6.17.2011

Meet Susan...


Her name is Susan Randall,
she was 10 years young,
the year was 1859.

Love love love the fat hare with it's wide-set ears,
and head slightly cocked.
Love the Greek Key border
in which urns of flowers and trees sit upon...
&
I have a weakness for samplers
with the use of eyelet stitches...
love the delicate touches
that they add to a piece.

Susan is a little rough around the edges,
but
I'm okay with that...
She has some holes and blemishes,
but
I'm okay with that as well...
The love of all things old
always
trumps imperfections, always.
She is paper thin.
She is brittle.
She needs some TLC...

Young Susan didn't fret over her mistakes,
as we do...
She just kept stitching.
It didn't seem to concern her,
that her
border ran right into the verse.

The verse reads -
Jesus, permit thy gracious name to stand
As the first effort of an infant's hand
And, while her fingers on the canvas move
Engage her tender heart to seek thy love
With thy dear children let her have a part
And write thy name thyself, upon her heart.

Susan Randall's Work In the
10th Year of Her Age 1859.

With thy Needle & Thread,
Brenda

at

23 comments:

  1. MouseJune 17, 2011 at 8:11 AM

    ohhhh lovely :) how are you going to preserve her ?? love mouse xxxx

    ReplyDelete
  2. TeresaJune 17, 2011 at 8:17 AM

    That is amazing. I wonder who will care about our pieces that many years from now.
    Teresa's Heartfelt Stitches

    ReplyDelete
  3. mdgtjulieJune 17, 2011 at 8:37 AM

    Wow, I could never have done that well at age ten. Wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The French BearJune 17, 2011 at 8:42 AM

    Stunning!!!! I can't get over the fact that most of these girls were only 10 or 12 years old....what gorgoeus stitching!
    Hugs,
    Margaret B

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 9:24 AM

    Love Susan! Thanks for sharing photos of her. Hope she will be charted in the future!! Hint hint! Hugs from Kentucky - kelley

    ReplyDelete
  6. robindefenderJune 17, 2011 at 9:26 AM

    Loving all the blues that I can see from your photos. And what a pretty eyelet alphabet. I have an antique sampler myself that has the same phrase on it. It's from the same time period as yours as well. It's such a pretty turn of words

    ReplyDelete
  7. Linda, NE IowaJune 17, 2011 at 10:37 AM

    The sampler is wonderful but I'm more amazed that you were awake enough to post at 7:11 AM. At that time of day, I'm still trying to pretend I'm sleeping so the cats will leave me alone!

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 10:48 AM

    Dear Brenda,
    I love your blog, I find it so relaxing. the sampler is perfect. I love it. Thank-you for sharing Susan with us. love Julia in England x

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 10:52 AM

    Lovely sampler! Gorgeous colors and neat details. I wish these young girls knew how much we treasure their work.
    Have a great day! Angie

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 10:54 AM

    Beautiful!!..what a dream it would be to bring back sampler making by our youth...take away the videos, i-phones and such, just wonder.....

    Have a great day!
    ~Ronda

    ReplyDelete
  11. BertieJune 17, 2011 at 11:29 AM

    10 year old's in the 19th Century were very ahead of their time sewing samplers, bring it back in schools:)) The border is lovely and I do like the verse dissapearing into it!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri Malinovich)June 17, 2011 at 11:52 AM

    What a beautiful sampler!

    ReplyDelete
  13. TheCrankyCrowJune 17, 2011 at 1:22 PM

    I have such a weakness for old samplers - this one is a true treasure....The old wide-eared hare has to be my favorite....Thanks for sharing - and lucky, lucky you! Smiles & Hugs ~ Robin

    ReplyDelete
  14. Jo who can't think of a clever nicknameJune 17, 2011 at 1:26 PM

    A Beautiful piece. I suppose if our girls were taught nothing but needlework they could make samplers of a similar quality.
    It's the price we pay for a modern education. My Grandma was taught very little of academic use at school in the 1920s because "she was a girl".
    I'm so pleased that people do value these pieces and preserve them for the future.

    ReplyDelete
  15. jennifer768June 17, 2011 at 2:47 PM

    Amazing ! It is so beautiful! Hugs,Jen

    ReplyDelete
  16. PennyJune 17, 2011 at 6:35 PM

    Just a beautiful sampler from a simpler time.... Everything about it is lovely -- from the colors to the imperfections....I love it! Lucky you to have it in your care.....
    Have a happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Ahl Cooped UpJune 17, 2011 at 7:31 PM

    It' remarkable that a 10 year old could create that, flaws and all. I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  18. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 7:43 PM

    I can see why you love Susan. There is just something so precious about her sampler. Love the mistake that you pointed out in her sampler. I love those kind of mis-stakes, it gives the sampler great character and individuality.
    If you ever considered charting her for reproduction, I would be the first in line.
    Thanks for sharing her with us.

    ReplyDelete
  19. AnonymousJune 17, 2011 at 7:52 PM

    I was looking at the pictures in higher detail. The blues and yellows really give it a delicate look. There is so much that makes this sampler so unique. What are the dark thread or pencil type marks on the area surrounding the urns and boarder? Are they threads that she carried in the back or are they in the linen weave itself?

    ReplyDelete
  20. LynnJune 17, 2011 at 9:29 PM

    This is such a lovely piece! I think I'd do well to adopt Susan's attitude with regard to mistakes. I might get more enjoyment of my stitching.
    The quality of stitching done by such a young girl is truly amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  21. NancyJune 18, 2011 at 9:54 AM

    Susan is beautiful...love the blue and love the verse! Hopefully she will be available for all of us to stitch in the near future???! Please!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  22. SuzanneJune 18, 2011 at 4:34 PM

    Beautiful sampler! I love the detail:)

    ReplyDelete
  23. UnknownMay 1, 2018 at 3:04 PM

    Any plans to reproduce this sampler? It is wonderful!

    ReplyDelete

Please leave us a comment, we'd love to hear from you!