Hi Nettie, I think you are "very wise" to ask about working on these designs!! First of all, for many years I have worked on linen, mostly 32 count, making Lavender & Lace Angels....as well as....L&L Santa of the Forest. I love working on linen because it gives the background of the design a kind of "old world" look which I love. Now....about Heaven & Earth designs. I have not yet made one, however, upon the encouragement from one of the "veteran" stitchers in this Chat Room called Bermuda, I have ordered two designs and have the supplies to complete them. First is "The Toy Box". These designs are worked over ONE thread which will be a first for me. Bermuda as well as another Stitcher TTcantiques encouraged me to use 25 Count Antique White Laguna for this design. It is an "even" fabric and since I will be going "over one" for the first time, they both convinced me that it would be easier for me to apply the stitches. The other design I am holding is also H&E = Portrait of Father Xmas. It is also a stunning picture....I will also work it on the 25 count Laguna. NOW....(take a breath)....having said all of this....I would encourage you to try something on Linen, but I think for these designs, for you and me....Laguna would probably be a better choice. I hope the other Stitchers I mentioned (or anyone else!) see this posting and will offer their thoughts. I am curious....which Heaven and Earth design do you "have you eye on"??!! I hope this all makes sense to you!

jersey, I agree that Lugana is the best choice to enter the world of linen. It is so easy to stitch. HAED is a little ambitious and I haven't stitched over one. Maybe one day! Do you use one or two strands of floss? Nettie, perhaps you could try a small project first and see how you like it or even a swatch. No point in spending so much money only to have it sit in your stash. I'll be curious to know what you decide.

Nettie, I agree with the two previous posts about working on Lugana rather than Linen. I love linen for Pulled/Drawn Thread and Hardanger types of embroidery but have never liked it for cross stitch because the threads can very greatly in thickness resulting in the cross stitches looking inconsistent (This might be a me issue!). I have a couple HAED designs in my stash and am looking at a couple additional ones. I recommend you go to HAED's website and look at the free patterns they have. While each artists designs with have a different look, it would give you an idea of what their charts look like and may help you decide if it is something you would enjoy doing. You may be able to find a small portion of one that you could use as your "test" sample as well. I completed The Silver Lining's Parrot Tulip pattern over 1 a few years ago. I did it on 28 count using 1 thread for both cross stitch and back stitch. It turned out wonderfully. I did experiment with the colors in the chart before I started to determine how many threads I wanted to use. As others have mentioned, some of the colors (black especially) do not give the same coverage as others so your decision may also very with the main colors in the chart you are doing. Good Luck!

To Jersycrafter re HAED :|"the Toy Bx". I have done this one & it's beautiful BUT I recommend using Petite Braid Treasures ( I think that's how it's spelled) NOT the #4 Krienik!!!!!! The Krienik was way too thick & bunched up & was UGLY! I nearly ruined the material pulling it out. Thankfully I hadn't done too much. I notified HAED & they said the braid was their default thread & to use whatever suited me. Hope this makes it easier for you.

Hi Nettie, I just came from the Heaven and Earth website because I was notified they have a "flash sale" going on with NO end date meaning the sale can be stopped 2 minutes from now, two hours, 2 days, etc. I have been working on an HAED pattern called "Sacred Hour" for about the last 1 1/2 years (more off than on) and I'm doing it on 25-count Lugana - a wonderful evenweave fabric-and doing it one strand of floss over one square. I only have about 1/4 of it done. As the other stitchers have said, one has to be really committed to doing one of the HAEDs. I do stitch smaller projects to prevent burnout for working on an HAED BUT if you finish one, it looks like an art painting. For all of those that are curious, check out the HAED design that just came out on their website titled "Mediterranean Harbor-Max Color" ( the number of colors) and also Enlarged in size (almost double the regular size!!!) LOL!!! Hmmmmm.... I wonder who Special Requested that chart to be created....

