It came, it came, it came!!!

The catalog for Betty Ring's sampler auction at Sotheby's, that is.

It is a most beautiful book, with exquisite photography of each sampler along with the information about the stitcher when available and the sampler's provenance.  The samplers are grouped into schools or areas, which makes it helpful to see the development of style and design elements. And, btw, the catalog is currently available online--but you will want a copy of your own.

With my usual uncanny ability to target the most expensive item in any grouping, the samplers I fell in love with are the ones expected to go for the highest prices.  I do not believe that they will grace the walls of my abode at any time in the future--unless, of course, I buy a lottery ticket between now and the auction AND win the lottery.

However . . .There are samplers in my stash and in my WIP pile that are reproductions from the time and area of my favorite samplers which I can stitch.  I could spend a year on samplers reproduced from those stitched at the Balch School and in Rhode Island.  I have Rebekah French waiting the touch of my needle, similar in many ways to Sally Sanborn's sampler.  I have designs I can stitch from the Marsh school.  We're lucky that we can stitch reproductions ourselves, and have the joy of the designs hanging on our walls.  In our own way, we, too, can honor the girls and their teachers who created these samplers.

There are really lovely tributes to Mrs. Ring in the back of the catalog. Those of us who attended the Winterthur symposium last October heard more.  Mrs. Ring's papers and research materials will be housed at Winterthur--what a boon to future sampler researchers!

And what an incredible legacy. . .