New Designs

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I love George and Martha Washington. 

My love for them started last year when I was searching the internet for a new pattern to stitch for my mom for Christmas. I stumbled across Threads of Gold's MA Dutch Sampler (which I ended up stitching for her), and was immediately drawn to the tiny horse-and-rider motif. Suddenly, I found myself on a mad search for samplers with horses and riders, and discovered that most of these samplers were of a Colonial theme. 

That's when I realized that I adore little stitched men in blue or red coats. (Especially ones that look like Jason Isaacs in The Patriot.) And so my love for George – and eventually Martha – came to be. The quintessential Colonial couple – and the love they had for each other – are the themes for my newest releases coming out at the online Needlework Show on April 19th.

Tp 1

The year 1759 was when George and Martha married…

Tp 2

Their marriage took place at Martha's estate, The White House in Virginia, and George wore a blue coat and blue buckles on his shoes; Martha wore a yellow dress trimmed with white lace, and purple shoes, which she ordered from London. Here is a picture of the shoes she wore:

Wedding-slippers_1c44a0de31

I designed her shoes in these samplers as pink, but that's bc I didn't want to add an entire skein of purple to the palette when only 2 stitches would be used. Feel free to use whatever purple you have on hand to stitch her shoes!

Tp 3

Tp 4

The verses on each of these samplers are portions of two different love poems. One of them you may have heard before…

Come live with me and be my love
And we will all the pleasures prove.

The poem, called The Passionate Shepherd to His Love, was written by Christopher Marlowe in the 1590's, and although it has nothing to do with the Washingtons, I thought it was a charming fit for their fondness of each other.

The companion sampler features part of a poem written by Sir Walter Raleigh around 1600, called The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd…

These pretty pleasures might me move
To live with thee and be they love.

I hope you enjoy my new spring releases. I'd like to thank Nicole Neville for helping me with the model stitching. Without you, I'd still be sitting on my couch trying to get them finished.

 Here is Be My Love

  Be My Love tp

It was stitched on Lakeside's 40 ct. Vintage Pearled Barley using Gentle Art Sampler Threads (in Cherry Bark, Old Brick, Chamomile, Tradewind, Piney Woods, Lambswool, Brethren Blue, Wood Trail, and Oatmeal). The frame is by The Family Tree Frame Company ("The Mae" style). Stitch count: 118w x 115h.

And this is Pretty Pleasures

Pretty Pleasures tp

This model was also stitched on Lakeside's 40 ct. Vintage Pearled Barley using Gentle Art Sampler Threads (in Wood Trail, Shaker White, Buttermilk, Old Brick, Lambswool, Endive, Cornhusk, Cameo Pink, Mountain Mist, and Oatmeal). The frame is again by The Family Tree Frame Company ("The Michelle" style). Stitch count: 126w x 115h.

If you'd like to purchase either of these during the online Needlework Show, look for them on the Kelmscott Designs page and ask your shopowner to order them for you. And if you do decide to order them, I hope you enjoy stitching them!

George-and-martha-washington

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