For those of you who wanted to know which one I am looking at purchasing, this is the one because it reminds me of my beautiful cat who looks exactly like this and who is my spoiled, precious, brat...lol

I am having my first experience with Lugana...pleasant, I must agree. BUT, for cover-all patterns, I cannot see the why of using the more expensive evenweaves...especially with the higher count aidas of these days. If I hadn't given the DD my piece of 16 ct aida, I would be using that instead of the lugana, I think...especially since it was already gridded! :)

LOVE this cat! Mine was named Puddin'...a lovely, loving sweetie that was pampered to the extreme...she was my companion as my kids moved on. :)

Hi Nettie, The HAED designs are charted for the most part on 25 count evenweave fabric like Lugana, over one square like Aida so they are not difficult to stitch. They can have lots of colour changes and single colour stitches in a small area which can be frustrating but gives them the depth that looks so nice when finished. You can stitch them on Aida but be aware that the finished size will be larger and appear more 'blurry'. Some people don't like this effect. I wouldn't say they are difficult, but they are expensive as they can use a lot of thread and a big time commitment. The average finishing time for a large project is about 3-5 years, so don't expect to have it done in 6 months...unless you're prepared to do nothing else! Don't we all wish! When finished they are certainly worth the time and effort.

Nettie! Nice choice! What a beautiful cat. I had a long haired North American who lived ten years and grew to be 28 lbs. His name was Marco Polo. He was r-e-a-l-l-y something!!

Thanks for all the advice you guys. I am really debating now since bermuda said they were having a sale, thanks for letting me know Bermuda I appreciate it. ☺ The pattern is normally 19.00 but if I pdf it in regular size it is 9.50 but I think I would have them send me the pattern enlarged for 12.50 as I don't know how many pages it is and I don't have any ink for my printer. I figured for 3.00 by the time I buy a cartridge or even go to the library it would be cheaper to just pay the 3.00. Vcess and jersey...thanks for sharing on your fur babies, she is my companion as well since my husband is gone a lot because of his job and we couldn't have children so we have fur babies...lol Her name is maddie lynn often called little sh**ter cause she can be one...lol She is five years old and only weighs 10 lbs thank goodness cause she likes to sit on my lap while I stitch, not sure how you handled 28 lbs jersey...lol OK now I am done with the tmi...lol Happy stitching

Terry D, Thanks for the heads up. I am well aware of the advantages of using Petite Braid Treasures. I have used them for quite a while. They are soooooo easy to work with! Nettie - maddie lynn sounds adorable. I am always fascinated with how we come up with names for our pets. I once took care of a stray kitten that was part of a litter of three. He was the runt. So we gave him the distinguished name of "Mr. Tanner"!! We always got a kick out of being in the Vet's office...the door would open and the Tech would call out: "Mr. Tanner" you are next!!

Nettie - You don't have to use linen for the HAED patterns - They use everything from 11 count thru 20 count Aida as well as 22 count Hardanger and they are all stunning with little to no loss of detail - Its all in the charting and they do an excellent job. They have a Facebook page - you should join and look at some of the lovely creations.

VCESS, regarding using the higher evenweaves- I use the higher count evenweaves (25, 28, mostly) for 2 main reasons. First, because the evenweave fabric allows me to have all my X's to be the same size compared to some of the linens that have the horizontal and veritical strands different thicknesses. The other reason is, After the project is completely stitched, I like the background fabric -that will show around the outside of the stitching project- to have a very fine look to it since I don't Usually use matting when I get ready to frame.

Sure, if fabric is going to show...but with most cover-all's, for some reason, I usually picture it with a mat or no fabric showing. :)

I have never used linen but have used lugana cloth several times. I liked it as it was a soft material and I could see the threads (my eyesight sight is not good). The patterns I used it for were by Peter Underhill who uses alot of what I call squashed and elongated cross stitches which are easier to do on lugana than aida cloth. But this is a personal preferance and other would probably use aida and get a nice result.

That's what's so nice about cross stitching; the stitcher is the artist and chooses the 'canvas' to stitch upon, chooses the pattern, then sets it all into place with matting and framing or not... I really hope the neighbors stop regressing back to 3-year old behaviors and go to bed or at least stop talking to each other like they are all stone deaf....🤔 Me thinks it's attention-seeking behavior....

