Hands Across the Sea - Marie Louise Piret 1911

The project has been stitched using cross stitch over two threads and is rated as suitable for needleworkers of all levels of ability. Marie Louise can be stitched either on Aida, Linaida, or linen.

Marie Louise’s booklet is presented to you in a new style for Hands Across the Sea Samplers ~ a 28 page A5 spiral bound booklet printed on heavy weight card stock/paper in a landscape orientation.

We are delighted to add a Continental sampler to our portfolio, the first that Hands Across the Sea Samplers have reproduced. Whilst our field of expertise lies in the samplers of Great Britain, we have been anxiously waiting for some time for the “right” Continental sampler.

The moment we first saw Marie Louise, we knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was “the one”. The sampler has a dignified grace and is the epitome of elegance.

Marie Louise’s sampler dates from the beginning of the 20th century and is a simple but beautiful example of what school children were expected to produce — work of a very high standard that taught them a skill which would be useful to them as adults, either in their home or to earn a living. Stitching alphabets prepared the young girls to monogram their household linen with their initials.

Whilst the sampler was acquired in England, we believe that the sampler was most probably stitched in France, Belgium, or Germany. Regrettably, we have been unable to find Marie Louise in family history records. We have been hampered by our lack of the Dutch, French, and German language. The surname of Piret is most commonly found in Belgium.

The original sampler has been edged in lace and attached to a backing fabric in such a way that it could be draped over the back of an armchair as an antimacassar or displayed as a cover on a table, sideboard, dressing table, or tray.

Thread Legend

Marie Louise’s sampler has been stitched with a palette of five colours from Au Ver à Soie’s range of Soie 100.3. We have provided conversions for Soie d’Alger and DMC. Estimated thread quantities for varying linen counts and the number of strands of thread used have been listed below.

Soie 100.3 1 strand on 46ct linen ~  Colour Description

031 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

073 ~ Blue green ~ medium

109 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

549 ~ Jade green

634 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

Soie d’Alger 1 strand on 40ct & 46ct linen ~  Colour Description

F9 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

236 ~ Jade green

4242 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

4624 x 2 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

5023 ~ Blue green ~ medium

Soie d’Alger 1 strand on 36ct linen ~  Colour Description

F9 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

236 x 2 ~ Jade green

4242 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

4624 x 2 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

5023 ~ Blue green ~ medium

Soie d’Alger 2 strands on 28ct linen ~  Colour Description

F9 x 2 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

236 x 3 ~ Jade green

4242 x 2 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

4624 x 4 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

5023 ~ Blue green ~ medium

DMC 1 strand on 40ct ~  Colour Description

422 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

498 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

503 ~ Blue green ~ medium

505 ~ Jade green

3046 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

DMC2 strands on 36ct ~  Colour Description

422 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

498 x 2 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

503 ~ Blue green ~ medium

505 x 2 ~ Jade green

3046 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium

DMC 2 strands on 28ct ~  Colour Description

422 x 2 ~ Hazelnut brown ~ light

498 x 3 ~ Christmas red ~ dark

503 ~ Blue green ~ medium

505 x 2 ~ Jade green

3046 x 2 ~ Yellow beige ~ medium