What a relief it is ...

…when the border you stitch on a sampler meets at the end!! I’m sure you know that feeling, and perhaps you also know the frustration when the border doesn’t meet. Yikes!

The other day I finished stitching the vine border on the Deborah Walker sampler! What a relief it was when the vine met perfectly!! The border with some of its little irregularities was a bit challenging at times--if I wasn’t very careful, I easily made a mistake which led to “reverse stitching”. I haven’t stitched all of the strawberries on the vine--I may save them until last. It might be nice to do them at one of my guild stitch-ins.

I still have a fair amount of over-one stitching to do. The chart has enlargements of these areas, but the enlargements really aren’t much bigger than what is on the main chart. Plus, I’ve discovered that the charting on the enlargements doesn’t match what is on the main chart. I’ve decided to follow the main chart.

Several people have asked me about this chart. It was produced by Just CrossStitch and is now out of print.

Deborah’s sister, Rebecca, too stitched a sampler which was reproduced by The Essamplaire. Click here to see it. Another sister, Mary, also stitched a sampler. I don’t know if Mary’s sampler has been reproduced. All three of the original samplers are in the collection of the Chester County (Pennsylvania) Historical Society.

If you look at Deborah’s and Rebecca’s samplers, you can’t help but notice the similarities. You’d probably also noticed the many Quaker motifs. Although neither girl tells us when she stitched her sampler, they both tell us they are the daughters of Isaac and Deborah (Dickinson) Walker. Deborah’s sampler also gives us her grandparents’ initials. Isn’t it wonderful having that information?

With a short internet search, I was able to find a little more about the Walker family. Isaac was born in 1779. He married Deborah Dickinson on September 14, 1803. Both were Quaker. They lived in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and had ten children. Isaac built a school on his property, and for part of the year he taught not only his children but also others.

Their daughter, Deborah Walker, the maker of the sampler I’m stitching, was born in 1820. She married Henry Pownall, and together they had five children. Deborah died in 1890. She and Henry are buried at the Sadsbury Friends Meeting Cemetery as are Deborah's parents.

I’ll probably put Deborah aside for a bit to work on a new sampler I’ve designed. I’m using the Gentle Art’s Simply Wool threads for the first time, and I really like the way they look. Isn’t it wonderful to have so many different threads readily available?

Yolanda in Australia shows off her A Fair Maiden's Etui!

What a delight it was to receive these photos from Yolanda in Australia of her A Fair Maiden's Etui! I think you'll agree that she did a beautiful job with this project.

Yolanda stitched her etui and 36-count cream linen using the threads specified on the chart. She lined her pieces with dupioni silk in a color named "Prune".

Yolanda wrote, I thoroughly enjoyed this whole project and I am now using it to work on the Quaker School girl set.

I chose to use the ribbon to make the closure as this tied the colours together from the outside to the inside. I also chose not to place the ribbon on the pin cushion. I made two pages for my needle book.

Thanks again for a great project and I will send completed photos of the Quaker set when done.

Yolanda, you did such a beautiful job with this project. I really like the little changes you made. You are indeed right that the ribbon closures tie the colors from the outside of your etui to those on the inside.

I'm also delighted that you are finding the etui a useful tool as you work on other needlework projects, including Quaker Schoolgirl Needle Necessities. I'd also love to see a photo of your etui in place in your stitching area. Hmm--maybe you could have someone take a photo of you using your etui.

I look forward to receiving photos of it once you have completed it. Happy stitching!

"Baby Boy" Chester

What a wonderful weekend we had! Stephen and Michelle came to town for a baby shower their friends had for them. Here are the happy parents-to-be standing on our front step.

Here is a photo from the baby shower. Would you believe we didn't get a single photo of Stephen looking at the camera? Here he is holding the cutest stuffed giraffe that I found during my recent stay in Amish country. Michelle is holding one of the 3 hats that my sister-in-law, Julie, knitted.

This little red hat was quite a hit at the shower. Julie knitted the letters "M U" (for Miami University) in the design. Can you see the letters? You may have to squint to see them because they are the same color as the rest of the hat. I think everyone at the baby shower, except for Tom and me, went to Miami University. Julie also knitted a cute striped hat (shown in Michelle's lap in the photo above) and a Boy Scout hat since Stephen was an Eagle Scout.

Earlier today I finished the baby sampler....well, all but the baby's name, birth date, and location. I hid the sampler over the weekend when Stephen and Michelle were here.

At the very bottom, you might be able to see where I backstitched "Stitched with love by Ellen Chester". This information won't show when the sampler is framed.

