Fancy Mug Rugs

n-the-hoop projects are very popular.  There is something satisfying [More]

Embroider Buddies

I love to embroider… and there’s nothing I like to embroider more than Embroider Buddies. I make lot [More]

Tame Those Tees

Yesterday, I was prepping t-shirts from the Simple to Chic T-shirt Remakes collection that [More]

Bobbin Spool

If you stitch freestanding applique or reversible applique like I do, you have plenty of bobbins of [More]
AnnTheGran.com | Beautiful people make beautiful things

Autopunch and bean stitch tutorial

As promised here's a mini tutorial on how to use PE-Design Lite in combination with our Pre-Design Studio program. It's getting the best of two worlds: create filled areas using the AutoPunch function in PE Lite on the basis of an image made with Pre-Design Studio and create bean stitch line... [More]

My Valentine Box

Here we are coming up on Valentines Day, coincidentally Bill’s and my half year anniversary. Coincidentally because we first met on the 14th of August and, when we decided to marry, set the date at one year from our first meeting. There wasn’t any thought about Valentines Day and it was ... [More]

Graffiti Glam Coming To Community Circle 2009

Mary and I are so excited about coming to Florida for the Community Circle Event the last weekend in March!!  What perfect timing.  It's been a bitter cold winter here in Iowa -- and I am really looking forward to FLORIDA.It is always a joy for me to present my seminar, "Life Is N... [More]

Sun in Florida - Shade in Holland (quick and easy project)

Only a couple of weeks to go before I meet you all at the Community Circle Event in Orlando Florida. I will meet you all, right? You just have to come: in two days you will learn more than you could learn in two years on your own. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then lecture demos are worth ... [More]

What Makes Our Furniture Different - Construction Boards and Finishes

At Sylvia, we pay attention to detail and quality.  Period.  So if we plan on spending quite a bit of time and money on the hardware we use, the dowels necessary to hold tight the joints of the cabinets, and even the lift for the sewing machine, it only makes sense to use quality construct... [More]

Greetings from Mary Mulari - Looking Forward to Sharing Project Ideas

Greetings to the Community Circle participants and those of you who are still thinking about attending! Rita and I, the Midwest YaYa Sisters, are eager to come to Florida for this event. Both of us are looking out our windows at lots of snow. Here in northern Minnesota we've set some records fo... [More]

LaRueSews-Quilts - Tricky Triangles

Hi there, all of you Ann the Gran readers.  Welcome back to LaRueSews-quilts.  This is a bright and sunny day in east central, Alabama.  It is, however a bit chilly outside.  But I guess that’s better than cold, cloudy and rainy.I have said before, and I’d like to say... [More]

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Embellisment - An Introduction

Hi, from Texas! I'm James Raymer, Vice President of Dalco Home Sew. I am excited and honored to be part of your “Community Circle.” I can still remember when I first met Ann. Ann and I were invited to a retreat at Myrtle Beach. This being my first show I was in awe of meeting a real... [More]

Embroidering From Orlando to Holland to Toronto...and Back

There are a lot of good things about working for myself at home. I can come and go as I please. I can work in my pajamas. There’s no commute. There are some downsides. I work on the week-ends and in the middle of the night. The work is always there; I can’t walk away from it. But the big... [More]

Tips on a Custom Thread Palette, the AHA Feature, and Plans for a New Throw Pillow

It’s interesting how you can have a great idea during a very busy day and then when you sit down to write….you draw a blank. I am hoping that I remember what that great idea was before I get to the end of this blog.  In the meanwhile today was one of those busy days at work that yo... [More]

June from Brother - No Snow But a Show In Orlando!

The weather in New Jersey this week is snowy and really cold and to some folks that may not seem so wonderous but when we had an unexpected family gathering in New York last week it made one little girl happy.  My 16 year old niece was visiting from Ocala, Fl and she had never seen snow in her ... [More]

LaRueSews-Quilting-Straighten Up!

