Today we are
revisiting our interview with Moira Blackburn and featuring her samplers and
designs for our sampler party weekend!
It was Moira’s beautiful samplers that introduced Nicola to the world of
stitching and love of samplers. Moira
has graciously given us an inside look on her journey in stitches and to
reproducing and creating her very own samplers and company! She gives us her thoughts on the young girls
who stitched samplers hundreds of years ago and tells us about her
favorites. Enjoy!
Moira, how old
were you when you first picked up a needle and who taught you to stitch? What was the very first sampler that you
stitched?
*I
learned a can-do attitude from my mother so was knitting and sewing doll
clothes around age 8. I completed my
first sampler in 1981 which I wasn't very happy with but I missed stitching so much
when it was finished that I went on to stitch large samplers for my 3 children.
When did you start
charting reproduction samplers / designing your own samplers?
*When
my youngest child started school in 1988 I got the idea that producing sampler
kits could be my occupation. I loved stitching, I had worked in design, had a
passion for researching samplers and a belief that I could bring more
authentic-styled samplers to the market.
What was the first
sampler you charted?
*The
Time and Season Sampler was one of the first five designs I produced as a kit
and has proved to be a best seller for over 25 years. Charting was done by hand on to graph
paper back then, first in pencil and then in pen, any mishaps would involve
starting all over again. Patience became
my middle name!
Can you tell us
about your creative process of reproducing samplers / designing samplers? What inspires you?
*Samplers
of the 19th century have been my inspiration and my study. I often would start with a verse that had a
special meaning for me and the line lengths would determine the orientation of
the design. Sometimes the design would
come first and I would make trouble for myself in finding a suitable verse to
fit. I loved the search for words as
much as the search for motifs or borders which I could use from original
sources. My designs developed in the
stitching and searching simultaneously, often evenings of no stitching while
the choosing and rejecting went on. Even
behind my eyelids before I slept.
Reproducing
an original sampler completely is down to counting through a magnifying glass
and transferring what you see. It always
felt like a privilege to be touching close to the work of a child from the
distant past. The true colours can be
seen on the reverse of the sampler, which can be surprising.
What is your
favorite time of day to stitch? Do you
sit in a set place and what tools do you like to have on hand?
*During
my busiest years producing the kits my children were still young so the school
hours were spent filling orders and my stitching and designing hours were
confined to the late evenings and into the night and a daylight lamp was my
most essential tool. Since the years and
children flew and I have more time and daylight, I have to admit to getting
much less done.
Do you use the
stick and stab technique, or a sewing stitch? Do you prefer to stitch in hand, or with a
hoop or frame?
*I
use the stab method of stitching and always use a frame as I like the fabric to
be under tension. I have a lovely,
varied collection of wooden frames but ultimately choose to use the hollow
tubular plastic frames as they are light and reliable tight.
Do you have a
favorite linen?
*My
sampler designs and reproductions reflect the period they were first made so my
preference is for unbleached and darker shades of linen. Belfast 32count and Edinburgh 35c Zweigart
linen.
What is your
favourite period of sampler-making and why? Which designs appeal to you the most?
*Elizabeth
Oliver's sampler epitomises the type of sampler I like best. I was given
permission to reproduce this sampler from the collection in the Castle Museum
in York. Houses, birds and animals and
the irregularities in the work of a child's hand all appeal to me. I have stitched 3 Quaker samplers from other
designers just for the pleasure and love the Quaker alphabets.
Has working with
reproduction samplers given you any new insight into the lives of the girls and
women in the 17-18-19th centuries that you did not realize before?
*Inevitably
the class or wealth into which the stitchers were born does make a difference. Whether you were the lady of the house
stitching for pleasure, or the young woman stitching marking samplers to enable
herself to get employment in the houses of the wealthy. A lot of samplers were made sadly to record
multiple deaths of siblings. Some
demonstrate a strict religious discipline. I think it's clear that many samplers were
made under difficult circumstances and that we are very fortunate to be
stitching for pleasure.
How do you display
your stitched samplers? Do you frame
them? Hang them singularly or in
groupings?
*I
do frame my samplers and have previously hung them in groups however the house
I live in now is more suited to hanging samplers singly. I have shared a lot throughout my family and
have a lot of my stitched models in storage. I have the Time and Season Sampler hung above
the bed in my guest room and Rebecca Robinson's sampler above my own. I find I admire the samplers of another’s hand
more than my own.
Do you collect
antique samplers? Or have any other
collections special to you?
*I
do have a small collection of Antique Samplers which I love. I also have quite an assortment of hare
ornaments as the hare running through the letter M has been my logo from the beginning.
Do you have other
types of hand work that you enjoy?
*Since
two hand surgeries I find I don't have the ability for stitching samplers so I
have a wonderful stitcher who will work my designs for me. I do enjoy knitting and machine quilting, curtains,
cushions, bags. I have three dogs to
walk and sometimes I practice trying to do nothing and to not feel guilty. I go to a mat making group when I can and
love the companionship of other ladies with busy hands, interesting stories and
warm hearts.
What has been your
worst needlework disaster?
*A
sampler model which I had collected from a stitcher was stolen from my car
along with other items. The worst part
was knowing that it would probably have been discarded as unwanted. I have three excellent linen tea towels which
started out as new sampler designs and were abandoned as not working out at
early stages. Waste not want not.
Are you currently
working on a project that you can share with us?
*I
don't have a design in progress at the moment as I am planning to retire and
pass on the production of my kits and charts to others. When that is
accomplished I hope to get back to designing and can feel the little itch of
ideas already. I'm so happy that the market place is now rich in designers and
wonderful sampler designs.
If you can pick
just one, which is your favorite sampler that you stitched? And why?
*The Keep Me Sampler. I have chosen this example as it most closely
represents the type of sampler I am most fond of.
Thank you so much,
Moira, for sharing your story and your samplers with us! Seeing your beautiful works will pass your
inspiration along to others just as Nicola was inspired years ago. It is so important to pass along the
inspiration and keep the love of stitching alive. We will all be wanting to pick up our needles
today and stitch away. To learn more
about Moira’s collection of samplers and future endeavors please visit her
website at Moira Blackburn Samplers!
