Hello from Northern Virginia

[gardengirl]

Hi everyone!

I'm a new member and am looking forward to meeting new friends here. I have been cross-stitching for a LONG time, but have never joined a stitching forum. I'm part of a quilting forum that is a lot of fun, and I do knit as well.

I'm a high school history teacher and really love my work! I raised my daughters on my own for the past 10 years -- the older one married recently and now lives in England; the younger one is at university in Kentucky.

I'll go and see what's going on in here, and hope to get to know many of you soon!

[karen4bells]

welcome to the forum!! Hope you have as much fun here as I do!!

[pamelam]

Hi and welcome to the forum! It's nice to have you here!

[gardengirl]

Thanks!

Silly Question #1:

What's an HAED?

[karen4bells]

haed= heaven and earth designs http://heavenandearthdesigns.com/

[gardengirl]

Those are lovely!! Much more complicated than what I normally work on...

[karen4bells]

They are indeed very pretty but very involved. We'd love to see pictures of some of your projects. What do you enjoy stitching?

[gardengirl]

I love to do the smaller projects by Heart-in-Hand, the Trilogy, Bent Creek. I can carry them around with me, and work on them when I have a little bit of time.

The one I want to do next is called "The Branch" by Bent Creek... it's a series of charts that make up the completed work. I love the threads that these designers use!

[mig-3]

Welcome, from a displaced, homesick Virginian.

[gardengirl]

Which part of the Commonwealth are you from? I'm actually from the Chicago suburbs, but this has been home for the past 15 years, after some years skipping from Dayton, Albuquerque, Wiesbaden...

[karen4bells]

Oh those are adorable, the branch series---hmmmmmm may have to think about doing one of these

[gardengirl]

I like that you can mix and match some of the smaller projects. They all have alphabet samplers, little houses, seasons, etc. I'm also getting addicted to Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Art threads!

[mig-3]

Which part of the Commonwealth are you from? I'm actually from the Chicago suburbs, but this has been home for the past 15 years, after some years skipping from Dayton, Albuquerque, Wiesbaden...

Other end of the state from you, Bristol. Are you around Harrisonburg or, shudder, out in Goobermentville?

[willow]

Hello and welcome to the forum

[karen4bells]

I like that you can mix and match some of the smaller projects. They all have alphabet samplers, little houses, seasons, etc. I'm also getting addicted to Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Art threads!

They are definitely adorable--looking at the Christmas owl one--on ebay--do they take a lot of different specialty threads?? oh nooooooooo I think I am in big trouble

[gardengirl]

Which part of the Commonwealth are you from? I'm actually from the Chicago suburbs, but this has been home for the past 15 years, after some years skipping from Dayton, Albuquerque, Wiesbaden...

Other end of the state from you, Bristol. Are you around Harrisonburg or, shudder, out in Goobermentville?

Yep. I'm about 5 miles from Dulles in Loudoun County, but I teach in Fairfax.

[gardengirl]

I like that you can mix and match some of the smaller projects. They all have alphabet samplers, little houses, seasons, etc. I'm also getting addicted to Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Art threads!

They are definitely adorable--looking at the Christmas owl one--on ebay--do they take a lot of different specialty threads?? oh nooooooooo I think I am in big trouble

They aren't specialty threads in the sense that they are like metallics. But I prefer them to DMC. Some are ever so slightly variegated too...

[karen4bells]

I definitely understand that--just was interested to see how many different colors are in each, and the cost--I have to order online due to no stores locally

[gardengirl]

I'm in the same boat here -- no stores that are just for needlework that would carry these kinds of charts, so I order online too. Generally, there are maybe 10 colors involved in each one? Many of them come with the fabric and maybe an embellishment or two, but generally not with the threads. I've found that many of the charts by all three use the same colors frequently. I'm doing "big blizzard sampler" by Heart-in-Hand and had all the threads on hand already! Where do you order from?

[LauraUK]

Hi and welcome to the forum