*NEW* Victoria's Garden (a Faithfully Reproduced Antique Sampler)

This may have been the most nail-biting purchase of an antique sampler in my experience. I had spotted it for sale by auction online, but the closing time was on Sunday morning during our usual church time. No problem, I thought, that’s what smart phones are for, right? I felt very naughty, checking the auction during the sermon, but I wanted this sampler SO very badly. As the teaching was wrapping up, I realized with horror that he was going to finish preaching before the auction’s end, and I was due back on the stage for the closing song. So with a few quickly jotted instructions to the Farmboy, I left the strategy of bidding in his hands. I honestly don’t know how I made it through that last song. I must have been playing my guitar and singing on auto-pilot. I most certainly wasn’t mindfully in the spirit of the song. It was all I could do to not watch my advocate sitting there in the pew, trying to subtly bid on that auction. And finally… a huge smile and a thumbs up. And aren’t we all glad I broke the rules of propriety for this gorgeous piece?

Unsigned and undated, all I know from this sampler is that it is from England, and based on the materials and overall look of the motifs, I guess to be from the mid-1800’s. I therefore dubbed it “Victoria’s Garden”. If you want to personalize this piece with your name and date using your favorite alphabet, there’s room up at the top left. I wonder if the original stitcher intended to do so herself? The overall layout is so well thought out that leaving that space there must have been intentional.

Stitch Count: 247 x 191
Model stitched with one thread over two
on R&R Reproductions’ 28ct. Winter Brew

Using flosses from Classic Colorworks: Pebble Beach, Roasted Chestnut

And from The Gentle Art: Old Brick, Country Redwood (2 skeins), Woodrose, Pomegranate, Caramel Corn, Endive (4 skeins)

And from Weeks Dye Works: Light Khaki, Goldenrod, Dove, Tin Roof, Dirt Road, Collards, Pink Sand

Conversion to DMC available on request.

Frame on the original (top) is an antique.
Frame on the model (bottom) by Valley House Primitives.

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