In the early 2000s I started making etuis, boxes and cases because I had no more wall space but now I have too many of these as well. What next?
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Do you collect antique samplers? Or have any other collections special to you?
I don't collect antique samplers, I love to see them but my prime pleasure is in the making....the movement of needle and thread in linen....
What other types of hand work do you enjoy?
I dabble in so many crafts, card making, painting, knitting crochet, quilting, lace making, jewelry making and love anything new. I recently finished this quilt for my daughter's first baby arrival expected early next month.
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I have dolls houses which I make a lot for, from stitching to actual furniture.
And I did a bit of mosiac work too.
Any guilty secrets to confess?
I am not very good finishing off at the back of my work. Some pieces end up neater than others but I have to make a real effort to keep the back neat! I do have tea and coffee whilst stitching, very carefully. And. (Touch wood) have never had a spill!
What has been your worst needlework disaster?
Well, the sun shines a lot out here and I have a hole burned in my Mary Queen of Scots Sampler by the sun shining through my magnifier whilst stitching in the garden! Luckily the hole is no visible unless you look under the flap! I have burned a hole in my trousers whilst stitching the same way! It is surprising how quickly this happens, I can still smell the burning! Many years ago I washed a piece, before I knew better, and the red silk ran. I managed to get the dye out but the red silk is much paler in colour now.
If you can pick just one, which is your favorite sampler that you stitched? And why?
I think most stitchers would give you the same answer the one they are stitching now or the one they have just finished. But if forced to choose I would pick Mary Queen of Scots. I did the companion piece too, Elizabeth 1, but I still prefer Mary. It is the combination of her life, the history and her needlework that makes me love it so.
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| Mary Queen of Scots Sampler |
What other hobbies or interests do you enjoy?
Making things is everything to me. Being dyslexic reading is difficult so my favourite book would be a stitching book.
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I also enjoy photography and I do love to travel, with wildlife and stitching at the centre of the trip, if possible. I was lucky to fulfill my dream of a safari in Kenya in 2013, a fantastic trip! I went with an American group of quilters, as well as fantastic game drives in three fabulous camps. We visited bead making factories, spinning and weaving factory, the Sheldrick elephant orphanage, the rhino sanctuary and giraffe and chimpanzee sanctuaries. A fabulous trip organised by Jim West of Sew Many Places.
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| Penelope ready for the drive in the masai mara. |
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Bead making and local beadwork in Kenya...
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| Weaving in Kenya |
I live in Spain now but worked and lived in the UK for most of my life as a Chartered accountant. I was brought up in a Naval family so we moved around a lot. I went to 16 different schools, not including university, so I am basically a nomad. Last May I attended Celebration of Needlework in Nashua, New Hampshire and spent a lovely week in Massachusetts with a friend and saw some wonderful samplers with the Duxbury Historical society. This year, I went to the UK in March and a river cruise in France planned for November.
I have not taught for a few years now but when we started spending more time in Spain, I get up a stitching group and designed projects and taught for about 6 years. A friend leads that group now. I also taught for a few years to Spanish ladies and that did wonders for my Spanish!
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| Stumpwork pansies |
Thank you so much, Penelope, for sharing your wonderful story! Your stitching is exquisite! You have such an attention to detail. Your stories are charming, I feel as though I have had a trip around the world. We will all look forward to seeing more of your Dorothy Walpole and your stitching endeavors to come.
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Mastering Mary - Detached Buttonhole Flowers
I have updated Volume 5 to cover the detached buttonhole flowers and optional satin stitched flower for Section 5.
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Working by candle light
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Mastering Mary
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| Mary Hurst from The Scarlet Letter |
I have just updated the notes to reflect my stitching up to this point.
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An apology
Dearest all,
I am so sorry for my absence but during this sad time but I don't feel that I can sit and stitch, it almost seems disrespectful and my concentration level is zilch.
Once the funeral is over I will find great solace with my needle and plan to stitch a memorial sampler for my beloved Father. Possibly Martha Allis.
Marsha has been very busy reproducing her for everyone to enjoy and I am so pleased to share with you another sampler from my collection.
Another two antiques have arrived at Trewoon - an early 16th century stumpwork which fills me with awe everytime I look at it. It is a wonderful auction find.
The last photo is a sweet silkwork. It is so pretty.
I will be back with Mary Hurst the weekend proceeding May 14th. I am so sorry if anyone has been held up waiting for my next set of notes.
