Sampler History

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			HISTORY OF SAMPLERS by Historical Sampler Company
			Although there is evidence that Samplers originate from as early as 1500, they did not become widespread until later in the 16th Century, when amateur needlework became more popular. At this time it is likely that Samplers were worked by experienced stitchers, usually by women from rich families, who would devote much of their time to embroidery. The Samplers were put together to form a personal reference of patterns and stitches and would be stored in either a work box or wound on to a rod. During this period, pattern books, such as Schoole House for the Needle by Shorleykes, were published. By the 17th Century, the layout of Samplers had become more ordered and they were commonly embroidered with the date and name of the embroiderer. This would indicate that the Samplers were being used more as a demonstration of the workers’ ability than as a form of reference. It was also common at this time for Samplers to be made by children. The quality of work would suggest that girls were taught to sew at a very early age. Samplers were also used to teach and examples can be found depicting multiplication charts, alphabets and numbers. It was common for poor or orphaned children to use their Samplers to show prospective employers’ their embroidery experience. There are two main types of Sampler, the Band Sampler and the Spot Sampler. The Band Sampler is usually long and narrow and worked with bands or rows of repeating border designs. The borders are either curving Renaissance-style vines and acanthus leaves, or formalized rows of stiff flowering plants, with flower heads that alternately point up and down, connected by stylized stems. The spot Sampler contains a variety of randomly placed motifs. The motifs are usually naturalistic in design and include plants such as carnations, thistle, tulips and vines and also wildlife such as stags, birds, butterflies and insects. By Georgian times, the Sampler had evolved to become a decorative piece of needlework. It was common for a collection of motifs to be placed around a central verse, which was often of religious content. Also, architectural motifs grew increasingly popular throughout the 18th Century . Large houses were worked with a flower garden in front of them, occasionally with people, figures and animals. Some images depicted real buildings, often of the local country house, but many only depicted imaginary buildings. Popular architectural motifs include windmills, churches and schools. Other popular motifs include shepherds, rows of flowers and birds and a wide variety of animals. Today, of course, Samplers are admired the world over and examples can be found in museums and antique shops. After many years of admiring antique Samplers, Historical Sampler Company decided to design their own cross-stitch Samplers. Their designs incorporate commonly found borders, motifs and verses in an attempt to re-create the magic of original Samplers.

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