New for Nashville Market 2024

Jean Walker 1812 (AKA Goosing Jamie)

A Scottish reproduction sampler with an especially delightful Scotsman in the lower left-hand corner. His jumping over the roof of his blue slate roofed cottage just captivated me. I decided that in addition to the red and green tartan kilt I needed to approximate the Frasier tartan. The Frasier tartan and the cute geese that are each holding up a corner of the kilt led to the subtitle, Goosing Jamie.

The model is stitched on 40 count Hogbristle from Fox and Rabbit with the following AVAS 100/3 silks: 072, 080, 274 (2 spools on 40 count), 384 (2 spools on 40 count), 510, 523, 588, and 578. A DMC conversion is given. Specialty stitches used are Cross Stitch over one, Eyelet (stitch diagram included), and Satin Stitch. 

Suggested retail price is $20.00 

Jean Walker 1812 (AKA Goosing Jamie)

This is the Scotsman stitched in the Frasier colors.

Cathrin Sherar

Another beautiful Scottish reproduction sampler. I’m very taken with the house that she used in her sampler. These whitewashed stone cottages appear all over Scotland and Ireland. However, one of the unique things about this house is the blue roof. Being curious, I Googled blue slate in Scotland, just in case there was a basis in fact for what would otherwise be a fanciful roof color. As it turns out, there was! A quarry that was located in the north eastern part of Scotland, the MacDuff, used to produce blue slate. An engineering firm’s blog gives an interesting history of the different types of slate produced and used in Scotland. The blog, https://blog.engineshed.scot/2019/11/22/slate-scotland-historic-roofs/, has this to say about blue slate…

As well as slate islands, Scotland also had the “slate hills” of Kirkney, Corskie, Foundland, Tillymorgan and others in the North East of Scotland. This is where Macduff slate comes from, taking its name from the little seaside town of Macduff in Aberdeenshire…

Generally blue or grey in colour, Macduff slate sometimes has a purple hue because of the presence of the iron ore haematite. The dark spots dotted throughout it are a unique characteristic of this slate. They come from a mineral called chlorite.

Due to the lack of suitable transport links back in the 18th century, Macduff slate remained in the North East, but can still be seen on local buildings today.  

Suggested retail price is $20.  

Cathrin Sherar

  The antique has this marvelous family record pasted onto the back of the original board used to back the sampler when it was framed in Edinburgh long, long ago. It even names the farm, Cocklehill, Drainie, Morayshire where Cathrin lived. 

I was able to find more information about our Cathrin; she married James Muil and had several children, among them a Rev. William Shearer Muil. Catherin and her husband lived long lives and had at least seven children in addition to the Reverend. Catherin lived her life in Elgin, Morayshire, Scotland, and died in 1898

It’s always fun to be able to peel back the layers of history to find out a little of the life that the girls lived who stitched the samplers that we love to reproduce. Having a resource like this pasted onto the back of the sampler is like having a leg up in the game. 

The model is stitched on 40 count Button Box, Medium-Dark from Mason Linens. Other suitable linens would include Up in the Attic from Fox and Rabbit and Weeks Dye Works Mocha. The model is stitched with Belle Soie silks in the following colors: Boysen Beauty, Chester’s Blue, Poison Apple, Slate, Vanilla Pudding, Walk the Plank, and Weathered Vine. A DMC conversion is given. The stitch count is 203x200.

The suggested retail price is $20. 

Learn what is True in Order to do What is Right

This little sampler is intended as a companion piece to Speak the Truth in Love.   

I have found throughout the years that my beliefs strongly affect my actions. I believe that most other drivers on the road will pay attention to the center line painted on the road and will stay on their side of it. I also believe that there are idiots among us, so I keep a sharp eye on the oncoming traffic just in case. Because our beliefs have such an impact on our behavior it is important that we examine our beliefs rather than simply accept what we have been taught or what our culture tells us to believe. The search for truth can’t be a part time hobby.

The man I am quoting here, Thomas Huxley, was an English biologist and anthropologist who lived from 1825 to 1895. He was brilliant in his primary area of comparative anatomy. However, I believe that his greatest legacy was his constant work to advance scientific education. 

The model is stitched on 40 count Sewing Box Medium-Light from Mason Linens. Other linens that would work well would be Weeks Dye Works Straw or Lakeside Linens Buttercream. The model is stitched with overdyed silks from Belle Soie (Chocolat, Cinnamon Stick, Herb Garden, Walk the Plane, Weathered Vine, and Wheat Grass) and Gloriana (Bellagio Red). A DMC conversion is given. On 40 count linen the stitching fits perfectly into a 5x7 frame. 

Suggested retail price is $10.

Speak the Truth in Love  

There are a lot of ways to tell someone the truth. Not all of them are kind. I, like many of you, strive to fit the message to the audience. Not by diluting the truth, but by being gentle in my delivery. Sarcasm is my native language so this goal is not one that comes easily to me or that I always reach.

In his letter to the church in Ephisus, the Apostle Paul gave some very wise words about living together in community. In chapter four he says:

  …I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace…speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work…

There are a lot of important words in that passage; worthy, humble, gentle, and patient among them. If we can keep the wellbeing of the person we are talking to in the forefront of our minds and set aside making a true, but cutting remark just because it would feel good in the moment, we can work together to build stronger families and communities. A big goal for a little piece of embroidery, but that’s OK.

The model is stitched on 40 count Sewing Box Medium-Light from Mason Linens. Other linens that would work well would be Weeks Dye Works Straw or Lakeside Linens Buttercream. The model is stitched with overdyed silks from Belle Soie (Chocolat, Cinnamon Stick, Herb Garden, Walk the Plane, Weathered Vine, and Wheat Grass) and Gloriana (Bellagio Red). A DMC conversion is given. On 40 count linen the stitching fits perfectly into a 5x7 frame. 

Suggested retail price is $10.

Miss Campbell's Scissors Keep 

I created Miss Campbell’s Scissors Keep using a motif from an antique Scottish sampler in my collection, Margaret Campbell 1848. The Angus Trees on each side of her house caught my attention right away. These trees were just made to be turned into a scissors case. I did take a small liberty with the design and added dogs at the base of Margaret’s tree. I do hope she doesn’t mind.

To make your Miss Campbell’s Scissors Keep you will need: 32 count Duxbury linen from Fox and Rabbit (note: this linen is not color fast) or fabric of your choice, one skein each of Red Fox, Attic Tea, and Old Crow Belle Soie silk, a spool of 4mm River Silk hand-dyed ribbon in color #2361, a pair of 2 ½” to 3” embroidery scissors, silk dupioni lining fabric (model uses Sardonyx from Silkbaron.com), skirtex interfacing, Clover Wonder clips, and freezer paper.

The chart included a very decorative alphabet and a set of numerals for personalization. The chart included step by step finishing instructions with color photographs of key steps. 

The suggested retail price is $15.