Quite amazingly it transpires that my niece, Clarissa, is 1. I'm really not entirely sure what happened to the last year, particularly as I haven't yet got round to blogging about the sampler that I made for her as a birth gift. So, in honour of her 1st birthday, here is the sampler, a year late.
This was my first cross stitch project in a long time and my first ever sampler (there's an unfinished Beatrix Potter squirrel cross stitch lurking somewhere at my parents' house, disgarded about 15 years ago. I'd happily finish it, if it ever surfaced). This
pattern came from
Moira Blackburn who has a really lovely collection of classic sampler patterns. The historical goon in me appreciates the fact that old samplers often missed the letter 'I' because 'I' and 'J' were interchangeable. The sampler that I did for Clarissa follows that rule - I wonder if she will ever notice!
I enjoyed working on the project. It did take months and months to do, though. And, in the process, it became very well travelled, visiting Hawaii and New York with me during the spring and summer of 08. I got lots done while staying in NYC as I tried to keep out of my host's way in the evening so worked on the sampler in my room whilst watching endless 'Law and Order: SVU' (very addictive and a good contrast to days spent in the library). I'd love to try a larger sampler at some point but it has become increasingly clear to me that the reason my grandmother was such an embroidery/tapestry goddess was that she didn't work and had all the time in the world! I hope she'd be a little bit proud of my efforts, though.
3 comments:
The sampler is amazing and beautiful. I love all the colors! What a sweet gift.
Great Aunt Elizabeth said,a new heirloom is born.bravo Aunt Cara.
This is a great post. Thanks so much for sharing, like always.
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