Joanne Gatenby
has been drawing her whole life and doing needlework for
almost as long. With the support and encouragement of her
DH, Bill, she began designing and publishing her own work
under the company name X's & Oh's.
For many years
she has devoted her talents to designing needlwork designs.
This happly married mother of two adult girls creates patterns
for every stitching level, and covers a wide variety of
interests, from beginner's and children's designs to horses,
wedding samplers to Christmas stockings...and everything
in between!
Designs by this
artist have been featured in such magazines as Stoney Creek
Cross Stitch Collection magazine, in the Needlework Retailer,
The Cross Stitcher and in various newspaper and association
articles. She is also a feature contributor to A Needle
Pulling Thread (a fairly new Canadian stitching magazine,
available from Chapters and independent needlework shops.
Early on, Joanne
began working with several artists - converting their artwork
to needlework, to the delight of both their fans! Most notable
among these is Shelley McVittie, Sarah B. Seiter and Den
Beauvais.
But over the
past few years several other designers have joined the X's
& Oh's team, and Joanne is pleased to introduce you
to the following wonderful designers:
SANDRA PARLOW:
This Canadian designer has been creating since 1998. Together
with her Fire Fighter husband, Terry, she has two children
and a dog - all of whom keep them running.
She is also part
owner in a framing shop (The Lasting Image), where she gets
to frame all kinds of wonderful needlework.
From wacky and
outrageous, to serious and detailed, this talented designer
enjoys working in a variety of styles, to keep her designs
fresh and different.
Sandra's
designs can be found under DRAGONS (More Precious Than Gold),
and SNOWMEN (Squeezing Thru the Holidays), or you can see
more of Sandra's work on her website:
www.mts.net/~stparlow
VIVIAN
BALES:
Known in the on-line community as YUKON VIV, this mother
of two (and her DH) really do live in the wonderful Yukon
territory of Northern Canada, where inspiration is around
every corner!
Viv
sez "every one of my designs has a glimpse of my life
woven into it. I hope that my life brings a smile to yours."
Look
for Viv's designs under the SNOWMAN (Snow Love) and CHILDREN
(Black Sheep Sampler) categories. There are also a couple
of Little Leaflets by this talented designer, and she may
also be found under COFFEE.
MARIANNE
HEDBERG:
Is our most distant designer - from Sweden! Located near
Stockholm with her two teenage children and three cats,
she works full-time as an environmental co-ordinator in
the construction business.
Marianne
sez "In a stressful world, designing and stitching
provides me with a safety vent, and I love it!"
