Heartstring Samplery Really Friends

What great fun I’ve had working on this sampler! Assigned a specific quote from Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey for this project, I spent quite a few hours immersing myself in the life of the fictional character, Catherine Morland. My next duty was to try to properly capture her essence in a small space. I hinted at her innocence, youth, and fanciful imagination with a brightly colored floral border, but also drew in some of the more dramatic moments that took place on the pages of this book: a stack of Gothic novels, a first viewing of Northanger Abbey, a key and mysterious trunk, a candle on the verge of being blown out by a gust of wind, the sudden horror of a forced midnight ride alone in a public coach. I chose the date “1803” because this is the year that the story was completed by Jane Austen; it was her first put to ink, but her last to be published. I used the initials “CMT” to designate her initials after marriage to the charming Henry Tilney. And finally, I placed her figure next to his under a floral bower, and made sure that she was dressed as she was the day they first met, in a “sprigged muslin robe with blue trimmings”.

Stitch Count: 179 x 120

Model mostly stitched with one thread over two;

There is a tiny amount of over one on the faces of the people

And there are some straight stiches here and there.

Graham Cracker Fabrics:

Tea Set, 32 count

Weeks Dye Works:

Blue Spruce, Gold, Grape Vine, Grits, Havana, Lancaster Red, Moss, Onyx, Pamlico, Porpoise, Putty, Sand

Forbidden Fiber Co.:

Anne’s Constancy, Fanny’s Friendship, Marianne’s Broken Heart

DMC conversion included.