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Beyond the Little X - An Interview with Vickie and Maegan of NeedleWorkPress!
This month we have a special treat for you, two interviews in one! We hear from both Vickie and Maegan of NeedleWorkPress on how they started their stitching journeys, how they came to work together and about their loves for needlework.
First, we learn how Vickie and Maegan came to be partners in NeedleWorkPress…
Vickie has been dabbling in needlework design for a decade or so, but when her son Patrick married Maegan, she inherited a family member whose talent, creativity and organization added a new energy and direction to NeedleWorkPress. One day Maegan mentioned that she had stitched a gift for Niles (Vickie’s husband). Vickie was excited to see it; but Maegan mentioned her reluctance since it wasn’t exactly the kind of stitching Vickie did. Well, low and behold, while the piece was an amazing pictorial representation of a fisherman on a dock, surrounded by his faithful dog, both looking off into the water and forest. It had to have hundreds of color changes to create the realistic scene. The rest, as they say, is history! Since then, Maegan has had the opportunity not only to put her skills to work reproducing antique samplers, but also to spend some time learning the needlework trade at The Attic in Mesa, AZ Both of us are incredibly honored and humbled every time a fellow sampler enthusiast stitches one of our projects. Bringing antiques to life in the twenty-first century is our pleasure!
How old were you when you first picked up a needle and who taught you to stitch?
Vickie: Although I did miscellaneous embroidery throughout childhood, I didn’t look at needlework seriously until my mother took me to the most amazing needlepoint shop when I was 13. The shop was tucked under an ivy-covered roof on the second story of an old inn. (It has since been renovated, and the Royal Palms now houses one of our favorite restaurants.) My eyes couldn’t believe what I saw when the door opened: Wonderful, yarns in every color imaginable from bright to muted, and hand-painted canvases. I was in awe and could not get enough. As for technique, my mother wasn’t very patient (but she was precise), so I was pretty much self-taught. Alas, I was allergic to wool. So, sometime in my 20’s, my passion became cross stitch. My needle has been busy ever since!
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| Vickie could not resist changing the house on Colonial Welcome to look like her own. |
Maegan: I don’t remember how old I was, maybe 6 or 7 when I picked up my first needle. I am very close with my Grandma Shirley and often stayed the night at her house. She cross stitched Christmas stockings for all of her grandchildren and almost always had projects out at one end of her dining room table (it had the best light with two walls of windows). I asked her about it and she went to a bedroom, pulled out a little ornament kit and explained the concept to me. It was my first and only project until my early 20s, when I met my future husband and he started bragging about his mother to me. I told him that I knew how to cross stitch! We decided that something stitched would be a great gift to give his parents for Christmas from the two of us because it would be meaningful. Well, two and a half years later it was stitched and a year after that, framed.
What was the first sampler that you stitched?
Vickie: Maureen Appleton’s timeless “Colonial Welcome.”
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| Colonial Welcome - pictured to the right of the clock |
Maegan: How Does My Garden Grow by NeedleWorkPress. Vickie had stitched it
on perforated paper and wanted it re-stitched on linen, so I did.
What is your favorite time of day to stitch?
Vickie: I love the morning light, but rarely do the early morning hours provide time to stitch. Although I’ve found lights I like, still haven’t found THE perfect one. Finally had to succumb to readers in recent years, too!
Maegan: I prefer to stitch in natural sunlight. For me, that means the afternoon as it comes in through my dining/living room window.
Do you sit in a set place and what tools do you like to have on hand?
Vickie: Well, I wish I had one place where I stitched and designed…but my husband reminds me that I have multiple work stations all over the house. This means I don’t always have the exact tools I need. However, tape measures, rulers, scissors and needles are pretty much in every room.
Maegan: After writing above about my childhood experiences with my Grandma stitching, it makes me smile to admit that I too enjoy stitching at my dining room table. I am able to prop my feet up on an adjacent chair and spread my chart out on a solid surface, which I prefer. I ALWAYS have my favorite pair of scissors with me: my black Dovos!
Do you use the stick and stab technique, or a sewing stitch?
Vickie: I love to “sew” whenever possible. But I also like stitching on perforated paper, so that means “stick and stab.”
Maegan: I can do the “sewing” method of stitching, but it has never felt natural to me so I stick and stab.
Do you prefer to stitch in hand, or with a hoop or frame?
