For several years I have seen and heard about bags made to bake potatoes in the microwave. They are touted to produce fluffy, moist baked potatoes.  So when I had all the cotton stuff out to make the tortilla warmer I decided to make one and see.  Hey, what do you know, it works pretty wel... [More]

  This fall, you will be seeing lots of thicker threads – yarn-like in appearance – in retail stores. On my current trip East, I have seen tons of this decorating method on everything from sweatshirts to bags and even on the back of woven menswear shirts.     Industry su... [More]

Just when I think I am not going to be able to come up with another blog, something crosses my compu [More]

Hard to believe summer is almost over and Autumn is right around the corner.  Autumn can be a beautiful time of year though with all the colors changing, and is a good time to start on your embroidery projects for all of the upcoming holiday and seasonal events.    &n... [More]

It has been a while since I posted here at the AnnTheGran site. Earlier this year we have released a new version of Pre-Design Studio, named "Pre-Design Studio III". We have added many functions that make it even easier to quickly create your own artwork for embroidery digitizing sof... [More]

Sometime ago, I saw an advertisement for tortilla warmers and loved the idea.  They looked fun and useful but the cost was $8.00 - $12.00 each, depending on the size, plus shipping.  "What a great way to use up scraps!" I thought.  So, I tore out the ad and saved it.&nb... [More]

You don't need a $100,000 embroidery/laser cutting combo machine to create the reverse applique look that's so hot in retail stores right now. And it's the perfect time of year to put this impressive technique on sweatshirts. You can put this technique on lots of fabrics, but I particula... [More]

As you probably know by now we have been slowly trying to go green.  So we use cloth bags (see designer bags)for most of our shopping.  Even so, we still end up with some of those thin plastic bags from various places.  They have some uses such as lining the bathroom trash cans, tying... [More]

  The entries in this year African Folklore Embroidery $500 Challenge, were spectacular. Congratulations to first place winner, Roberta Peterson from Woodland, Washington. Roberta attended an African folklore Embroidery class that I taught at Monica’s quilt and bead shop in Palm Spri... [More]

When I first heard the term "Portable Loyalty" I thought that it did not refer to me. I am a loyal c [More]

I’m often asked about the fonts we choose for various projects, and folks are sometimes surprised when they find out some of my most favorite fonts—the ones I go to over and over again—are fonts digitized by AnnTheGran herself!  If you search the www.annthegran.com website for... [More]

Fortunately, manufacturers have developed wonderful, lightweight, moisture-wicking materials to keep us dry and comfortable in this record-setting heat. Unfortunately, stabilizing these materials is not as simple as other knits. In addition to being very thin, they also have more stretch than typica... [More]

When it comes to family, the words family emergency causes me to have chills. We all know what those [More]

Have you seen the big purses, or should I say suitcases, that are in style this year?  They certainly hold a lot of stuff but I continually see women trying to climb inside them to find their key rings.  Watching them always made me smile until the other night.  The heat index re... [More]

   Wouldn't it be great if you could turn your sew-outs into a well-presented sample book? One that you could use to seel from, or just to show off your workmanship? You can! It's easy, inexpensive and quick to use some of your existing stitch-outs that had been relegated to ... [More]

The past four weeks of summer have flown.  For the sixth year in a row I have been teaching children African Folklore Embroidery at a summer art camp. The children from ages 7-11 have from over thirty different arts related classes from which to choose. It is an honor that African Folklore E... [More]

When you hear of flowers and lace put together you probably think of a wedding or a nice country gif [More]

When you first started to learn machine embroidery, there was so much to learn that it was a very da [More]

Our girls have longer hair but it is so fine.  Pony tails and pig tails seem to last about 20 minutes before the hair starts creeping out and looks messy.  We saw the teens at the park wearing bandanas  to keep their hair back and the oldest commented that she thought they w... [More]

Slippage and marring are the two biggest challenges when hooping satin. Because of its soft hand, it is necessary to hold it securely without damaging the delicate surface yarns. Hoops may have nicks, splinters or burrs that can catch and damage these long delicate warp threads. I prefer that the ho... [More]

From the moment the first item of cloth was embroidered, clothing, church and home décor would never [More]

Gold Coast, Australia was recently the site of one of the largest embroidery conventions ever held, [More]

