Hands Across the Sea - Anne Thomas 1854

A printed booklet by Hands Across the Sea Samplers

Anne’s beautiful Welsh sampler is a delight for the eye!

The moment we saw Anne’s delightful sampler, we knew that she was one for Hands Across the Sea Samplers. Whilst acquired by Nicola at an auction in Wales, the sampler was destined for Sandra who has a life-long love of birds and flowers.

Anne finished her sampler in 1854 when she was fifteen years old. Executed in thirty-seven delicious colours, the scene she diligently stitched is contained within four sumptuous garlands laden with flowers which include Bourbon roses, auriculas, irises, campions and ragged robins. An inquisitive pigeon, head cocked, perches on the bough of a flowering Prunus tree.

The reproduction of Anne’s beautiful needlework has been a team effort. Her sampler has been painstakingly charted by Sandra Moffitt, her booklet produced by Nicola Parkman and the model lovingly stitched by Leona Sweeney. At the very core of Hands Across the Sea Samplers there is a team of needleworkers who are passionate about antique samplers and being able to share those samplers with you.

Thread Legend

The sampler has been reproduced with Au Ver à Soie d’Alger silks and the skein quantities calculated based on 1 strand on 36ct fabric. We have provided conversions for DMC based on 36ct with 2 strands and Au Ver à Soie 100.3 on 46ct with 1 strand.

Anne executed her beautiful sampler in cross stitch over 2 threads, there is a small number of cross stitches over 1 thread. The sampler is suitable for all levels of ability.

d’Alger  / 100.3  / DMC ~ Colour Description 

922 x 1 / 038 x 1 / 352 x 1 ~ Coral -light
943 x 1 / 779 x 1 / 321 x 1 ~ Christmas red
1026 x 1 / 644 x 1 / 498 x 1 ~ Christmas red ~ dark
1424 x 1 / 430 x 1 / 336 x 1 ~ Navy blue
1712 x 1 / 003 x 1 / 932 x 1 ~ Antique blue ~ light
1842 x 1 / 108 x 1 / 522 x 1 ~ Fern green
2225 x 1 / 199 x 1 / 731 x 1 ~ Olive green ~ dark
2243 x 2 / 303 x 2 / 729 x 2 ~ Old gold ~ medium
2913 x 1 / 176 x 1 / 224 x 1 ~ Shell pink ~ very light
2916 x 1 / 523 x 1 / 3328 x 1 ~ Salmon ~ dark
3332 x 1 / 346 x 1 / 452 x 1 ~ Shell grey ~ medium
3421 x 1 / 621 x 1 / 647 x 1 ~ Beaver grey ~ medium
3422 x 1/ 328 x 1 / 524 x 1 ~ Fern green ~ very light
3431 x 1 / 088 x 1 / 842 x 1 ~ Beige brown ~ very light
3433 x 1 / 743 x 1 / 840 x 1 ~ Beige brown ~ medium
3434 x 1 / 584 x 1 / 839 x 1 ~ Beige brown ~ dark
3435 x 1 / 069 x 1 / 838 x 1 ~ Beige brown ~ very dark
3441 x 1 / 337 x 1 / 415 x 1 ~ Pearl grey
3443 x 1 / 338 x 1 / 535 x 1 ~ Ash grey ~ very light
3711 x 1 / 080 x 1 / 3033 x 1 ~ Mocha brown ~ very light
3735 x 1 / 378 x 1 / 936 x 1 ~ Avocado green ~ very dark
3745 x 1 / 048 x 1 / 830 x 1 ~ Golden olive ~ dark
3822 x 1 / 224 x 1 / 676 x 1 ~ Old gold ~ light
3832 x 1 / 562 x 1 / 372 x 1 ~ Mustard ~ light
3833 x 1 / 603 x 1 / 371 x 1 ~ Mustard
3834 x 1 / 207 x 1 / 370 x 1 ~ Mustard ~ medium
3841 x 1 / 401 x 1 / 648 x 1 ~ Beaver grey ~ light
4113 x 1 / 425 x 1 / 841 x 1 ~ Beige brown ~ light
4141 x 1 / 093 x 1 / 407 x 1 ~ Desert sand ~ dark
4142 x 1 / 358 x 1 / 3772 x 1 ~ Desert sand ~ very dark
4531 x 1 / 740 x 1 / 822 x 1 ~ Beige grey ~ light
4541 x 1 / 217 x 1 / 950 x 1 ~ Desert sand ~ light
4923 x 1 / 018 x 1 / 826 x 1 ~ Blue – medium
5024 x 1 / 025 x 1 / 501 x 1 ~ Blue green – dark
Crème x 1 / Crème x 1 / Ecru x 1 ~ Ecru
F10 x 1 / 211 x 1 / 739 x 1 ~ Tan – ultra very light
Noir x 1 / Noir x 1 / 310 x 1 ~ Black

LINEN SIZES

The design area is 264 stitches (w) x 317 stitches (h). Our calculations have included a 3” margin for finishing and framing.

28ct ~ Design: 18.86″ x 22.64″ Fabric: 24.86″ x 28.64″
30ct ~ Design: 17.60″ x 21.13″ Fabric: 23.60″ x 27.13″
32ct ~ Design: 16.50″ x 19.81″ Fabric: 22.50″ x 25.81″
36ct ~ Design: 14.67″ x 17.61″ Fabric: 20.67″ x 23.61″
40ct ~ Design: 13.20″ x 15.85″ Fabric: 19.20″ x 21.85″
46ct ~ Design: 11.48″ x 13.78″ Fabric: 17.48″ x 19.78″