New pieces drop every Thursday at 7 pm Central · Every order ships the next business day

Vintage hand embroidery, worn again

Pieces with a past.Stitches with a story.

Somebody spent evenings stitching these linens by hand. Then they sat in a drawer for decades. We trim them in lace and sew them onto soft, washed cotton tees so the handwork gets seen again. Every Hope Chest heirloom is one of one, every other design is made in a batch of just three or four, and new pieces drop every Thursday evening.

Shop the first drop Send us your linens
Hands stitching the lace-edged Cloud and Meadow embroidered linen panel onto a faded blue tee, with a wooden spool, thimble, and scissors on the table

Heirlooms are one of one

Every Hope Chest panel is a single piece of vintage handwork. When it sells, that exact design is gone.

The history ships with it

A tag inside records what the linen was and what we know about where it came from.

Kept as it was

Tiny stains and loose threads from its first life stay. We secure the stitching so it survives the wash.

Three collections

Shop by collection

Every Thursday drop pulls from one of these. Each collection is built from a different kind of vintage handwork.

Dropping now Blue tee with vintage embroidered linen panel from the Hope Chest collection

The Hope Chest

everyday heirlooms

Florals, meadows, songbirds, and cottage scenes stitched onto tea towels and dresser scarves, the kind that were folded away in a young woman's hope chest.

Look for: lazy daisy · French knots · crochet lace
Dropping now Merry and Bright Christmas sweatshirt from the Red Letter Days collection

Red Letter Days

the holiday collection

Hearts for Valentine's, eggs and lilies for Easter, flags for the Fourth, pumpkins for fall, and holly for Christmas. Vintage holiday linens for every celebration on the calendar.

Look for: seasonal motifs · crochet lace · holiday floss colors
Dropping now In Christ Alone sweatshirt from the Sunday Best collection

Sunday Best

the faith collection

Hand-stitched crosses, scripture samplers, and "Bless This Home" linens that once hung in kitchens and parlors. Faith passed down one stitch at a time.

"She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands."Proverbs 31:13

Look for: cross-stitch verses · blessings · church-circle handwork

This week's drop

The pieces

Ten designs from all three collections, including five new Christmas pieces. Heirlooms are one of one. Every other design is limited to three or four. Order this week and yours ships the next business day. Hover or tap a shirt to see the panel up close.

Blue tee with embroidered linen panel laid on a white painted table Close-up of the embroidered cloud, daisies, and vine border on the blue tee Hover for detail

The Hope Chest

Cloud & Meadow Tee

$35

Faded denim blue

Panel: hand-embroidered linen, crochet lace edge
Motif: cloud, rolling meadow, daisy corners
Lot: 001 · one available

Buy now · $35
Grape tee with embroidered linen panel laid on a white painted table Angled close-up of the embroidered panel on the grape tee Hover for detail

The Hope Chest

Cloud & Meadow Tee

$35

Washed grape

Panel: hand-embroidered linen, crochet lace edge
Motif: cloud, rolling meadow, daisy corners
Lot: 002 · one available

Buy now · $35
Sage green sweatshirt with a quilted Merry Christmas panel framed by poinsettias Close-up of the quilted Merry Christmas, may your days be merry and bright panel Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

Merry & Bright Sweatshirt

$68

Evergreen sage

Panel: quilted cotton, poinsettia border
Reads: "Merry Christmas to all"
Lot: 003 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68
Light blue sweatshirt with a quilted In Christ Alone panel on a small gold floral print Close-up of the quilted In Christ Alone my hope is found panel Hover for detail

Sunday Best

In Christ Alone Sweatshirt

$68

Chambray blue

Panel: quilted cotton, gold calico ground
Reads: "In Christ alone my hope is found"
Lot: 004 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68
Brown tee with a round Bless the Lord O My Soul patch trimmed in white stitching Close-up of the round Bless the Lord O My Soul patch Hover for detail

Sunday Best

Bless the Lord Tee

$35

Espresso brown

Panel: round cotton patch, blanket-stitched edge
Reads: "Bless the Lord, O my soul"
Lot: 005 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $35
Sage sweatshirt with a quilted panel of a holly wreath, red bow, and two cardinals Close-up of the quilted cardinal wreath panel reading Peace, Joy and Love Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

Peace, Joy & Love Sweatshirt

$68

Evergreen sage

Panel: quilted cotton, cardinal wreath
Reads: "Peace, joy and love"
Lot: 006 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68
Sage sweatshirt with a quilted Oh Christmas Tree panel Close-up of the quilted Christmas tree panel with ornaments and snowflakes Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

Oh Christmas Tree Sweatshirt

$68

Evergreen sage

Panel: quilted cotton, vintage tree print
Reads: "Oh Christmas Tree"
Lot: 007 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68
Cherry red sweatshirt with a green-bordered quilted panel of Santa and his reindeer Close-up of the Santa sleigh panel reading Wishing a Merry Christmas to all Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

