I was raised in the once small town of St. John in Indiana. Small town living is still in my heart and is where I get many of the ideas and inspirations for my needlework designs. My life as a cross stitch designer began back in the 1990's when I first began working as a freelance designer for Leisure Arts. Numerous patterns were published in their magazine, For the Love of Cross Stitch and four leaflets were published with them as well. Three of those leaflets are still available: Simply Blessed Wedding Samplers, Beloved Bible Story Samplers and Cherished Scripture Samplers. The leaflet, Joy in the Journey is out of print.
In 2003 my husband Ron and I decided to take the designs into the self publishing arena which is now so popular in this industry. We work out of our home doing everything from the printing and copying to the designing and stitching. It's quite a partnership!
Ron and I have been married 31 years and have two children, Nikki and Ronny. They're both married with kids of their own making Ron and I grandparents to Juliet, Sean, Jeffrey and Andrew. Nikki is the designer for Country Cottage Needleworks. We also have a new puppy named Gracie that came to live with us in January.
We love what we do and consider it a blessing to be able to contribute designs to such a wonderful industry.
Pattern Listings
Americana*Country Designs
America
Starlight Sampler
Willow Tree Inn
Home of a Needleworker
The Gathering Room
Pinetop Lodge
Needlework School
A Stitcher's Prayer
Two Red Houses
Moon and Stars
City Stitcher*Country Stitcher
Plant Your Seeds
Blackbird Inn
Fruit Bowls
The Harvesters
Colonial Dry Goods
The Bookshelf
Quilt Time Sampler
Plant Kindness
Peace and Plenty
Liberty Hill Inn
Lakeside Lodge
The Old Doll
Through the Woods
Coffee Menu
Friendship Tree
Colonial Homes
The Counting House
Pear Tree Inn
Ye Olde Coffee House
Two Blue Houses
Winter Wonderland
Chocolate Shoppe
The Old West
Psalm 145
Thread Gathering
Nature's Beauty
The Sampler Lady
Cherry Tree Inn
Gourmet Garden
Necessities Sampler
Garden Pleasures
Captain's Inn
Fruit Game Boards
Two White Houses
Acorn Hill
Curly Q Ewe
Princess and the P
Prairie Sampler
Snowflakes
Winter Whites
Brave Hearts
Home of a Needleworker (too!)
Heart of America
My Needle's Work
The Rain Fell
Embroidery Guild
Little House Neighborhood
Yesteryear
Gingerbread Trio
Americana*Country Designs (continued from first column)
Something Old, Something New
In the Beginning
Coming to America
Traveling Stitcher
State Fair
Sunflower Inn
Alphabet Rhyme
Colonial Women
Two Roosters
Mayflower Landing
Lavender's Blue
Pumpkins 4-Sale
The Library
Poinsettia House
Saling, Sailing
Rose Hill Plantation
Battle Hymn of the Republic
Mississippi Riverboat
Robin Hood
Virtue Sampler
Mrs. O'Leary's Dairy Farm
Simple Joys
Sarah Street - Faithful
The Family Sampler
A Piece of Cake!
Lavender Hill (Cottage)
ABC123 (Americana*Country)
Paper Whites (Cottage)
Woodland Sampling (Americana*Country)
Herb Garden (Cottage)
Spot of Coffee (Americana*Country)
Daisy Lane Cottage (Cottage)
Rose Sampler (Cottage)
Dog House Sampler
Kitty Cottage Sampler
Season of Rest
Season of Hope
Season of Growth
Season of Plenty
Ladybug, Ladybug
Schoolgirl Lessons
Always and Forever
Wool Needlebook and Scissor Fob
Autumn Harvest
The Angels Sang
Be True
Bee Sampler
Love One Another
A Walk in the Park
Singing the Blues
Liberty Belles
Tall Pines
Dear Diary
Abigail Winslow
Mary Heaton
Elizabeth McGuire
Hannah Purington
Lucy Fairchild
Rebecca Small
Emmaline Whitcomb
Julia Flynn
Simple Sampler
Acorns & Pines
Blossoms & Blackbirds
Music & Books
Stars & Stripes
Night & Day
Holly & Berries
All Dolled Up!
Strawberry House
Queen Bee
Chocolate Box
Hen Party
Heart and Home Sampler
Liberty and Justice
Fresh Watermelon
Winter Greens
Joy
Country Cottage Designs
A Rose in Morning
Peach Tree Cottage
M'Lady's Strawberries
Morning Berries
Punchneedle
Folk Art Pears
Folk Art Strawberries
Songbird
American Saltbox
Cherry Pie
Folk Art Crow
Sheep Gathering
Garden Rabbit
Ornament of the Month
Fa-La-La
Pear Tree
He's A Flake
Snowy Pines
Winter Sheep
Red House in Winter
The Merry Skater
Frosty Flakes
Peppermint Twist
Under the Tree
All is Calm
Publications
For the Love of Cross Stitch Magazine (FTLOCS), July 1999 - Joy in the Journey.
FTLOCS - Sept. 2000, Picturesque Fruits.
FTLOCS - Nov. 2000, Grateful Heart Sampler.
FTLOCS - July 2001, Harvest Hand Towels.
FTLOCS - March 2002, Marks of Praise.
FTLOCS - July 2002, The Christmas Story, Part 1 and Sept. 2002, The Christmas Story, Part 2.
Leisure Arts hard bound book, Tokens of Affection. Features: My Brother and My Sister.
Just Cross Stitch Magazine - June 2004, Featuring Ye Olde Coffee House and an article about our needlework business. This pattern is now available from us since it sold out at th publisher.
2004 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Woodland Snowfall.
2005 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Home for the Holidays.
2006 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Pear Tree.
Sept/Oct 2006 JCS Issue: Pine Tree Hill ornament.
2007 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Snow Bunnies.
Just Cross Stitch Magazine, Jan/Feb 2008 Issue: Winter Symphony
2008 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Glory to God
August 2009, The Gift of Stitching Online Publication - Starr of Mine
2009 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue - Featuring Winter Sampler
March/April 2010 JCS Issue: He Is Risen
2010 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Preview Issue - Featuring Gingerbread Tree
