Monday, July 8, 2013

Antique Linens and Selvage Fun

This is one of the treasures that I found recently at a nearby antique shop.  I don't know how old it is,  or who stitched it, I just knew it had to come home with me!  And at a price of only $5.00, the decision wasn't difficult.  I thought the word "hame" was odd, but I did some googling and found that it was a Scottish word for "home".    However it's said, I agree with the sentiment!
Some of the stitching has rotted away from being so old.
If you look closely, just above and to the right of the little black dog, the thread from an entire animal has gone missing.
The happy couple!
If anyone has an idea of how old this sampler might be, I would love to hear from you!
More treasures:
This lovely cross stitch design is on what looks like a dish towel made of very soft linen.
It was stitched with what looks like one strand of flower thread over four threads of the linen.  The linen is so fine I can barely see the threads, but this cross stitch was definitely counted and not done over a stamped design.
Another beauty, I'm guessing this may have been done in the 40's or 50's.  I love the crocheted edging.
A nice doily for only $3.00.  I'm often amazed at the bargains that can be found with antique linens, I bought all four of these pieces for $18.00!
Now, here's a couple of fun selvage projects I've been working on:
A drawstring bag to use as a purse or to hold needlework projects.  As you can see, I shop at Jo-ann Fabrics quite a lot!
A smaller bag with a slightly brighter color scheme.  Thank you for stopping in again to look at my pictures!  I'm going to leave you with one last one.  
This was an old abandoned house, built in the 1800's just around the corner from us.  The owners decided to let our local firefighters burn it down for training purposes.  I know it was a good thing for the firefighters to be able to use it this way, but at the same time I hated to see it go.  We have been driving and walking by that old house for 22 years and and will absolutely miss it!  
Thanks again for visiting my blog!


8 comments:

Annie said...

Such a sweet old sampler. It would be fun to know it's story.. who stitched it, how old were they, were they in the US, etc.

Clever girl to salvage the selvedges (it's like a joke, get it?) that way. Very nicely done.

At first I thought that photo was a tornado. Glad to hear it was intentional and controlled. But still.. it's a piece of history gone. I can understand how you feel.

Solstitches said...

What lovely treasures you found Karen. The antique linens are very pretty especially the one with vintage embroidery and a crochet edging.
Your drawstring bags look great and should be very useful.
What a shame about the old house. I would have hated to see it go too.
Margaret

Nancy said...

I love the vintage linens you found Karen. The second photo is almost identical to a cross stitched piece I found at an estate sale recently! The sampler has so much character and charm with its worn threads. Your selvage bags are beautiful!

Penny said...

You found some pretty linens! I love to collect pieces like these also. Your selvage bags would make lovely project holders. :) I always hate to see an old building go.

Yesteryear Embroideries said...

Such beautiful finds. Yes, it is always amazing at how cheap some linens are sold. I love your purses! so pretty! I hate to see old homes or buildings go down. It's so sad that no one can save them.

Bev C said...

Hello Karen,

What beautiful treasures you found. I am amazed that people could donate these to a charity, surely a family member would love them. Though of course you have gained from that and know that they will be loved.
Great projects you have made with the selvage.

Happy days.
Bev.

Aurelia Eglantine said...

It's wonderful that you've found so many lovely treasures lately! The Stitchy Karma Gods have been smiling upon you, LOL! I don't know much about Samplers, but I have read that regional pieces like yours and those with folk motifs/sayings are usually more valuable. Maybe you could e-mail your photos to an expert?

The dish towel is amazing, such fine work!!! And the little floral one with the crocheted edging (a dresser scarf maybe?) is adorable, I want to stitch something like that myself some day :) The ruffle doily you found is wonderful too!

Also, your little scrap bag is so clever and cute, what a neat way to use ends that would normally be thrown away! I've always thought that the little dye dots are really pretty :)

It is always bittersweet to lose heritage buildings, even the ones that are so far gone there is no saving them. At least there was some good coming out of it with the firefighters getting practice. The ones here are just scrapped.

Rene Sears said...

What fantastic finds! I love the selvedge bag, too. I've never seen one before--what a great idae.