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SARAH Cornelius loves a good cwtch and shes not alone. Shes the owner of Wales largest online dating agency Cwtch.com (the Welsh word for a hug) and has 1,500 members logging on and looking for love. Once snubbed as a breeding ground for weirdos, perverts and cheats, the whole online dating business has reached the age of consent with between three and seven million people across the world using such sites every month. There are sites for horse lovers, tall people, bikers and vegans. And in Wales Sarahs Cwtch is leading the way bringing getting Welsh people together after her friends complained that the people they met online always lived too far away. Its unrealistic to expect that someone from Cardiff will travel as far as Edinburgh or Leeds just to meet up for a drink. If people can meet someone from their own locality, it takes off the pressure, and makes the whole dating process a lot easier, said Sarah, who took over the running of the site last summer and in that time has seen membership increase to 1,500. More than half are based in Cardiff and the majority are based in South Wales. For example, theres John the 58-year-old from Cowbridge who describes himself as semi house-trained and looking for a lady under 55 or Ukclarkkent, a 31-year-old recently moved to Cardiff and wants to find a female friend to go out with on weekends. Zoom Zoom Zoom, a 35-year-old woman from Cardiff who describes herself as a low maintenance and loves life in the fast lane. Cwtch.com isnt just a lonely hearts club its for people who want to develop all kinds of relationships, explained Sarah, who won the title of Welsh Woman of the Year in 2003 for her inspirational work setting up the Joshua Foundation charity in memory of her seven-year-old son Joshua who died of cancer in 1998. The charitys already raised pounds 3m to make dreams come true for other terminally ill children through a range of fundraising activities from sales of charity wristbands, fundraising events and even a special range of underwear. And for every new member joining Cwtch.com, pounds 1 goes into The Joshua Foundation. But Sarah has no worries that her charity should be associated with an online dating agency. The site is strict about how potential dates present themselves. Its head and shoulders photos only, you wont find any pictures of MPs in their underpants on Cwtch.com, explained Sarah. Although one or two of the men are proud of their bodies and have photographs of their physiques on the site. Many of our members arent necessarily looking for a full-on relationship straight away and would enjoy the chance to meet people for companionship. Im a classic case of someone who always puts their work first. Ive never actually used an online dating site personally, but I can see the advantage, said Sarah, 38. A few of my boyfriends have gone by the wayside because Ive been too busy. And a lot of my girlfriends are in the same situation. Its become more socially acceptable. It used to be that people kept quiet about lonely heart clubs, yet people have always met people in bars. We live in a world where its difficult to meet other single people or rather other single people make it difficult to be met. We order our shopping online, we book our holidays online so it makes sense to find a partner online. To find out more log on to Cwtch.com date accompli Cwtch.com. WHAT HE SAID... Name: Christian Marsh. Age: 37. From: Whitchurch, Cardiff. Occupation: Civil engineer. About me: Brown hair, blue eyes, athletic build. Interests include cooking, movies, shopping, gym, aerobics, boxing, wrestling and arts and crafts. Looking for: A woman aged 25 to 39. Why internet dating? It keeps you away from the meat market and you dont have to subject yourself to the drunkenness that goes with it. I joined Cwtch in April I had tried other dating sites before, but they werent local enough. What attracted you to Sue: Her online profile said she enjoyed life and was independent. And she presented herself well. I contacted her via e-mail and we arranged to meet up within a week. First impressions: When she turned up on our date shed made an effort. She looked good. What did you talk about? It turned out we had a lot of common ground. We were both into fitness and training and we are even members of the same gym, the David Lloyd Centre. We talked about our holidays. Wed both been skiing. Was it love at first sight? Not for me, she talked non-stop. Have you met since? We exchanged numbers, but we havent called each other since, although we have exchanged the occasional text. WHAT SHE SAID... Name: Sue Oliver. Age: 35. From: Penylan, Cardiff. Occupation: Business analyst. About me: Im quite sporty and go to the gym. I like socialising and meeting people . I like scuba diving and skiing and will try anything once. Looking for: Someone with a similar philosophy. Why internet dating? I always thought it was for geeks and weirdos. But a work colleague joined one that promised to find her someone within six months and they did and shes a right picky madam. So I thought Id give it a go and with Cwtch they do the vetting for you. Its safer than a drunken conversation in a club at 1am in the morning. What attracted you to Christian? He seemed chatty and funny and his photograph online looked really professional. On paper we seemed compatible. First impressions: He was dressed smartly, shook my hand and offered me a drink which was chivalrous. What did you talk about? I had a glass of wine to drink and wWe immediately hit it off. Id been to a wine tasting so we got chatting about that. We had a lot of similar interests. Was it love at first sight? Christian was too body beautiful for me. I think hes looking for perfection. Have you met since? It was a nice night and he gave me a lift home at the end, but Im going to keep looking on the internet. TOP TIPS FOR LOVE HUNTING THINKING about looking for love online? Here are some Cwtch.com tips... About you