The watercolour paintings of the late John Stubbs have been expertly translated by leading UK studio Heritage Stitchcraft into three ranges of exquisite cross stitch kits ...

• Cats - captivating and realistic, set against floral backgrounds
  
• Dogs - endearing and friendly pedigree pets
  
• Wildlife - native birds and animals in their natural habitat

You will love the sweet bird cross stitch pictures by Valerie Pfeiffer. There's a set of pairs of colourful little birds with flowers, some cute, fluffy baby birds from little tits to owls and puffins. She also has a range of attractive flower posies.

Heritage Stitchcraft are a very high quality studio. Their black and white charts are large and easy to read and they always provide two charts: one with just the cross stitch and the other with the overlaid backstitch. They include a separate sheet of instructions for either working with evenweave fabric or Aida depending on the kit. All instructions are in English alone.

Their designers produce cross stitch kits to suit a range of abilities from junior through to advanced.

Marjolein Bastin is a well known Dutch illustrator whose subjects are drawn from nature. Her work is also popular in North America and Lanarte have converted her beautiful pictures into cross stitch to be enjoyed worldwide.

To date, over 40 of her designs have been translated into cross-stitch with both large and small designs giving a wide choice for all lovers of cross-stitch. You will find stitching them a pleasure, particularly because of the variety of color and the beautiful detail of the design.

British artist Margaret Sherry is the favourite designer of those who love cute and witty creatures, especially cats.

She was always keen on drawing but, as her father disapproved, she became an art teacher.

Although she liked teaching people to draw exactly what they see, she also freelanced, illustrating childrens' books, greeting cards …

She has a great sense of humour as can be seen from her self portrait and, of course, her designs!

Heritage Stitchcraft are the leading UK studio and their products are of a very high quality. Their cross stitch kits and leaflets always provide a large and easy-to-read black and white version of the chart with just the cross stitch and another chart with the overlaid backstitch. They include a separate sheet of instructions for working either on evenweave or Aida depending on which fabric is supplied with the kit. All instructions are in English.

Heritage have several in-house designers and produce kits to suit a range of abilities from junior through to advanced.

Heritage Junior Plus kits are aimed at the over 10's and based on Margaret Sherry designs. These kits are extremely well produced with a colour cross stitch chart, no partial stitches and 11 count Aida fabric. There are full instructions and even an extra piece of Aida with thread to practice!

Anne Peden is Arts and Designs own in-house designer. Anne has over 40 years' stitching experience and has designed and worked hundreds of projects in cross stitch and embroidery.

Our own brand kits embody her creative talents, skill and experience, and come with full colour charts and with the edges of the fabric zigzagged, ready to begin immediately.

You can find many interesting greetings card kits for special occasions, cushion and curtain tie back kits for home interiors, and lots of pictures, many with a Scottish theme.

Maria van Scharrenburg has produced a range of cross stitch fantasy figures, romantic baby pictures and a cute nursery range for Lanarte.

Maria van Scharrenburg is a well established artist who began her career in her early twenties and since then has developed a unique style of her own. She is not only a painter but she has also produced works of acrylic painting and has experimented with various techniques involving textiles.

Since 1982, Maria has concentrated exclusively on cross stitch designs. As her business grew, she found herself more and more involved with the business activities and decided that she was missing her true passion for design. She therefore passed the production and marketing of her designs to Lanarte and she now devotes her time to creating beautiful designs in cross stitch which are enjoyed all over the world.

Lanarte are a well-established Dutch company with many and varied designs. They offer quality large scale charts in black and white with detailed instructions in several languages.

Cross stitch kits from the landscape and figure paintings of John Clayton come in interesting shapes: tall and thin, short and wide, and circular. All are very picturesque. The International Collection features several famous international panoramas and there are many attractive countryside views.

You will also enjoy the Elegance range of beautiful ladies from different eras, a change of style with the stitching feathered at the edges.

Flights of Fancy is a collection of birds in flight from the little hummingbird to the elegant swan.

John Clayton has also produced a set of vertical flower panels with attractive shaded backgrounds.

Heritage Stitchcraft are a reliable and quality studio. Their black and white charts are large and easy to read and they always provide two charts: one for the cross stitch pattern and the other showing the overlaid backstitch. They include a separate sheet of instructions for working with evenweave fabric or Aida depending on the kit. All instructions are in English alone. Heritage kits suit a range of abilities from junior through to advanced.

Green Apple Inc. has been a leader in the cross stitch industry for many years and has become known for having designs of sophistication and artistic quality - designs truly worthy of becoming heirlooms.

Among their most popular are the adorable Beatrix Potter and Cicely Mary Barker's Flower Fairies, as well as Southern Roots and French Country Designs. These come mainly in booklet form with a large number of pictures in each, clearly illustrated on black and white charts. Some booklets have colour illustrations of the finished works.

Many of the individual designs are small and would therefore be suitable for all abilities. Larger pieces would be for those with more experience. We have chosen their Beatrix Potter collection with converted illustrations of birds and animals from her books which are suitable for children and the nursery. With many different formats and uses these are excellent value.

Beatrix Potter was born in 1866 into an upper class Victorian family in London. While her brother was sent away to school she was educated at home in art and music. She became interested in nature and the environment in family holidays spent in Scotland and the Lake District and became a skilled artist at an early age. As well as the famous illustrations for her books, she painted landscapes, flowers and fossils.

Her first book The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published in 1902 and a large number of small books followed up until around 1920, featuring her much loved characters Jemima Puddle-duck, Mrs Tiggy Winkle, Tom Kitten and many more.

She retired to the Lake District where she bought a sheep farm and with the steady stream of income from her books she bought more land in the area which on her death was left to the National Trust to ensure that the beauty of the area would remain unspoiled. Her legacy is now part of the Lake District National Park.

Her most famous books have been published by Frederick Warne & Company since 1902.