A Token of Friendship by Lesley Wilkins

We're very excited to be writing about this project today for a few different reasons.

Firstly, ladies and gentlemen can you please give a warm welcome to Lesley Wilkins who joins us as a contributor to Inspirations magazine for the very first time with her project A Token of Friendship.

While Lesley is making her debut with us in Inspirations issue #130, she has a long and esteemed career in cross stitch, is an expert in the history of blackwork and embroidered samplers and has been published many times over and is even an author herself - which we'll get to a little later.

The second reason we're extremely excited about this project is that it's the perfect piece to personalise for yourself or a loved one.

A Token of Friendship is a folding friendship book - eight panels worked in cross stitch with rich garnet thread on white aida cloth.

The design draws on the tradition of early Quaker samplers - those beautiful, education-driven pieces worked as part of a young girl's education and instantly recognisable for their signature octagonal medallions, carefully spaced across the fabric and filled with floral and bird motifs.

Lesley has borrowed from this tradition with great affection, creating something that feels both deeply historical and entirely fresh.

What makes it truly special is the personalisation. Using the alphabet and numbers supplied, you can stitch initials and dates directly into the design - turning a beautiful piece of needlework into a lasting record of a friendship, a moment, or a memory that matters to you.

The finished book folds neatly to approximately 10cm (4") square, tied together with a white satin ribbon. It really does live up to its name.

Lesley's connection to this tradition runs deep. Her love of embroidered samplers began at age ten, when a school trip to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London sparked a lifelong love that has only deepened with time.

Today, we are the beneficiaries of Lesley’s lifelong love thanks to her gift of A Token of Friendship.

Ready-to-Stitch kits for A Token of Friendship are now available using the link below.

Oh, and about that that book we mentioned earlier - Lesley is the author of Quaker Samplers: The Ultimate Collection of Traditional and Modern Designs, which is a treasure trove of inspiration for any cross-stitch fan.

Containing an extraordinary range of Quaker medallion, motif and sampler designs, each one is created using just two simple stitches: cross stitch and backstitch.

Copies of Quaker Samplers are now available to purchase from our website using the link below.