Staff Pick | Not your grandma’s samplers

More News

Holiday shopping countdown: seven days left. Here’s a gift tip for that person on your list who’s too busy to take a quilting or embroidery class but appreciates handwork.

Enter the modern-day craft sampler. BasicGrey, a Utah company that makes scrapbook papers and fabrics, debuted this hip version of an old-fashioned concept this year. Canvases stretched over frames are printed with black quilt-style designs. What you do inside and outside the lines is entirely up to you — no sewing required.

You can display:

• Cherished vintage buttons

• Fabric samples

• Decorative papers

• Needlework, such as embroidery

• Costume jewelry

• Your own paint-by-numbers-style artwork by using acrylics or fabric markers to fill in the designs

Even if you mess up or decide to leave the pieces “blank canvases,” the sophisticated black patterned designs are forgiving enough to make goof-proof wall art.

Samplers come in several patterns and sizes including 8-by-10, 11-by-14 and 16-by-20-inch boards. They’re available at Urban Arts + Crafts at Briarcliff Village, 4157 N. Mulberry Drive, Kansas City, North, 816-234-1004. Owner Karen Roark is planning classes for teaching embellishment techniques for the samplers. Check www.urbanartsandcrafts.com for a schedule.