I'll probably have my framer, Carol, order the frame in another month or two. Then when the baby is born, I can quickly stitch the information for the central cartouche and get the piece framed for the baby's nursery.

I've had to limit the amount of stitching I'm doing during my recovery period. So with the baby sampler almost done, I spent time this afternoon charting a new sampler design that will be released in the fall along with Mrs. Waddelow's basket and the hornbook needlebook.

Tomorrow I have an eye exam. The good news is that the number of eye drops I have each day is down from 9 to 6, and tonight I don't have to wear the eye patch to bed. Of course, starting next Monday, I'll be wearing the patch again and using 15 drops a day between my two eyes. Good thing they gave me a check-list to keep track of things.

Every day things get a little better...

Thank you for all the notes both on and off the blog. Your caring thoughts have truly meant more than you’ll ever know. THANK YOU!!

Thanks to a pair of drugstore reading glasses, I can now see the computer screen, read, and even stitch a bit (although I’m limiting my time doing all of these activities).

As Tom mentioned the other day, my long distance vision is better than it has ever been.

I have to admit I’m frustrated today with my close-up vision, but I know things will eventually be okay (and perhaps even excellent) once I get my new prescription glasses. However, that will be 4-6 weeks after my second surgery on June 28th. Until then, I have to remember to take off the reading glasses when I get up so that I don’t get dizzy.

Sometimes I just wear the reading glasses on the tip of my nose so that I can also look over the top of the frame. I really look like a little old lady doing that!

Thanks for your thoughts on the baby sampler. Almost everyone thought I should keep it as a surprise. I’ll have to hide it when Stephen and Michelle are in town for a baby shower.

She can spot an antique at 100 m but she can't see the computer screen

Ellen's first cataract surgery was yesterday and went well. Followup was today-her vision was 20/25 in the treated eye. That eye had been so bad they had to call it 20/400 because she couldn't see the biggest line on the chart. So, things look remarkably improved at 20 feet and beyond. She can't see up close to use the computer or to stitch, but she knows this will be fixed with glasses later. Next eye in two weeks. -Tom

A Tip--Make sure you have the correct information BEFORE personalizing a sampler!

A couple of years ago I stitched a version of Family Record Sampler to commemorate the birth of our first grandson…

Recently I've been merrily stitching away on another Family Record Sampler in anticipation of our new grandson, due in mid-September. I took this photo yesterday.

Our new grandson's name and birth information will go in the center cartouche. I'm reluctant to stitch any of the information I already know in case I need to move things around.

I think that what I've stitched so far (plus the baby's information) would make a great small birth sampler. You could do it as I have done with the parents' names, or you could leave off their names and instead put the baby's weight and height in the two heart cartouches.

Because I want to stitch the entire Family Record Sampler, earlier today I added the names of both sets of grandparents and the next dividing band.

I goofed the first time around and stitched "Janet" for my daughter-in-law's mother's name instead of "Janice". (She is called "Jan".) Thankfully, Tom asked me if I was sure that her name has "Janet", and not "Janice". Yikes, he was right, so I had to do some reverse stitching. (Yikes again--it was over one linen thread!)

I'm on such a roll with this sampler, so I hope that I won't miss much stitching time with my eye surgery tomorrow morning. I'm almost halfway finished.

I can't decide--should I show the sampler to Stephen and Michelle when they are in town soon for the baby shower their friends are having for them, or should I keep the sampler a surprise?

Friends Torrie and Carol complete Quaker Needlework Treasures!

Friends Carol W. and Torrie T. from Charlotte, North Carolina, recently sent me photos of their wonderful Quaker Needlework Treasures! It sounds like they had quite an adventure getting their projects completed.

Torrie wrote, My friend Carol and I decided to stitch your "Quaker Needlework Treasures" project a few years ago...... when we looked back at our notes we were surprised to see that we bought the linen, floss and chart in 2004! By 2010 we had stitching completed and all the lining materials purchased, so we made it a priority to complete the project. We got together back in February and worked all day on the finishing. Even the snow didn't keep me from making a drive "over the border" to our stitch shop in South Carolina to get one last package of those Mill Hill beads. Carol did have to wait a day until the snow melted to get over to my house to get her share of the beads. We are done!

We both used the linen and floss which the directions called for---- between us we bought at least 15 skeins of WDW Deep Sea Blue! Those fat tassels just used up the floss. Carol searched for just the right cotton fabrics and ended up purchasing them in Colorado. I ordered the silk ribbon for finishing the pin keep from Vikki Clayton. We got a good laugh over how long we had been working on this....it certainly didn't seem THAT long!

Carol added, Hey, this is proof we never give up on our stash and finishing!!! Never give up on stitching a project you love every time you see it!!!