  Identify your pet and add fun sayings to pet bandanas. Make a patriotic one for the 4th of July - and then keep it rolling, making a new one for each holiday or mood. Rather than regular tie-style bandanas, you might want to make a slip-ver-the-collar bandana. This type of ban... [More]

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?  With silver bells and cockle shells &am [More]

Mom was right, the devil is in the details and he has had a devilishly good time with embroidery - - [More]

USING CREATIVITY TO HELP THE ENVIRONMENT In the next few weeks many cities are enacting a law that will allow grocery stores to charge for plastic bags. Some of you have already been using reusable tote bags; some purchase these bland reusable bags from the store at which they are shopping. Howe... [More]

My cousin just came to visit and helped me do some Spring cleaning (yes...it's Summer already).  I was forced to face the dust that has been finding it's home on my sewing machines over time.  It's really not fair to the machines and I'm sure machine repairmen would tell me... [More]

Because quilt fabric is usually lightweight, embroidered quilt squares are often puckered. To avoid puckers on your squares, fuse a piece of ShirtTailorÒ by PellonÒ to cover the entire back of your square. It will not be removed after embroidery. Rather, it adds body to the quilt squar... [More]

Good Night! SleepTight!  Now that is something we all hope to do each night.  Whenever we don’t get enough sleep, there is usually something we can do about getting more and sounder sleep so we can stay in dream land longer each night.  Some people prefer to have it totally da... [More]

Many of us who are embroidery enthusiasts love to create wonderful projects for those who we love.&n [More]

Know anyone expecting a baby? This quick applique project is a great gift idea.The Sun Face design b [More]

One of the newest trends in machine embroidery seems to be using scuba fabric when stitching quilted [More]

  Stitch up a basket of quilted eggs using the Scalloped Easter Egg design by Pat Williams.&nb [More]

Paisley Easter Egg by Starbird is an adorable design (and it's on sale!) that is perfect for Easter [More]

You may not think of the things you make as an heirloom but, generations from now, someone will find [More]

Don't let the red and green of this Gift Card Holder fool you. You can make gift cards for any occas [More]

The Heart Beehive Applique design makes such a cute valentine. I used Embrilliance Essentials to mak [More]

There are a bunch of .99 designs now available. While looking through them, I found a couple of fabu [More]

Did you know you can use your fonts as templates for hand embroidery?I recently had a request to add [More]

Looking for a quick, last-minute gift? Christmas napkins are perfect! Not only do they dress up your [More]

This cute gingerbread man design would be a nice addition to sweat shirts and kitchen towels but I l [More]

Mug mats are very popular and you can easily make one using an applique rectangle like this one. Ho [More]

With names like Madeira, Robison Anton, Isacord, Exquisite, and Sulky, AnntheGran.com is a one-stop [More]

It's pumpkin time! This adorable towel has an applique pumpkin on both sides. It's a lot easier to m [More]

Get ready for the upcoming holidays with this fantastic 90% off sale. Check them out now, they are o [More]

Back to school often means spending hours at practices and sporting events. This cushion cover is ve [More]

One of the hottest trends in machine embroidery right now is cork. https://www.annthegran.com/p [More]

This project shows how to choose colors that will stand out when monogramming on patterned backgound [More]

It's almost that time of year! Fortunately, there are some fabulous fonts to get you ready and and t [More]

  We were all beginners at one point and we’re still learning along the way. Everyone needs a [More]

Although it may look complicated, cutwork is really quite simple. In fact, if you have ever stitched [More]

I finally had a chance to assemble the name bunting I showed you in this blog. This really is an eas [More]

Recently, while working on a project, I found a solution to wrinkled fabric-type water soluble stabi [More]

T-shirts and sweatshirts make great last-minute gifts, perfect for Mother's Day and other special oc [More]

A couple of weeks ago, I showed you how to add text to embroidery designs using Embrilliance in this [More]

Bunny Treat Bag [More]

Try this design.I'm really liking patchwork applique, which seems to be trending on several quilting [More]

This design is a double applique, and it’s on sale! I’m going to stitch it as a freestanding appliqu [More]

Recently, I have have experienced the pleasure of using a 200 x 260 Snap Hoop Monster and it is fabu [More]

After 15 plus years of machine embroidery, I recently started using Superior Thread's Bottom Line in [More]