Vickie: Since I like to “sew,” I typically stitch in hand. I do enjoy some old hoops that can be anchored to tables.
Maegan: I almost always start a new project with a hoop. Once I have finished filling that area, I will move to stitching in hand. The only exception to this is my One Nation by ByGone Stitches project that I started on 45c. I’m moving the hoop around on that project.
What is your favorite linen and thread?
Vickie: Oh my, that’s a tough one to answer! For reproduction samplers, I usually prefer overdyed silks. There are SO MANY amazing choices out there. For more primitive pieces, it’s overdyed cotton. And then there are the great overdyed perle cottons for perforated paper. With linen, the project determines the count and color. However, personally I typically gravitate to darker colors that are warm and soft.
Maegan: My favorite linen is anything overdyed and soft. I like most counts as long as it isn’t above 40c. For threads, I prefer overdyes, but would be smitten to stitch in either silk or cotton. For me, I am practical and it depends on the project.
Have you tried specialty stitches and do you have a favorite?
Vickie: Oh yes, and my favorite is Algerian eye and variations of the eyelet stitch! Years ago I took an amazing class at Spirit of Cross Stitch…and I still treasure my “doodle cloth” of specialty stitches.
Maegan: I have never tried a specialty stitch. I would like to though. In fact, I need to. The problem is that haven’t had a project yet that has required me to. Someday…
When did you discover the Scarlet Letter?
Vickie: Marsha has been my hero from the very early days when she started researching antique needlework and bringing us splendid reproductions. Going to the mailbox was ALWAYS a treat when one of her catalog supplements arrived. Marsha’s meticulous attention to detail and her passion are true joys and so very inspiring! Her books A Stitch in Rhyme and Animals from Early Samplers are favorites of mine!
Maegan: I discovered the Scarlet Letter the first day I stepped into work at The Attic Needlework in Mesa, AZ. I worked there for almost two years and on that first day, there was a display in the front, right when you walked in the door, and it was somewhat magical, which sounds corny, but it’s true.
What is your favourite period of sampler-making and why?
Vickie: Probably late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. While I appreciate the intricacy and precision of more formal and elaborate samplers, I’m pretty partial to the more humble samplers because of their simplicity and quaint charm.
Maegan: My favorite period of sampler-making is the 17th century. I love the bold colors and the character like depictions. I have a book called “Samplers” by Donald King for the Victoria and Albert Museum and I love the cover sampler. I believe that The Essamplaire has reproduced it or one very similar to it. I enjoy how the flowers are so bright and beautiful and the fact that there are bugs like the caterpillar.
Which designs appeal to you the most?
Vickie: Alphabets are my very favorite! Have been since kindergarten when I carried a bookbag decorated with the ABC’s. Then I loved penmanship and eventually became a writer…so, if it’s got an alphabet, I’m drawn to it. Also, since my husband is a dairy vet, I’m especially drawn to samplers with cows, and other animals, too! Oh, and houses! They capture my heart as well. A good verse is a plus, too. Although I prefer muted colors, there isn’t any single color scheme that appeals to me. Motifs on Quaker sampler (and the alphabets, of course) are pleasures to behold!
Maegan: I am drawn to whimsy. My favorite sampler in our collection is Jane Tindall. I love everything about it. My second favorite is Mary Moteshed – the girl, the dress, her shoes, and that verse! (The antique now hangs over daughter Zoe’s crib.)
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| Mary Moteshed Antique sampler |
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| Mary Moteshed Reproduction Sampler |
Next I am drawn to color, which is tricky because I like both bold colors and more primitive colors. I have a Mexican sampler in my living room that I can’t wait to reproduce (it’s been on the short list for a couple years and keeps getting bumped because of it’s size). It has an upside down house, cows, a donkey, diagonal borders, roses all over, ducks in the reeds and even a fly. It’s amazing for so many reasons. Third, I am drawn to borders. The border doesn’t have to be beautiful, just fun and suited to the rest of the sampler. That doesn’t mean I like stitching borders, it is just one of the first things I look at. I also like animals. I am not very into houses or people, but as I said before, I LOVE the girl in Mary Moteshed’s sampler.
Has working with reproduction samplers given you any new insight into the lives of the girls and women in the 17-18-19th centuries that you did not realize before?
