INSTITCHES79

Hi,

First of all, I think your ideas are terrific!! I have been cross stitching for 12yrs & I absolutely love to make personalized gifts, especially for weddings.

Here are my suggestions for your questions:

For the bride:

1. I would use linen. Although it is smaller count, I think it would be much better than aida for a project like this. I am partial to belfast linen.
2. I would use the colors of your son & soon-to-be daughter-in-law's wedding. Since there are so many colors of green out there, I would definitely take the bride with me when purchasing the green thread or a sample of the color that they have selected.
3. Although I do not believe they make a special thread, I am partial to DMC. And, I was thinking, you may be able to find a clear, plastic protector to cover the embroidered cover at a specialty shop. This would help to protect the book and your work as well.
4. Placement will depend on size of your fabric for sure; but I would start out with graph paper, pick the font that you want to use for the names/dates, ect. Then, I would graph it out first. I would definitely center the project. Maybe taking into consideration to leave a little space under your son's name for their daughter/child.

For the groom:

2. Same as bride's.
3. Same as bride's; except I'm not sure if there is a clear protector for this.
4. I would add a simple border all the way around; maybe some pretty lilac flowers and ivy. Then, for the placement of the names, I would first graph them out as the same as the bride's, to center it. But, I would start as close to the top as I could to leave room to be added to. Oh, maybe you could add a lilac flower/ivy border to the prayer book as well?

I hope this helps you out. Happy stitching! I would love to know how it turns out!

~Jenn