The first two photos are from Torrie.

I was intrigued by what appears to be a button that Torrie made out of the twisted cord. Torrie, please correct me if I'm mistaken.

The next four photos are from Carol. Her photos first show the needlecase closed, then an outside view of the case opened, and then a view of the inside of her case.

Torrie and Carol, thank you for sending me photos of your beautiful work. How did you like doing that beaded casing for the twisted cord on the bag?

I love the carriers you found and lined. They look wonderful and should be quite handy to use as you are working on other needlework projects. Maybe I need to make myself one also.

Torrie, I'd love to see your project in person. I hope you'll bring it with you when you come to Cincinnati in August for the Queen City Sampler Guild's classes with Catherine Theron and our 15th anniversary party.

I stitched my model for Quaker Needlework Treasures entirely in cross stitch over one linen thread. Most stitchers have also chosen to do this, but I've seen a couple of versions stitched over two linen threads instead. This creates a much larger needlecase. Both versions look great. If you stitch the larger version, make sure you purchase enough thread from the same dyelot.

Stitching friends

Yesterday I called my friend, Carol, to see if she wanted to get together for lunch--something that we don't do nearly as often as we should. Luckily she was free today, and we had a great time catching up on things. After lunch, we went back to Carol's house, and I asked her if she would take a photo of our two Deborah Walker samplers together.

On the top is Carol's. She is using a natural linen which certainly adds warmth to the sampler. You may remember my mentioning earlier that she is not doing her version as a true reproduction. She is changing some of the thread colors to go better in her living room and is also changing the verses and personalization.

My version is on the bottom. I'm using Lakeside Linens' Maritime White. I made a slight change to one of the thread colors, but other than that my version is true to the chart.

Isn't it fun to see the two samplers side by side?

Carol told me that another member of our sampler guild decided after seeing Carol's and my samplers decided to also stitch Deborah. I haven't seen her version yet, but Carol says that it is different than either of ours. We're going to see if the three of us can get together in two weeks for "show and tell".

When I got home, I found a package waiting for me. I was puzzled because I certainly wasn't expecting anything. Look what was in the package!Rindy from Nashville had mentioned a while back (after seeing my project, A Pair of Pin Cubes) that she was going to send me one of her antiques. Not only did she send me the little pin cube, but she also sent the berry pins on the left. Wow--wasn't that sweet? The little pin cube is so dainty--it's quite a bit smaller than the one I have in my collection. Thanks, Rindy, for your generosity and kindness. It was such a wonderful surprise to receive your gift!

What a nice day I've had and it's only a little after 5pm! Perhaps tonight I can stitch on "Baby Boy Chester's" Family Record Sampler. My goal is to have all of the sampler, except for his name and birth information, stitched before he's born; then in an evening or two, I can finish it.

More ramblings...(I wish I could find witty titles like so many of you all do)

I’m sorry to have neglected my blog over the past few days. I think I strained my eyes over the weekend, and I've cut back on my stitching and computer time. I hope to be back to normal soon.

As mentioned in my previous post, last weekend the Queen City Sampler Guild offered a two-day needlelace workshop with Doreen Holmes. This was Doreen’s first time teaching in the US. She is an excellent teacher and does incredible work. If you get a chance, do take a class with her. You can check out some of Darlene’s exquisite pieces here.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to see well enough to work on the class project, the Needlelace Pin Keep. You can see a photo of this beautiful piece at the bottom of this page. It was so frustrating to see the beautiful work other guild members were doing. (Right now my eyes are actually sore because of the straining I did in hopes of seeing in class.) My kit is now packed away in hopes that after my eye surgeries I can see well enough to work on the project.

Speaking of my eye surgery, thank you to all who wrote me either through the blog or as emails. It was very nice to learn of your experiences. I am not at all nervous about the actual surgery and will glad when it is over. I have heard that I’ll see better than I ever had. I have to admit that I’m a bit apprehensive about that--the vision in my bad eye at its best was 20-400. I hope that I can “adapt” well to see using both eyes. I’ve also heard that my concept of color will change. I hope that I still like the pieces I’ve designed.

I’m now busy trying to get lots of things done before Monday’s surgery. Earlier today I finished stitching my new hornbook needlebook. I hope you’ll like it. It’s a quick stitch and uses only four overdyed threads. Later in the month, I plan to work on the directions.

This afternoon, I hope to pull the linen and threads for our new grandson’s birth sampler. I'm going to do the Family Record Sampler like I did for his cousin. I can go ahead now and stitch all but his name and birth information. That way, all I’ll need to do after he’s born is to fill in the missing information.