In beginning this blog, I realized that I need to back track and talk about something I left out some time ago. You really need to straighten the fabric before you begin any project.  That doesn’t include quilting alone.  It includes any kind of sewing.  Because of the nature of... [More]

Florida, Here We Come!

Packing our bags...It's official, we booked our flights and made hotel reservations: we will be teaching / demoing at the upcoming AnnTheGran Community Circle event on March 27 and 28, 2009 in Orlando!And what a great coincidence it is that we will be at the AnnTheGran event, in the "roots&... [More]

What is all this stuff and how did it get into my house?

We’re trying to pare down here at the old homestead. I have no idea where all this stuff came from but it’s gotta go! Okay, I know where it came from . . . . Live in the same house for 47 years and stuff piles up. Plus, Bill has a habit that I’ve heard that a lot of men have: Somet... [More]

What Makes Us Different – How Our Furniture is Designed

Until now, I’ve talked about the things we use in our furniture such as the hardware, the sewing machine lift, and even the dowels and glue we use to put it all together.  But that comes after the cabinet comes off the drawing board and proceeds to construction.   Other than things... [More]

LaRueSews-Quilts-I'm Baaaaak!

I hope everyone had a really great Christmas/Chanukah/holiday season.  As well the happiest New Year since January 1, 2008. ;o) Before I began this blog, I checked with the folks at AnnTheGran to be sure you all want me to continue with my ramblings.  Since this is the first time for me in... [More]

It takes time to save time...

Happy New Year!Can you imagine? A new year, again? It feels like it's only a few months ago since we all watched the fireworks going from New Zealand / Australia / Europe and finally USA to welcome the new Millennium! And now all of a sudden we're in 2009...Time is one of the things in life ... [More]

What Makes Our Furniture Different – The Hardware We Use

Quality Made Sylvia Sewing Furniture Our commitment to quality extends to, what some might consider, even the most mundane items.  I’m talking about the hardware we use in all of Sylvia’s sewing furniture.  In the past few blog posts, I’ve talked about how we assemble o... [More]

Yes, it WAS a good year!

Long about New Year's Eve I was hearing a lot of mumbling and grumbling about 2008, talking heads saying that thank goodness 2008 is over. Well, yes, the economic messiness of the last couple of months of 2008 was bad thing and embarking on a brand spanking new 2009 is a good thing, even though ... [More]

June from Brother - Tips on Personalizing Your Gifts

I am sure that each of you are just like me and you are running around trying to get as much accomplished before the year ends as you can.  Whether it is trying to get the last-minute gifts made or find the perfect gift, they would often look better if they were personalized, wouldn’t the... [More]

Gift Giving Journey #5 - Walk a mile in my slippers!

Greetings everyone! Can you believe it?  The end of the journey and all the gifts you're making are nearly complete, right?!?  Now I am quite sure there are some of you who actually DO have your gifts finished, neatly wrapped, and waiting under the tree for the lucky recipie... [More]

What Makes Our Furniture Different – The 3-Stage Rudersburg lift

  Special Offer - For free shipping within the contiguous United States and Canada, click here to view these cabinets in our online store. In the early 1980’s I was approached by local sewing machine retailer about building a good quality sewing cabinet. At the time none w... [More]

Finished Objects

       Individual characters (letters, numbers and punctuation marks) fr [More]
All posts tagged 'cs6000i'

Brother wins another award for innovative product design!

Dear Friends, It surely has been a long time since I have blogged but I did want to share the story of this very prestigious award that Brother has recently received....in the name of a wonderful sewing machine and it's very innovative features.... BROTHER INDUSTRIES, LTD. RECEIVES INTERN... [More]

People I meet and why they are hip to the possibilities of sewing…

In today's office environment  the more popular method of communication is email but when my phone rings I can almost guarantee that I will be hearing from someone who is completely enthralled by sewing and wants to tell more people about what is happening in the world of sewing in the... [More]