8.13.2011

Meet Ann Dickinson

She was 13,
the year was 1819,
when her needle
crossed her last stitch.

One hundred ninety two years later,
I lovingly
crossed my last stitch
in her reproduction.

Ann must have loved flowers, both earthed
and
potted in fancy urns...
there are 12 of them.
I pondered the significance the two ships a sailing had,
if any...
Ann must have liked birds.
There are big birds,
little birds
and
even a couple of funky striped birds...
15 birds to be exact.
As I was finishing up the bottom band of the sampler,
I was getting to the point
where I had the "bird pattern"
almost memorized!
A row of unusually shaped trees...
10 to be exact.
I wonder
if Ann's beginning point of this sampler
was the bottom band of the house, birds and trees.
It is fairly long,
running the width of the sampler.
This band then opens up
to the motifs
which are spaced somewhat far apart.
Did she stitch the bottom band first,
only to finish it and think,
Heavens to Betsy
it's going to take a lot of little motifs
and stitching to fill the sampler?
Did she opted for larger motifs,
spaced further apart,
as her method to fill all the space?
Whatever her method or thinking was,
I liked her end result
I love the naive look
and feel it gives the sampler.


The verse reads,
in it's form of 18th century handwriting,
"The Grass is green
The Rose is red,
This may be seen
When I am Dead.
Ann Dickinson
Work Aged 13
1819".

In keeping true to the antique,
I charted the wording in the center cartouche
using the same usage of letters
as Ann.
The sampler has two sweet little woman
with their walking sticks
and two funny little men.
One is what appears to be smoking a pipe
and the other...
well,
I'm not sure if he's blowing a horn
or smoking a pipe as well.
Or perhaps its a looking scope?
What did these two little men
in their top hats
represent for Ann?
We can only wonder...
There are two 8 pointed stars on the sampler.
One has a stem,
the other
does not...
probably a stitching error.
The omission of the stem
could have been Ann's
intentional stitching error.
It was often believed
that perfection
was left to be
for the Almighty Creator...
And here she is...
meet Ann Dickinson 1819,
the antique
from my personal collection.

And the reproduction...
lovingly reproduced
&
stitched
with thy
needle & thread
so that others
may enjoy
too.
Pattern coming soon!
I began the reproducing/charting
of the Ann Dickinson sampler
in the Autumn of 2010.
Stitching of the piece
began around the holidays.
This piece was what I call my
"in between"
project.
I would pick it up
in between
other seasonal designs
and work on it leisurely,
motif by motif,
saving the bottom band
for last.
I crossed my last stitch
on
the last day of July, 2011.

Stop by tomorrow
for a visit
to view sneak pics
of the "Stitcher's Sewing Purse"!

Have a good Saturday,
Brenda

22 comments:

Lynn said...

It's just beautiful Brenda! I am fascinated by these samplers and I find myself wondering as you have what each motif means to the stitcher. Thanks for bringing Ann to life!

natalysneedle said...

Love this reproduction. It seems Anne didn't follow the traditions of normal samplers and I agree with you in that she must have started from the bottom. Unusual that there is no border either. Most samplers were to teach mending stitches, alphabets and numbers and her's really has a more artistic feel to it.

Patti said...

Thanks so much for all of your insight and thoughts on this piece - it makes it even more meaningful! I like to think the little man has a looking glass the better to see the ships :)
Blessings, Patti

sharon said...

Your narrative here is so much a part of this piece as the stitching itself! This is so beai\utiful and brilliant!

dixiesamplar said...

Ann is beautiful, both the original and the reproduction...you really did her a great justice, Brenda! This is one that will definitely go on my wishlist!

Happy Stitchin'
~Terri

Nancy said...

Love this sampler! The colors are so soothing! Another sampler to add to my list!

Penny said...

It's always interesting to me to think about the stitcher and their life-what thoughts they had as they stitched each motif and what made it special to them. Thank-you for sharing this beautiful sampler.

Lonna said...

What an amazing sampler. I love that it is only motifs and of course the colors are wonderful as well. This is definitely one I will need to add to my collection. I too enjoyed your commentary on Ann and her sampler

Penny said...

I am in love with these reproduction samplers you are doing. I am very intrigued by the history behind them. Thank you for reproducing them. I can't wait to see the sewing purse tommorrow. Hope they will all be available to purchase next week.

Susan At Glen Oaks Primitives said...

Hi, Brenda, what a beautiful sampler.
Your work is exquisite as always, and
your post was thoroughly enjoyable.
Warm Regards,
Susan B., Western MA

Anna Zont said...

Brenda, It's just beautiful!!! The colors are so gently!!
I love this sampler!
Anna

Anonymous said...

Dear Brenda,
This sampler is beautiful, and so different. Where did it originate from, and did Ann live by a shipping port?
I LOVE your blog, in this very stressed world, it is the one place I can come to for some relaxation.
Thank-you very much. Love from Julia in the UK

Patty ♣ said...

Just Beautiful! I love your insights and comments.

Marie said...

The sampler is a beautiful reproduction. You did a great job! I enjoyed your narrative.
Love,
Marie

Christie said...

The sampler is beautiful. I just love it.

TheCrankyCrow said...

A truly beautiful and worthy rendition of a truly beautiful and worthy original...Thank you so much for reproducing this for others to enjoy. And how fortunate are you to have these incredible originals in your collection. I would love to visit your museum...I mean home...some day!! Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

MoonBeam said...

I love how you love your work.

Bobbi

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri Malinovich) said...

I will definitely be adding this one to my collection, Brenda! I love the bottom band and those ships, too!
Thank you!!!

WoolenSails said...

Beautiful new design, always love your pieces and the work put into them.

Debbie

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mdgtjulie said...

It's huge!! Wow, you must have put so much work in on that. Grats on the finish, Brenda!!

Ilona said...

I like it:)