Vickie: Most definitely! Sometimes through research, other times just a feeling! I definitely feel connected to the girls, women and the occasional boy who stitched in bygone days. Nothing is new under the sun, so being able to recreate samplers with the advantages of technology we have is a true fellowship with those who have gone before us. Crazy as it sounds, one time I started working on an unfinished piece of needlework, and I had to have a friend do it, because it just didn’t feel right.
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| A Parrot Pincushion reproduction |
Maegan: Yes! It is amazing to work so intimately with a piece when reproducing it. I cannot help but notice the materials, the varying skill levels and even the verses that each girl stitched. When reproducing the sampler and looking at every detail, it makes me smile and grunt when a girl is careless with her stitching and there is no rhyme or reason as to why she stitched over so many varying threads – sometimes it will be 2x2, 2x3 3x2, 2x1…and it goes on. When I work with the more skilled samplers, I am amazed at the age of the girls and the ability to complete something so beautiful. The time that each one of them takes, whether skilled or less skilled, never ceases to amaze me either. I find it all remarkable.
How do you display your stitched samplers? Do you frame them? Hang them singularly or in groupings?
Vickie: Our home is a gallery of sorts and we’ve pretty much run out of wall space. So, while most are framed hung, some are under beds and in stacks; others are on loan to our lovely LNS, The Attic in Mesa, AZ.
Maegan: I actually don’t have any samplers that I have stitched hanging in my home. I didn’t start stitching them until I started working with Vickie doing NeedleWorkPress and all of the samplers that I have stitched and finished have been models; though I do have a bunch of unfinished samplers that I would like to get framed and displayed in my home. The antiques that I have are hanging throughout my house. I don’t have any hanging in a group. They are all hung in rooms and mixed with various pieces of other art; whether it be contemporary prints, oil paintings by my husband’s great grandmother, posters, pictures, or framed covers to antique books. I do have a couple of samplers done on canvas with wool and silk that are unframed, but still hanging.
Do you collect antique samplers? Or have any other collections special to you?
Vickie: Oh yes! I’m beginning to think it’s a sickness. Most are simple samplers that are affordable. But the collecting doesn’t stop there! Needlework tools, veterinary tools and all sorts of early paper ephemera are among the treasures that decorate every corner of our country farm house.
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| Antique sampler wall |
Maegan: I am SO fortunate that Vickie has an amazing eye and collects samplers that I enjoy AND even shares them with me. Because of her, I have several antiques hanging throughout my house. I collect counted thread charts. It started when I was working at The Attic. I saw charts that I appreciated the designs of or thought were beautiful and I saw charts go out of print. Now, even if it isn’t one that I think I will stitch, I will purchase the chart as a piece of art in its own right. (Vickie adds that with experience and a college background in theater, Maegan has a fun collection of all sorts of masks.)
What other types of hand work do you enjoy?
Vickie: When there’s time, I enjoy paper crafts, blanket stitch on wool felt and basic jewelry making. I gave up needlepoint because it hurt my hands.
Maegan: I used to paint. I haven’t done it—since college—outside of a painting and wine night with some friends from church. I used to sew too. That is something that I haven’t done much of since getting into cross stitch though. Having a daughter under two doesn’t allow for a lot of “free” time.
Any guilty secrets to confess?
Vickie: If I didn’t eat and drink when I stitch, I wouldn’t stitch. Multi-tasking is a way of life for us, so I always have a cup of hot tea or a tumbler of iced tea at my side. I have lost projects. You know the frantic “clean up before guests arrive” scenario? Well, I’ve pushed projects into closets only to discover them YEARS later. Sometimes they’re lost in my car…which I sort of live in because of all the driving I do. When the boys were growing up, I ALWAYS had a project in my car to complete on the road. I even changed verses to mark a point in time that I stitched it.
Maegan: I am not the best at keeping my stitching “pristine.” I have never spilled anything on the pieces I’m working on, but I have been known to stitch above a dog lying on my lap. I also leave my current projects out, which has caused an issue in the past with one of my dogs. Fortunately, nothing too bad has occurred from my carelessness.
What has been your worst needlework disaster?
Vickie: That’s a tough one. Fortunately, not any true disasters…I’ve left out a motif or forgotten a letter, but that’s about it. I do commiserate with those disasters, though, as they’re always a fear!
