Frequently Asked Questions.

Here are some examples of questions that I am often asked by many people and my subsequent replies to those questions.

How do I go about finding out the history of my Sampler?

I want to reframe my Sampler, how do I do this?

Is it possible to clean my Sampler and improve it's appearance?

Why do some Samplers have the letters 'J' and 'U' missing?

What is the value of my Sampler?

Where can I buy a decent antique Sampler?

How do I go about finding out the history of my sampler?
Finding out the history of a particular sampler is no easy task, as generally, the Sampler would not have been stitched for a specific purpose such as to commemorate an historic event or place, they were simply examples of an individuals ability to stitch.
However, there is one particular type of sampler that would have been stitched to commemorate an event. These Samplers are known as 'Mourning' or 'Memorial' Samplers. They generally portrayed records of the death or deaths of particular family members, be it the children, parents or whoever. The details would go to give the names, birth dates and death dates. Another variation of this theme of Samplers is the family tree type, which as the name suggests gives details of family members close to the stitcher.
Having all these dates is all well and good, but there is one key element that is essential if you are to succeed in tracing the history of your piece, A location, place name. If you have a place name or you know where the sampler originated from, then your next step would be to find records of the person who worked the sampler. In England, local government authorities (or councils) hold records of births and deaths going back to as early as the beginning of the 19th Century, and by obtaining this information you can gradually piece together the background behind this individual.
Local churches will also contain records of christenings or baptisms as well as marriages. Records such as the ones I have mentioned are readily available to the general public, but be prepared to pay, and also be prepared for disappointment, You won't always be successful in getting all the information you want.

I want to reframe my Sampler, how do I do this?
There is no hard and fast rule for framing Samplers however, there are few points that must be observed when framing a Sampler.

GLAZING
Choose a glass that incorporates UV protection. UV is Ultra Violet, and this is an invisible but damaging component of the Sun's rays and will cause degradation of any fabric, resulting in fading of colour in the stitching as well as the fabric ground.

BACKING
For the backing of the frame, use acid free matting and/ or acid free board. In the card and paper industries, acid is used in the manufacturing process to bleach the paper, and it is this acid that is harmful to any fabric. Acid is inherently harmful and it doesn't stop at samplers! The acid over a period of time will eat into the fabric and destroy it. Acid free framing materials are a little more expensive but are widely used by many reputable framing specialists.

SPACERS
The purpose of a spacer is to separate the inside surface of the glazing from the face of the Sampler. It is important that the Sampler does not come into the contact with the glazing as condensation can form on the inside face of the glazing over a period of time and the result of this will be damp stain damage, mould and even colour run on the fabric.
Use acid free card for the spacer and cut to required size.

Is it possible to clean my sampler and improve its appearance?
There is very little you can do to improve the appearance of a sampler once it has got stained, soiled or torn, your only hope would be to leave it in the hands of a professional restorer.
However the things you can do are as follows, If the sampler has a dull dirty appearance this usually because the glazing is dirty and the linen ground is contaminated with dust particles.

How do clean the glass?
Remove the sampler from the frame, taking care not to damage it and remove the glazing. Clean the glazing using mild soapy water, don't use hot water as this will crack the glazing, and be aware that as the glazing will most probably be old, it will not be as strong as modern glass and therefore extra care must be taken when handling it. Set the glass aside to dry thoroughly.

How do remove the dust?
To remove dust contamination from the linen use a low power suction cleaner with a fine nozzle and this will remove loose dust from the linen. Be aware that age will have taken its toll on the linen and is likely to be brittle, some samplers in extreme cases can simply fall to bits! Don't expect to be able to remove all of the dust, if you have been able to remove 30% of it, then you have done well.
Should I clean the Sampler using water?
NO!, The coloured silks of the day would have been dyed without colour run protection, and therefore, the slightest hint of dampness will result in a colour mess which will destroy the appearance. Once your sampler has colour run damage, it is almost impossible to remove it.

Why do some Sampler alphabets have the letters 'J' and 'U'missing?
The answer to this is not really clear, however we do know that the letters 'J' and 'U' are relatively new to the English alphabet, having been introduced in the 16th century. The letter 'I' had been used in the place of 'J' before this. An example is the Latin spelling of the boy's name, James, spelt Iacobus. Also bear in mind that Samplers were worked by young children no older than say 12 years old and thus will inherently make mistakes missing out letters.

