Fall is my favorite season. I love how the weather changes from brutally hot to just perfect! I love being cozy and taking out my current stitching project, curling up on a chair beside the fire and watching how my African Folklore Embroidery design takes on a life of its own. My parents are current... [More]

  The following tips can be used for both Windows XP and Vista. When you think about the amount of money you are spending on your PC and related items, it might make you feel like you have spent more than the benefits warrant.  With a PC, buying the initial equipment is just the start.&n... [More]

It’s Chilly here in Alabama today.  That is to say, rainy 70 degrees feels cold compared with 90+ degrees.  This has been a frustrating day.  I have a little project that I wanted to talk about this time.  However, I’ve lost the special ruler I need for the project.&n... [More]

OK, I admit it.  I despise making jack-O-lanterns.  The carving is OK but in my mind cleaning out the pumpkin guts has never been fun.  Yuck-O!  And because it gets so cold here before Halloween these hollowed out orange decorations many times look like little old men by Trick or... [More]

The following tips can be used for both Windows XP and Vista. Speed Testing Your PC If you are among the more progressive computer users, you may just be using ‘wireless' computing.  There are so many advantages to that networking, not the least of which is the fact that many peop... [More]

Well since the last time I wrote I have celebrated my birthday in style and had a nice vacation to boot!  My husband worked so hard to give a me a "Surprise Birthday" party and he really succeeded.  It was a surprise party with a beach theme at a seashore restaurant.  One of... [More]

     Individual characters (letters, numbers and punctuation marks) from my alph [More]

Hi again. Well it has been a great week!   Thank you for all your questions and energetic comments regarding frames.  The response has been so overwhelming that we have put together a Webinar regarding frames, their Uses and were to get them.   Join me as I present "Hoo... [More]

  I enjoy working with computers and the software that runs them.  I will try to have my tips cover both XP and Vista when possible.  I know that so many of you are really MAC fans, but I do not have MAC tips, sorry. If there is something I love more than machine embroidery (and I r... [More]

Being the "Meesy" to two beautiful granddaughters I am always on the lookout for cute things that I can make for them or with them.  They are very girly girls and love fancy ribbons, barrettes and bows.  Last weekend I went on a getaway with a friend and we browsed through shops ... [More]

Hello, My name is Scott Phillips and I am happy to have you here with us at Scott's Corner. I have been in the embroidery industry for 20 years and my family has nearly 30 years experience in production embroidery and monogramming. I believe that being an informed embroiderer on the latest te... [More]

Hello there, everyone.  First, I want to tell you the reason for the title of this BLOG. Monday, I did exactly what I’ve been telling you all this time NOT TO DO.  I cut MY finger with the rotary cutter.  Yup!  I did it.  I am glad to say that it’s not very ba... [More]

So, in the last year, I was lucky enough to get engaged, survived the familiy phone calls asking me about her, made it through an engagement party, a bridal shower, meeting her family and more people than I could ever hope to remember .. and, tomorrow is the rehear... [More]

By Eileen Roche, Editor of Designs in Machine Embroidery I get tons of questions about embroidery - [More]

Threads for Thought: Two New Lines for Your Next Project Experienced decorators know that quality lies stitch deep. With so many thread options to choose from, embroiderers can customize the look and feel of every project they produce. Further expanding its line of quality threads, Brother Internat... [More]

Halloween is closer than you think! I always get excited now that I have two granddaughters to watch. It makes the holiday so much more fun.  I love listening to the older one tell me what she wants to be and deciding for her sister. Last year they were invited to a party. We had a great time c... [More]

You just never know who is going to be on the other end of the phone line when you get a call these days!  Just the other day my phone rang at 4 pm on a Friday and it was the "Rachael Ray" show calling.  Honest!  An associate producer of the show was wondering if I had ... [More]

This was not the original project that I planned for this week but was inspired out of necessity.  I am forever trying to do more than one thing at a time and this morning was no exception.  I was going along answering emails, downloading some items that I needed and eating break... [More]

Hi Everyone.  It’s been a few weeks since I met you here at LaRueSews-Quilts.  I’ve taken a little time off to re-group, rest and plan.  Now as you asked, it’s time to announce the LaRueSews Block of the Month.  I will go along with the government and provide an... [More]

Individual characters (letters, numbers and punctuation marks) from my alphabets canbe found on my Stock Design Page.  My designs are also available in packs, as described inthis blog.  Those can be found here.  For designs and packs available in multiple sizes,choose the size you wan... [More]

Tomorrow nite, Thursday, August 20,  Lifetime televison you will be able to resume the fun of w [More]

It's HOT!!! Here in NJ it has finally passed the 90 degree mark...now it's summer for real.    It's HOT!!! Remember that I promised that there would be great new machines introduced at the annual Brother convention?  When our dealers convened in Memphis last week the... [More]

"Hello, yeah, it's been a while / Not much, how 'bout youI'm not sure why I "blogged" / I guess I really just wanted to talk to you" ~ hmmm, that sounds familiar .. OK OK .. I've taken some time off, but wedding plans are really eating up my free time ..I long f... [More]

Well, it's August and the "Dog Days of Summer" have finally arrived here.  That means it is hot, hot, hot and when the temps get up around 100 degrees it is time to let the garden go and sew.  I am done putting up corn, beans, berries and peaches.  I do not wish to see a... [More]

I would have to call myself a fabric junkie. I love solid colored fabric and prints and buy it even when I have no earthly idea of what I will do with it. I have so much fabric that my daughters always come by and "shop" in my sewing room before making a trip to the fabric store.  And... [More]

Yesterday was a day of fun and prizes for the members of the Memory Makers Quilt Guild.  At the first meeting in 2009, I gave the members of my guild a Challenge.  The Challenge was to make a quilt that fit all the requirement sets out in the rules of the challenge.  The challenge was... [More]

On a beautiful sunny afternoon last weekend I got to take a garden walk with my mom (red dress) .&nb [More]

If I have one recollection of my childhood that stands out, it has to be the sound of the wooden scr [More]

When I was a little girl growing up in South Africa, Fridays were always special baking days and cupcakes were my favorite thing to bake with my mother and sister. Even better than baking the cupcakes was the frosting and decorating of them afterwards. My mother would decorate each cupcake with twir... [More]

     Individual characters (letters, numbers and punctuation marks) from my alphabets canbe found on my Stock Design Page.  My designs are also available in packs, as described inthis blog.  Those can be found here.  For designs and packs available in multiple size... [More]

I have wanted to try this technique for 2 years but something always gets in the way.  Such is [More]

Hello all!  I am Virginia, an embroidery enthusiast and an educator for Dakota Collectibles.   I love creating things with embroidery and thought it would be fun to share my projects and ideas with others, so I am entering the world of blogging.  I use Dakota Collectibles' designs... [More]

Would you believe that a certain king actually loved embroidery?  Well, King James I of England [More]

I love to read tips and tricks about all sorts of things.  I love computer tips (if you have a [More]

Typical gift ideas for newlyweds include linens, fine china, or kitchen wares. But if you are looking for a wedding gift unlike any other, consider a monogrammed Christmas tree skirt. Ann's Battenberg Lace tree skirt looks quite elegant and is perfect for beginner ... [More]

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]