The Candidates

I love finishing PhD's.  I especially love finishing PhD's when they have been in the workbasket a long time.  Finishing anything especially older PhD's becomes even sweeter when it an Adam and Eve.  Then the dilemma begins:  who is next?  The stitching world is filled with awesome, fabulous Adam and Eve samplers.  (Some people are thankful for turkey, others are thankful for Adam and Eve samplers--go figure).

Since I am determined to have an Adam and Eve wall of samplers and I am very late in joining the party, in the words of AppleJack "I am a woman on an Adam and Eve mission."  After I carried the La D Da Adam and Eve sampler to the framer I immediately pulled out my stash of (Adam and Eve) samplers and began to study them:  who is next?  Here is the list of potential candidates in no particular order:

• Isabella Fox by Gigi R
• Hallow Eden by Plum Street Sampler
• Adam and Eve by Carriage House
• Adam and Eve by the City Stitcher
• Adam and Eve by The Goode Huswife
• The Hart Lives by Scarlet Letter
• Jane Atkinson by the Scarlet Letter
• Elizabeth Short by Scarlet Letter

Suffice to say there are many, many, many more Adam and Eve samplers (yippee) in the stitching world, these are just the ones I have chosen as auditioning candidates.  Then the hard part/fun part begins: pros and cons of each one.

Isabella Fox is a lovely sampler.  I fell in love with Isabella when I first saw her on the Attic Needlework Newsletter.  She is versatile, she is both an Adam and Eve sampler and is stitched with both greens and reds and she doubles as a Christmas sampler.  She is stitched with Gentle Arts Sampler threads and since NPI silks are my fiber of choice, a fiber conversion is in order.

• Hallow Eden by Plum Street Sampler comes with a bonus:  two charts.  In addition to being an Adam and Eve, Paulette included an alternate chart for those in the mood for a more Halloween inspired Eden.  It has a black cat motif, it is hard to resist a black cat in a sampler especially when Miss Callie Mae is looking over my shoulder.  The samplers are stitched with Crescent fibers so another fiber conversion.
• Adam and Eve by Carriage House.  Adam and Eve are designed in that special Carriage House way.  the sampler is stitched on Onyx linen and I'm not sure I am ready to stitch on black linen.
• Adam and Eve by The City Stitcher.  The design for this sampler was released many years ago.  Is The City Stitcher still designing?  I hope so--her designs are awesome.
• Adam and Eve by The Goode Huswife.  This sampler has Queen stitches in the design and I am a Queen stitch novice.  Is there a special phobia name for those who fear the Queen stitch?
• The Hart Lives by the Scarlet Letter.  The red in the border of this sampler had me at hello.
• Jane Atkinson by the Scarlet Letter.  That big flower is hard to resist and all the lesser flowers in the amazing colors.
• Elizabeth Short by the Scarlet Letter.  I have had Elizabeth Short in my stash so long she feels like we are going to retire together.  Adam and Eve (dressed in very prim and proper clothing) are standing on a grassy knoll all stitched with French knots.  Gulp!  Maybe if I stitched the grassy knoll over one or in tent stitch.

These are the candidates.  And the winner(s) is:  Hallow Eden by Plum Street Sampler.  In comparison to the other samplers, it is smaller and very straight forward.  Maybe another Adam and Eve finish for 2013?  I am a sucker for a sampler with a black cat.  I am also using some vintage willow green linen I have had in my linen stash forever.

Isabella Fox may also get a start.  She is a lovely sampler and the fiber colors are so pretty.  Since good things comes in threes, The Hart Lives has moved to the top of my bucket list for 2014.  She was gifted to me by a wonderful dear stitch friend and it is time she become a reality.

Am always on the search for Adam and Eve samplers, please share your Adam and Eve sampler candidates.  Miss Callie Mae and AppleJack will be doing the anniversary drawing later this afternoon.  Miss Callie Mae is taking her morning nap and I have learned is best to let sleeping kitties finish their naps.