Thank you also to everyone who sent me birthday greetings yesterday. I had a very quiet day. I had hoped to go out, but instead I spent the day waiting for my eye surgeon to call. In the evening, Tom and I went to our favorite local French restaurant. I even splurged with dessert, crème brulee. When we got home, I learned that Tom and our daughter had set up Skype, and we got to talk to (and see) Carolyn and Haiden. This is the first time we’ve done this, and I think we’re now “hooked”. This is so cool!

I’m glad that you all enjoyed seeing the photos in my last post of the two samplers. Someone asked about the linen I’m using on Deborah Walker. I’m using Lakeside Linen’s 36-count Maritime White. It has become one of my favorite colors, and I may use it for my new grandson’s birth sampler….if I have enough. I buy it by the yard.

Well, off to pull the linen and the threads for the birth sampler.

Miscellaneous thoughts and ramblings...

A lot has happened in the last week, starting with last Friday when I had my annual eye doctor appointment. When I was there, he suggested that I go for a cataract removal consultation. He made me an appointment with the eye surgeon who had removed my pterygium six years ago.

Then Friday night our son and daughter-in-law arrived for the weekend. One of the main purposes was to register at Babies-R-Us in anticipation of the baby shower their Cincinnati friends are having for them in a few weeks. (This will be Tom’s first baby shower--they didn’t do such back in the “dark ages” when we had our children.) True, Stephen and Michelle could have registered on-line, but I think Michelle wanted to get advice from her girlfriends who already have children.

Tom has a new smoker and decided on Saturday he would smoke brisket for us. Wow--was it delicious!! It took 10 plus hours so we were tantalized by the smell most of the day.

On Tuesday I went for my cataract consultation and now have surgery scheduled for one eye on June 14th and the other on June 28th. (Vision in my bad eye is very, very bad and has always been--we're hoping the surgery will reduce the great discrepancy between the vision in my two eyes.) I need to decide by Monday what kind of lens to get. I also have my pre-op physical with my family doctor that day. I'm really excited because I've heard that after the surgery most people see better than they ever had. I was very nervous when I had the other eye surgery a few years ago (it probably didn't help that that surgery was on my good eye), but cataract removal is so routine that I'm not concerned at all. Also I know from past experience that my doctor is excellent.

This weekend my sampler guild has a needlelace class with Doreen Holmes from England. I doubt I'll see well enough in class to get much done--boo hoo! At least after the surgery I should be able to see wonderfully. Doreen reproduced the Mary Busby Ackworth sampler that I stitched last year, so I plan to take it to the class so she can see it in person.

Meanwhile, I’m working on the Deborah Walker sampler as a stitch-along with my friend, Carol. The photo below shows my progress so far. I’m just beyond the halfway point. We made a schedule that has us finishing our samplers by October 31st so we can have them framed to take to our sampler guild’s Christmas party.

In 1999, Carol and I did another stitch-along--The Embroideress by Joanne Harvey (The Examplarery). I think I did mine on 32-count linen, and Carol did hers on 28-count. We both “signed” our samplers with our own initials and each other’s.

I hope you have a nice weekend lined up. Most of mine will be spent at my guild's workshop, but I'm hoping to also pick out the linen and threads for a new design, a hornbook needlebook.

...more from Francoise (a continuation from my earlier posting)

In my blog post earlier today, I mentioned that Francoise stitched a pillow using the other design in the Quaker Hornbook package. I was hoping she'd send me a photo, and look just what arrived! (Isn't modern technology terrific?)

Don't you love the tassels on the corners of her pillow? It's also nice to see both designs in the same photo.

Merci beaucoup, ma chère amie!

Francoise, knowing how much you like hornbooks, I think you'll be pleased to learn that I'm working on another hornbook design that I hope to have out in the fall.

A French hornbook from Francoise!

Earlier today when I was cleaning out some of my old emails, I found one from Francoise from France who sent me a photo of her Quaker Hornbook back in March. I don't know how I missed posting it earlier. (Francoise was so sweet when I wrote her to let her know my faux pas.)

Francoise created a delightful tone-on-tone version. She used a 40-count linen and an overdyed silk thread. Francoise told me she also stitched the other design in the package and made it into a pillow. (Maybe she'll send in a photo of the pillow also.)

Here is an enlargement of Francoise's hornbook so that you can better see her stitching.

Francoise's name may sound familiar to you because I've shown other examples of her beautiful workmanship earlier. Just type her name in the google search engine on the left sidebar of this page, and you can see more examples of wonderful work.

Francoise, as always, your work is wonderful! C'est magnifique! Thanks for sharing (and also for being so understanding about my faux pas.)