I also love Lugana, the 25 ct! :) But am ready to try some of the smaller counts and also want to try to stitch over one on the 25 ct. I've used really soft, nice to stitch Lugana and have also bought what I would call low quality. It's rough feeling and nubby almost. I don't know how I came by it. But plan to throw it out. I foolishly stitched a small project on it and will not even have it framed. So, I guess what I'm trying to say here, be sure to look at it and touch it if possible. As far as the printing goes, I waste too much ink because sometimes I have mishaps. Especially since I have this new, fancy printer that does everything except what I want it to do. I miss my old one but it is what it is. I turn my "stuff" over to the DD and hopefully get it back within a reasonable time frame. She knows a great copying place. It's close to her job I believe and that's all I want or need to know. We no longer drive Interstate. State highways are bad enough.

I am really fascinated by these HAEDs from reading this post. Why do they take so long? Are these the ones I saw somewhere with all the floss hanging down? Where can I find a site with step by step pictures or videos?

There are several tutorials on youtube regarding HAED patterns. Just type HAED cross stitch in the search field.

Hi eagle, First, if you have 't been to the HAED website, take a look at it. I believe ALL their patterns suggest that you use 25-count Lugana and you stitch "over one" which does take time. There are some HAED patterns available for sale here on ECS. HAED designs are very detailed, use lots of floss colors, (especially look at the designs that have the word "Max Color" after the chart's title- up to 200 or more colors in the pattern). Depending on how much time you work on it, the patterns can take from 18 months or more to complete. My "Sacred Hour" HAED took me about 2-3 months to work from the top of the pattern down to the woman's shoulder. I don't know about videos but I would suggest looking at You-Tube for tutorials and the "scarletquince.com" website has some wonderful tutorials as well. If you do decide to invest time into stitching one of their patterns, you have a couple of small stitching projects to go to if you get tired of working on an HAED design. :)

Because it's easier on your hands, VCESS. Not as stiff as Aida and the fractionals are so easy to do. when you stitch over two.

I.m amazed at you ladies who stitch over one. I had my last eye checkup last month. The eye doctor said that my cataracts are not quite ready for removal. I've been hearing that since 2014. Before i knew i had cataracts i did one small Christmas ornament over one on 28 ct linen. It was a partridge in a pear tree designed by Teresa Wentzler. When i was done I said never again. I'm still working and my best stitching time is a few minutes before i leave for work. I'm still working on Over the River, a chart that i had to fix. I work on it in between smaller projects. It was in a closet for ten years before I fixed the flawed chart so I could complete the project. I hate UFO's. I have quite a few Artecy and Orenco originals that I want to do after I retire. My only fear is not being able to afford the supplies. I'm hoping to win the Powerball aby year now.

I usually buy HAED patterns when they have a flash sale. I have a bunch of stuff on my wish list, and sometimes when I'm surfing the site, I'll notice a sale, so then I check my wish list and see if the price has been reduced. If it has, then I just pick a chart on my wish list and purchase it. The most recent flash sale that I took advantage of had the pattern price reduced 50% off so that was really fun. If you're not sure about HAED, check out their freebie charts page, and then download one try it out and see if you like it or if it's too hard, then you won't have to feel bad that you didn't like it.

I love HAED, all their patterns are full cross stitches and no backstitching!!! I have several of their patterns and have never had a problem with them. They are quite large and very detailed and most of them run around 80-100 colors (double for max color) but that is what I love best, it will come out looking just like the picture!! I do however have a smaller project on the side when doing a HEAD because I don't want to burn myself out on the bigger one.

I love very detailed charts. The first 20 years I stitched, I was looking for more detailed charts. Then I found HAED thru "Patterns Online". Then I was hooked. I love working on these charts with the 25 count material. I keep one going all the time, but work on smaller designs also. In fact I have a couple of charts on the way to my house. They had a flash sale and I just couldn't resist, plus my older daughter gave me a gift certificate for Mothers' Day.

There is a lot of chatter on HAED so I had to join this brave group. I am well into the second year working one over one 25 Laguna on "Viktoriya" just background now so it is slow going and not much fun. I had to do a few quick projects to survive and overcome saying forget finishing her..She is still beautiful, love the hat but the background YUK...