Just Begin . . .

“Just begin . . . the rest is easy.” I first heard that expression on a beautiful fall day in 2012 while training for my first (and only) half marathon. (That was another “interesting” endeavor that I undertook with my sister, the story of which will have to wait for another day.) On that day, it was a comment made by a radio show host, encouraging listeners to begin saving and planning for retirement. While it was appropriate in that context, I have considered that same expression often in the years since then, usually while trying to get up the energy or courage to start a new project or endeavor, especially if said project contains a lot of unknowns or risk of failure. And, while few things are easy, beginning is often the most difficult part.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that I have repeated that same phrase to myself many times as Beth and I have been making the preparations to launch our antique sampler reproduction business. Beth has been a very talented and prolific sampler stitcher for many years, and has collected many antique samplers along the way. I began sampler stitching many years after Beth, and my antique sampler collecting started even later than that. Once I began I could see why Beth loved them so much. Whether a sampler is perfect (we have a few) or full of holes and lost stitches (we have far more of these), each sampler has its own beauty and a unique story to tell. We want to honor “our girls” who stitched their beautiful samplers all those years ago by reproducing their work and sharing it with today’s stitchers.

So here we are . . . at the beginning of this journey. While it has not always been easy to get here, it has been a joy and I am glad that you have chosen to join us. I hope you enjoy the samplers that we have reproduced and come to love them as much as we do. Stay tuned to this page and follow us on Instagram (@mysisterssamplers) for sneak peeks of our Nashville Market 2023 releases and for other new releases later this year. I am looking forward to sharing all of them with you.