I adore samplers! Many years ago I did quite a bit of counted cross stitch. Recently I took it up again. I was hesitant because, let's face it, the old eyes aren't what they used to be. But the ladies at the cross stitch shop assured me that I could do it, and they showed me how. This time I am stitching on linen, which scared me, until they told me to count over two threads. Whew! So I decided to give it a try. Now I am focusing on samplers. The design above was a free design shown on Barb and Alma's blog. You may have to scroll way back to find it. They recommend that you stitch in the name of a loved one, and I thought that was a sweet idea, so this one has my grandmother's name and birth year on it.
I showed this sampler in progress quite a while ago, and I finally finished it, and I love it! This one is in the Blackbird Design's book, You're Invited. I am feeling very proud of myself, and I haven't gone blind. Yet. I made this sampler in remembrance of my little baby, Mary, who died on the day she was born. The sampler gives the year, 1976, and a heart for love, as well as a butterfly, which is a symbol of eternal life, and "Forget Me Not". These items were all on the original design and all very appropriate. To me, this sampler is a reminder that she was here, though briefly.
I took my work to the cross stitch shop here in town called Dying to Stitch. They have a framing service and Patti did a beautiful job framing them for me! I am delighted! Browse around their website for a glimpse of some lovely samplers.
I know I promised my new wool pillow, etc., but that will have to wait until next time. I am way too excited to get my samplers back from the shop all framed up! I just had to share that today!
