Studio H Canada International Artists Residencies

Arrival of the Janome 550e Limited Edition Embroidery Machine

Our embroidery hearts are on fire!

We have some fabulous news for textile artists who are looking for access to new textile tools and equipment when they come here for a sponsored textile residency or an art residency at any time.

Studio H Canada just made a major upgrade and we now have a Janome 550e Limited Edition embroidery machine!! From the moment I unboxed this baby with my dear friend Shayndelynne on Saturday, it’s been a thrill to say the least.

Why an embroidery machine?

Before you ask, yes, I have done hand-embroidery and I love it. When I was in Iceland at the Ós Textile Residency at The Icelandic Textile Centre in Blönduós, I learned machine-embroidery on a fabulous Husqvarna VIKING Designer Epic 2 using mySewnet software. However, that Husqvarna was a fantastic game-changer, but out of my price range for the studio – at least for now. Check out my Instagram for a series of posts about this great residency experience.

I finally decided to get the Janome at a local shop – Sawyer Sewing Centre. They have loads of machines in all price ranges including the high end $15K plus machines. I felt this was a great start for Studio H as it’s modern, has loads of features, and a variety of frames including a larger one; plus they had a wonderful sale so the price-point was impossible to resist.

Software

I downloaded mySewnet software so any artist can use it or they can download the free version themselves and just put the designs onto the USB stick for the 550e. Tip – you can prepare designs in advance of coming to the studio and be ready to get going immediately. BTW – the Janome software is $1900 CAD so completely out of my range, but it looks wonderful. My main concern with any embroidery software is not about the pre-made designs, but rather having the ability to create my own designs in Adobe Illustrator or other graphics programs and transfer those designs to the machine. Its a learning curve, but one that I love because software is always improving and interesting to me.

Needless to say we are excited to add this machine to our roster of equipment on the studio information page here. I am posting a few pics and videos about the beginning of this journey. Feel free to add comments or questions below!

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Artists of all media and disciplines are welcome to apply to Studio H Canada International Art Residency – please check out the link here to apply.

Check out previous posts about artists here.