Maegan: I think everything I stitch has some sort of “mistake” in it. I just look at it as personalization. My biggest disaster recently though happened when doing the hem stitch on the reproduction “W: A Mexican Band Sampler”. It was my first time and I am the type of person who doesn’t test the water before jumping in, so I measured, re-measured, and measured again and decided to just go for it and cut the fabric. Well, when I went to fold it, I realized that it was too short. I had to stitch the piece I cut off back on and try again. It made me laugh. This happened on our model. I’m happy to say that you can’t tell at all from the front and you can only tell on the back if you are looking for it. Answering one of the questions reminded me of my first big disaster too. I was stitching Posies from the Cottage, a reproduction of an antique purse, and left the project out on my dining room table. Well, my dog Twain liked to jump up onto that table when he was a puppy and he grabbed my overdyed thread and took it outside and played with it in the yard and ate some. Vickie had to call all over asking friends to bring their in-stock Gentle Arts Brethren Blue skeins to market so that we could try to match dye lots. It was sort of a mess, but we lucked out.
If you can pick just one, which is your favorite sampler that you stitched? And why?
Vickie: I don’t even know the name. It’s a simple alphabet and heart sampler that I stitched for our 20th wedding anniversary in 1996. I bought it at a shop in Tennessee that’s now closed and I know the chart is out of print, but I’ll include the photo anyhow, since it means a lot to me.
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| Wedding Anniversary Sampler |
I also THOROUGHLY enjoyed reproducing and stitching a perforated paper sampler we call “How Does My Garden Grow”.
Maegan: My favorite sampler that I have stitched and completed is one from our Minerva & Friends collection. It is Minerva Ayliffe 1886. There are a bunch of cheerful colors, it was a quick stitch, and I like the short and sweet verse: “Be kind and affectionate one to another.”
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| Minerva Ayliffe antique sampler |
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| Minerva Ayliffe Reproduction Sampler |
What Scarlet Letter sampler are you currently working on now? What do you most enjoy about it?
Vickie: The Country Life is a long-time WIP, largely because I started it on 28-count linen and wish I had used a higher count. But, I’m determined to finish it so I can make a bolster pillow for my bed. The subject matter is what drew me to the piece. Ruthy Rogers is all kitted up and ready to go when I have time. Love that dress of hers!
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| A Country Life in progress |
Maegan: I am currently working on Spot Motif Embroidery. I literally fell in love with it that first day at The Attic. I bought it and figured that I would stitch it sometime, then my husband picked it out of my “collection” of charts to be the birth sampler for our first born. Needless to say, I haven’t finished it, but I will.
What other hobbies or interests do you enjoy?
Vickie: Being a grandmother is great fun! Family and friends are at the top of my enjoyment list. I fall asleep every night reading a book, magazine or newspaper. I still LOVE my printed reading material. Niles and I travel quite a bit—mostly across the US. So many hobbies and interests! The past several years we began our “Book of Days” with the verse, “ I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, all the friends I want to see.” -- John Burroughs
Maegan: With where I am in life right now, my main interest lies with spending time with my family. We enjoy camping in the White Mountains, spending an afternoon exploring local parks, or going to concerts – in local parks as a family or with my husband and in-laws we check out “outlaw” country and folk singers like Willy Nelson, Ian Tyson and John Prine. After family, I spend my time stitching and reproducing antiques. If I can get into a good book, I won’t put it down, but since reading the Game of Throne series several years ago, I haven’t been able to get into a good book. Usually anything by James Patterson or Steven King keeps me up at night though turning pages.
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| Vickie and Maegan |
A BIG Thank you to both Vickie and Maegan for sharing their story with us all! It is wonderful to see your works, and your antiques and reproductions. Your journeys have melded together to form a perfect partnership! We look forward to seeing your Scarlet Letter samplers projects and all of your future endeavors! To keep up with the works of NeedleWorkPress please visit their site here!
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Mastering Mary
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| Mary Hurst - The Scarlet Letter |
It seemed strange to be back working on Mary after a three week break. I felt as if I needed to re-bond with her.
I am working on the right hand section of the band. Basically I turned my frame upside down and am stitching the motifs in the same manner.
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| Mary Hurst - The Scarlet Letter |
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April and May's Progress on Elizabeth Shephard
I am currently spending one long weekend per month stitching on Elizabeth Shephard.
I'm using the 30 count linen and the AVAS silks which came with the kit.
This was my progress during April:
And here she is after a weekend's stitching in May:
At the current rate of stitching I feel it will be possible to finish Elizabeth this year.
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