Ideas galore and more.

Update July 25,2001. While perusing the magazine section in the grocery store today I noticed the July/Aug. edition of Country Sampler. There is a blurb on the front cover telling you they have a new lower price on the magazine. It now retails for $4.99 instead of $5.99.



Country Sampler is a magazine I don't subscribe to, however I do buy it every so often in the store. If you subscribe to Country Sampler I feel that you are getting repeats too often. In that I mean, the same craftspeople have things in a lot of the magazines so when you open up January/February issue of the magazine and see a craftsperson's wares, more than likely you will see a lot of that same craftsperson's wares in the March/April issue. Therefore, I buy about two or three times a year, and then I still see a lot of the same craftspeople offering their wares. Country Sampler is published 6 times a year.

I have never ordered from the magazine but hubby has made several things for me that I have found in the magazine that I just had to have. If he has the dimensions he can make it. I am pretty good at drawing patterns for him to use. I have several cornice boards in our home made because I saw it in the Country Sampler.

Country Sampler magazine is presented very well, with lots to hold your interest for several trips through the magazine.. There are no ads such as we see in other magazines. The craftsperson pays to advertise their wares so this is how the magazine gets it's revenue. Thankfully, you are not subjected to tobacco ads every other page. Thankfully though, you are subjected to page after page of very talented craftspersons through out the country. Country Sampler has the whole gament of crafts from furniture to curtains to birdhouses and candles. Crafts are presented for every room in a home, from kitchen to bath to laundry room.

Country Sampler contains around 150 pages that not only offer you crafts but has about 4 pages of recipes of taste tantalizing down home recipes such as sweet potato soup, herb crackers, carmelized onion soup or butternut squash and apple soup. This is a Jan./Feb. 2001 copy of the magazine I am looking at so with it coming out in the winter, soup is the fare!

Country Sampler features a Country Getaway each issue and takes you on a journey of their featured city. This city of course is full of antique and craft stores. Country Sampler tells you the best places to get a wonderful meal while you are visiting their featured city, as well as, the history of the city. They then list telephone numbers of artisans, events, attractions, dining, shopping and lodging. The Chamber of Commerce and Welcome Centers telephone numbers and email addresses are listed to aid you in planning your trip should you decide to check out the featured city.

Country Sampler has in this Jan./Feb. issue an article on collecting sleds and sleighs. They tell you about the sleds that were sold for 60¢ to $1.20 in the late 1800's now bring $5,000.00 to $10,000.00 and more, depending on condition, age and availability. It tells you about the kinds of sleds and sleighs that were made and what you look for in determining whether the sled you spied at an auction or yard sale is a true antique.

In every issue of Country Sampler they feature a few homes, usually ones that has been restored and take you on a tour through the home and tell you of the restoration, where the owner got antique doors, beams and such. The owners tell you of the little personal touches they put in that made this a home for them. The most interesting to me are the log homes that have started out as a lowly little cabin and progressed, with love and hard work, into a majestic log home.

In the front of the Country Sampler is an antiques Q & A section. Here is where you can send a picture and brief description of a family heirloom, junk store or yard sale find and experts will help you to find out its worth, maker, age, etc.

Throughout the magazine there are full color pages of rooms with the crafts and antiques displayed, giving you an idea on how to decorate using the crafts you can purchase. I love this feature of the magazine because I get great ideas for using things I already have, I just substitute an item I have that is similar to what they show and it looks just as great as their display. Lots of times I happen to have an antique or old things, such as the old blue canning jars, some old crocks, old tins, antique kitchen wares and such that I can copy their whole display.

There are a lot of craft people advertising in this magazine that will sell you patterns as well as, the finished project. Of course, if you are craft challenged you will probably buy the finished item. If you have knowledge of crafts and how to make them then you might want to order their patterns or plans and make them yourself. If you are like me and have done crafts forever, or have a handy person in your home, you or they, might look at something and be able to recreate it. Either way Country Sampler offers the craftsperson and noncraftsperson alike, lots of great items and ideas.

As I stated, I have not ordered from this magazine but I do have a friend that ordered and got the items in a very timely manner. When she received the items, one of them, a painted personalized wooden box for her kitchen, her last name was not spelled correctly. She called the craftsperson and was told to send it back for a replacement and this was done with shipping reimbursed to my friend. I don't know if all craftsspeople would reimburse you for postage if you have to send something back.

Each item for sale in the Country Sampler is shown in a very clear photograph and has a very detailed description. The craftspeople lets you know the price and whether shipping and handling are extra and whether you can get it gift boxed.

At the back of the magazine is a product index and an advertisers index. If there is a particular craftsperson you are looking for, flip back there and in alphabetical order the craftspeople are listed. If there is a certain object you are looking for, such as birdhouses, this too, is in alphabetically order. In this particular issue there are six different advertisers for birdhouses, it tells you the name of the crafting business that sells them and the pages you will find them on.

Country Sampler says that if you like their magazine you will love their stores and there are several around the country. They tell you in what city each store is located, along with the telephone number. Country Sampler also has a website: www.countrysampler.com.

If you like going to craft fairs, Country Sampler tells you where there are Country Peddler Shows, and other Craft Show around the country, as well as when they are being held, admission charges and hours of operation.

It is very confusing to me what the cost of a subscription to Country Sampler is because there are lapcards that tell you you can save 72% or $25.96 a subscription by sending this card. They say 6 issues will cost you $9.98 by using this card.. The front of the magazine tells you that a subscription cost $19.96 in the USA and in Canada $29.96 in US funds. I pay $5.99 per issue from the store. If you would want to get every issue, of course, it is cheaper to subscribe. If you want subscription information you may call 904-446-4873 or you may email them at ctysampler@palmcoastd.com.

If you are a craftsperson and want to advertise your products with them there is a list of display advertising representatives, their telephone numbers, fax numbers and email addresses. There is a list of their market center sales representatives, their telephone and fax numbers and email addresses.

If you love to look and get ideas for country living and country crafts, pick yourself up a copy of Country Sampler and let them give you great ideas for your home.