Intrigued by an early 19th Century sampler on display in the V&A Museum, I responded to this object with a series of photographs to create a handmade book.

The sampler was stitched by Elizabeth Parker aged 17, while working as a housemaid around 1830. It was not a typical sampler, in that it told her very personal story. A distressing outpouring of red silk words on white linen.

The book is a visual narrative set against Elizabeth’s words.