*NEW* Christmas Band Sampler

This is one of two brand new Winter/Holiday designs being released today... now doesn't that make you happy? It makes me happy... but mostly because I already finished stitching mine, and now all I have to do is wait a few months until its time to start displaying them. But don't worry, they're both very quick designs to stitch up, each taking me just under a month to finish, so you have plenty of time! *wink*

A few years ago, I purchased a very old and worn-out band sampler all done in reds and greens. With a little research, I’ve decided that it is most likely Scottish in origin, and perhaps from the late 1700’s or early 1800’s. I’ve often thought of it as my Christmas band sampler, just because of the colors. This year, I decided to chart the antique, missing stitches and all, then used it as a springboard to create a truly festive sampler just right for holiday decorating.

I filled in the missing stitches, did a little re-arranging, added a bit here and a bit there, using other old Scottish samplers for inspiration, then finally, embedded the classic American phrase, “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year” within the classic layout.

This sampler is stitched entirely with cross stitch with the exception of the large capital V, and the words MERRY CHRISTMAS and YEAR, which are stitched with eyelet stitch.

Stitch Count: 120 x 295
Model stitched on DMC 28ct. Natural

Using flosses from The Gentle Art: 0350 Mulberry, 7019 Pomegranate, 7061 Caramel Corn, 7080 Endive,

And from Weeks Dye Works: 1240 Dirt Road, 2202 Bullfrog

This design is now available in my etsy shop, and will be going out to my distributors and the shops on my automatic shipments list soon. If you prefer to bypass etsy and order directly through me, you can send me an email: beth@heartstringsamplery.com