What is the value of my Sampler?
Depends what you mean by value, be it monetary or historic. I have a sampler in my collection that is probably worth only $450 but as an ancestor of my wife worked it, it is worth a lot more to us. (This sampler is featured in Sampler Showcase as the Emily Shelton Sanders 1858 sampler)
From a monetary point of view, the value of a sampler depends on several factors;-

CONDITION
Obviously the condition of a Sampler will have the most affect on its value, if it is worn, stained and torn, it won't be worth a great deal. I have a Sampler in my collection that is dated 1817, and it measures 22 inches by 23 inches, but because it is in a poor condition, (badly holed and faded) I only paid $50 for it.

DETAIL
The more detail that a Sampler has, the more value it has. For instance a sampler that is in A1 condition, but only has initials, won't be worth as much as Sampler that is in the same condition having details like 'Grace Booth, her work aged 12 years March 1817 Keathley'
Detail doesn't just stop at names and dates, The value is also determined by the appearance of a piece, pictorial samplers tend to be more sought after than traditional alphabet styles.

GEOGRAPHICAL
Where you buy Samplers from affects how much you pay for them. Buying a Sampler in the UK is usually cheaper than buying in the States, because the demand for them in the UK is not as great.

It is very difficult to give a set of values and say that one type is worth X amount and another type is worth Y amount, simply because every Sampler is unique. If you have a Sampler that you want to know the value of, why not send me an e-mail with a description and/ or a picture, and I can give you an idea of what It may fetch at auction.

Where can I buy a decent antique Sampler?
The best place to obtain Antique Samplers is at Auction houses or Sale rooms. Every city in the US or UK will have an antiques auction house or sale room of some kind and each one will have a sales catalogue in advance of a sale giving details of lots and a guide price for each lot. Each sale room will also have viewing days prior to the auction where you can view lots before you place a bid on them.
If you cannot get to the viewing times, then an alternative will be to ring up the sale room and ask for a condition report together with a Polaroid of the lot, most sale rooms do this free of charge and post them off to your home address whereby you can leave a proxy bid over the telephone.

What is a proxy bid?
A proxy bid is a bid for a lot which is left by you if you cannot attend an auction, you simply telephone the sale room, leave the maximum amount you are prepared to bid for a lot, and the auctioneer will bid on you behalf against anybody else in the sale room. The major disadvantage is that you don't see what kind of competition there is against you in a sale room, therefore there is no guarantee that you will be successful in you bid.

How much should I bid on a lot?
This depends entirely what you are prepared to pay, you can bid any amount you like, the more you bid, the greater chance you have of winning that lot. In most catalogues, there is a guide price given with each lot. For instance, if the guide price was $500 - $600 this is the figure the auction house expects to get for the lot, I would be inclined to leave a maximum bid of $700. Even though this is more than the guide price, it is the most that you would be prepared to pay, not necessarily what you will pay.
If the Auctioneer starts the bidding off at say $350 and no one else in the room bids against you, then providing there is no reserve, all you will pay is $350. if there is a reserve price, then the auctioneer will bid against you until the reserve is met. (a reserve price is the minimum price that the seller is prepared to sell a lot for) Obviously, if someone in the room bids against you, then the price rises until either the opponent bidder drops out or your maximum of $700 is met in which case, you lose the lot.
Be aware that the amount you are leaving to bid is the hammer price only, most sale rooms charge a buyers premium of usually 10% - 15% of the hammer price plus any associated tax on the premium. So for example, if you won the auction and the hammer price was $650 ($50 below your maximum) you would have to pay $650 + 10% + tax on the 10% which in the UK is VAT (17.5%) which makes a total of $650 + $65 + (17.5% of $65 = $11.37) which makes a grand total of $726.37.

Auctions are generally the best place to get hold of antique samplers, as there is choice and also you can get a really good deal. However, auctions are inherently unpredictable one day, you can pick up a Sampler for literally peanuts, another time, the price might soar. I was at an auction in the city of Salisbury in the UK, and one particular Sampler had a guide price of £300 - £400 and it actually sold for over ten times that amount, (£4,200) so it is a gamble, but auctions can be great fun also!
Another good place to buy Samplers if you don't want the hassle of auctions, is from a reputable antiques dealer, but generally you will pay more, as the antiques dealer will probably have got the Sampler from an auction and so it will have his or her mark-up put on the sale price.