Wishing a Merry Christmas Sweatshirt

$68

Cherry red

Panel: quilted cotton, green border, Santa and sleigh
Reads: "Wishing a Merry Christmas to all"
Lot: 008 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68
Cream tee with a red-bordered quilted panel of jingle bells and holly Close-up of the quilted panel reading The Christmas bells are ringing Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

Christmas Bells Tee

$35

Natural cream

Panel: quilted cotton, red border, jingle bells
Reads: "The Christmas bells are ringing"
Lot: 009 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $35
Sage sweatshirt with a red-bordered quilted panel of a snowy church and village at night Close-up of the snowy village panel reading Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night Hover for detail

Red Letter Days

To All a Good Night Sweatshirt

$68

Frosted sage

Panel: quilted cotton, red border, snowy village
Reads: "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night"
Lot: 010 · small batch of 3 to 4

Buy now · $68

See the size guide before you buy. Secure checkout by card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. Hope Chest heirlooms close after one sale. Every other design closes when its small batch sells out.

How drops work

A new drop every Thursday

Each piece takes hours by hand, so we don't keep a warehouse full of stock. We finish a small batch, release it all at once, and ship fast.

  1. Thu · 7 pmNew pieces go live

    A fresh batch of shirts is released every Thursday at 7 pm Central. Join the list and we'll email you when it opens.

  2. HeirloomsFirst come, first stitched

    Each Hope Chest heirloom is the only one of its kind. When it sells, it's gone for good.

  3. 3 or 4Small batches for everything else

    Red Letter Days and Sunday Best designs are made in batches of just three or four. When a batch sells out, that design is done for the week.

  4. Next biz dayShips the next business day

    Your shirt is folded, tagged, and on its way the next business day after you order.

Size guide

Finding your fit

Every piece is built on a Comfort Colors garment-dyed blank: soft, heavyweight, and cut with a relaxed unisex fit.

  • Lay your favorite shirt flat and measure straight across the chest, 1 inch below the armpits. Match that number to the chart.
  • Most women size down one for a classic fit, or stay true to size for a relaxed look.
  • Garment-dyed cotton is preshrunk. Wash cold and hang or tumble dry low to keep the panel flat.

Tees Comfort Colors 1717

SizeChest widthBody length
S18¼"26⅝"
M20¼"28"
L22"29⅜"
XL24"30¾"
2XL26"31⅝"
3XL27¾"32½"

Sweatshirts Comfort Colors 1566

SizeChest widthBody lengthSleeve
S22"27½"23"
M23½"28½"23½"
L25"29½"24"
XL26½"30½"24½"
2XL28"31½"25"

Measurements are laid flat, in inches, from the manufacturer's size chart. Allow ½" either way.

Detail of the vintage embroidery: green vine border, yellow daisies with red centers, lavender cloud, and a meadow of green stitches
Lot 001 panel, photographed on the tee

Look closer

Every mark is a hand

  • Lazy daisyThe looped leaves running up the vine border, each one a single stitch.
  • Daisy cornersYellow petals worked around a red French knot center.
  • Stem stitchThe lavender cloud outline, made to look like one continuous line.
  • Crochet laceThe scalloped cream edge that frames the whole panel.

From the linen drawer to your closet

How a piece is made

Every shirt goes through the same five stages. The slowest part is finding linens worth saving.

  1. 01 · SOURCE

    Find the linens

    Estate sales, church rummage sales, and family drawers. Dresser scarves, tea towels, pillowcases, and doilies.

  2. 02 · WASH

    Clean and press

    A gentle cold soak brings back the white. Then a careful press so the stitching lies flat.

  3. 03 · FRAME

    Trim and edge

    We cut around the best part of the embroidery and finish it with vintage-style crochet lace.

  4. 04 · SEW

    Set it on the shirt

    The panel is stitched down all the way around onto a heavyweight, garment-dyed cotton tee.

  5. 05 · TAG

    Record its story

    A tag goes inside with the lot number, what we know about the linen's first life, and an old sampler verse."This work in hand my friends may have, when I am dead and in my grave."

What
Your family's embroidered linens, made into shirts for you and the people who remember them
Turnaround
3 to 5 weeks
You choose
Shirt color and size for each panel
You keep
Every leftover scrap, returned with your order

Commissions

Grandma's tea towels deserve better than a drawer

Send us photos of the embroidered pieces you've inherited and what you know about who made them. We'll show you how each one would sit on a shirt before we cut anything.

Start a commission
"Every stitch was once an evening someone gave away."
From the Rook & Bobbin worktable

Thursdays at 7 pm Central

Get each week's drop before it's gone