While Carol does not have a blog, I think that most of us are very familiar with the vast number of samplers that Carol has finished and displayed at her home, Sampler Farm. Her stitching leaves many of us in awe and her samplers are truly an inspiration to see. Wait until you see her sampler walls!! Carol also has a Photobucket album which she notes at the end of this interview!
Besides the normal questions that we pose to our interviewees, I think that a lot of people wonder how the name Sampler Farm came about. Carol says,
"It all started with the idea that I wanted to live on a farm, but didn’t want animals or crops. The only crops I wanted to grow were samplers. Then I saw this verse which was on a sampler “ Cloth is my land so that I boldly stand, Needle is my plow so I can skills endow, Silk is my seed so I can name my deed”. Doesn’t that sound like a Sampler Farm?"
And it does Carol!! That is such a wonderful verse!!
Now on with our interview with Carol!! Wait until you see her samplers!
1.How old were you when you first picked up a needle and who taught you to stitch?
When I was 7 or 8, my grandmother gave me a dime store printed design and JP Coates floss in a tin box. After my mother’s death, I found the tin box in her closet and was excited to find that the tin box was an original Whitman’s tin from the 1940’s.
In my late 20’s my aunt introduced me to crewel embroidery and needlepoint. This was my hobby until I discovered cross stitch in 1978 and never looked back.
2.What was the first sampler that you stitched?
My first reproduction sampler was Hannah Breed by The
My first reproduction sampler was Hannah Breed by The
Scarlet Letter. I had attended a folk art show where
Marsha was a vendor and was instantly hooked.
So hooked, in fact, that I now own 154 Scarlet Letter charts, but I've only stitched 50 of them.
3.What time of day do you stitch? Do you sit in a set place and what tools do you like to have to hand? Does everything have to be in a certain place in order for you to relax and concentrate on your work?
I stitch during most waking hours and a few in my sleep. I do have a stitching nest and everything does have to be organized and in its rightful place.
My Stitching Nest
4.Do you use the stick and stab technique, or a sewing stitch?
I use both stick/stab and sewing methods.
5. Which designs appeal to you the most (e.g. Scottish needlework, certain stitches, colour schemes, animal motifs, houses, figures, Quaker style, etc.)?
I love samplers with houses on them. If the house has a yard full of animals, then it’s even better.
6.Why do you find antique samplers appealing?
To me, it’s more about the stitching than the fact that they’re antique samplers. I do like viewing antique samplers, but have never had the desire to own one.
7.Do you collect antique samplers? Apart from samplers do you collect anything else?
I collect wooden gameboards and antique crocks & jugs. A friend once told me that if you own more than two of something then it’s a collection. If that’s true, I guess I also collect spinning wheels, Noah’s arks and cage dolls.
8.Any guilty secrets to confess (e.g. leave tails on the back, drink tea or coffee while stitching, let your cat sleep on your work, etc.)?
I drink coffee and Diet Dr. Pepper while stitching. My cat does keep me company and occasionally contributes a hair to my sampler. In fact, on the deaths of two of my cats, I included their whisker on the sampler I was working on at that time.
9. What has been your worst needlework disaster (loss, stains, holes)?
I tried to make a burn spot on a sampler to make it look older, but I ended up burning a large hole in it. Off it went to my finisher to be darned.
10.If your house was on fire and you could only save one sampler which would you choose and why?
Knock wood! I think I would save charts and fabric rather than a stitched piece.
Here’s a sample of my stitching:
And here is the link to my Photobucket albums:
Thank you so much for letting us interview you Carol. I know that many of us have always wanted to know more about you!! And now we do and can all see your wonderful stitching through your Photobucket Album!! You are truly an inspiration!!!