Vancouver 2010

As winter wears on we get to relish in the Olympics games of 2010, the culmination of 4 years of trash talking between Scandinavian countries vying for the title of best ice sweeper - aka curling. But seriously I love the Olympics. There's nothing better than competing the top athletes around the world in sports that I would never even have known existed if it weren't for 2 weeks of games every 4 years. My favorite the biathlon - which blends two otherwise contradictory events into a cross county skiing and rifling competition. I little history: the biathlon was actually created in the early 19th century when a Swedish man would ski from bar to bar hustling owners for drinks in target shooting. Well I might have made that up... but it sounds about right. As much as a joke, I really do get into the event. I was on the edge of my seat this weekend watching these athletes ski as fast as they could to the shooting range and without time to wipe the saliva dripping from their mouth, shoot at a target 50 meters away. The saliva was gross but it was impressive to watch them work so hard to ski and then steady themselves enought to shoot a rifle with pinpoint precision. Another thrilling event is speed skating... go Apolo Ohno! Its almost like a Nascar race - where the best part is the crash. This was especially true this year because Apolo won silver because of a crash ahead of him. And my secret joy is the figure skating. I will admit that I watch this intently because I find it so amazing that you can toss a tiny little girl in the air and she lands perfectly on one leg like its nothing. I couldn't do that on carpet, let alone ice. The only thing that makes me mad is USA never gets a medal in couples skating. Why is that? Maybe its because when someone asks an American if they can toss them into the air spinning like a frisbe and land on ice they say... not thanks I'd rather go golfing. Smart.

Looking for sewing accessories

Have you been searching the web for a nice website to buy sewing machines, sewing accessories vacuums or anything in between? Then search no more, visit Sew Vac Direct. You'll find things from ironing boards to ott-lights, sewing machines to air purifiers all at one great location (not to mention our great Arrow and Kangaroo Kabinets *wink wink*). They are one of the largest sewing specialty dealers in America and have been around for over 20 years. One of the great things about Sew Vac Direct is the customer service. They are a friendly group of Texans who will help you with whatever you need. They sell almost any brand you can think of and they are well educated on repairs and upgrades. You won't find any better prices on the Internet and that's their "personal guarantee" Here are their 7 reasons to buy from them:

1. We appreciate you, the customer, and we always treat our customers with the greatest consideration and courtesy.
2. We'll be here tomorrow. Our business has been headquartered in College Station, Texas for twenty years. We are one of the largest dealers in the USA.
3. We'll do our best to remedy any problem you might have with a purchase. We are old fashioned; we believe we have an obligation to you if you purchase from us. We are a member of the Better Business Bureau of the Brazos Valley and Deep East Texas.
4. Your order will be filled accurately and shipped promptly. We have thousands of machines in stock. We have been selling by mail order for over fifteen years.
5. We are authorized for the brands we sell; therefore, not only will we back up your purchase, but the manufacturer will as well.
6. You won't pay too much. Our volume buying and low overhead assures you of a low price and top quality products.
7. You'll help a child. A part of all our sales go to worthy non-profit organizations that help unfortunate children.

Day Style Designs

So in the process of doing my everyday business I came in contact with Leah Day, creator of the website Day Style Designs. She has decided to carry our Gidget sewing table on her website. But before she did, I started looking at her website... and WOW - I was impressed. Leah has started a blog 365 days of free motion quilting. Now you know how I am - what the heck is free motion quilting? So I did some research, aka I googled: "what is free motion quilting." After getting a few textbook definitions I went back to her website with a better understanding of what she's doing, and its nothing short of extraordinary. Each day, for one year, Leah is creating a new free motion design, video taping it and sharing it with everyone online. And let me tell you, this is definitely not for beginners like myself. I made a table runner last summer and I thought that was hard. Some of her designs are so awesome and creative, you have to check them out - like the Day 104 - the Paisley Flower (top). Obviously a more advanced piece. !!!!!! That's the only way I can describe it. Some day I hope to try out some of her beginning designs, but I have a few more table runners to practice on before that happens. Another one I loved was the Tree Roots - Day 12 (bottom). It has a bit of an eery or mysterious feeling to it but that's what I love about it. I am anxious to check out her designs each day - great job Leah :) If you haven't already check it out and feel free to leave a nice comment.


Day Style Designs Online

Don't get swept up in the Serging.

Each year, here at Arrow, we take a sewing class taught by our own Jo Jacobi. Last year she taught us the basics of quilting in a fun little class where we made table runners. This year we are making gloves and scarves, an upgrade to the serger! This is my first time serging and I am excited. Hether is going to buy the fabric tonight and we a scheduled to begin next week. My hope is to be done in time to use them before spring. Being in Wisconsin that is more than likely considering our cold weather usually stays with us until mid-April. As the only guy in the class I have to show these girls how great us men can be a sewing. FYI is was the A student in the quilting class last year (until the end - things got a little hairy). I will make sure to post pictures as we progress through the class. Jo has also agreed to show me how to make chair covers so I can use them in my wedding next year!

Whats on your mind?

So call it a genuine interest in any questions, complements or critisicms you have or just simply a lack of something interesting the last week, but I want to hear from you. I know the list of readers/followers isn't busting down the door, but anyone that has anything they would like to say about Arrrow, sewing, cabinets or even just what the weather's like in Wisconsin - send us a comment. I would like to get a nice little conversation going.

Looking for a great T.V. stand for your new flatscreen?

With the 2009 economic meltdown leading to cautious consumer spending over the holidays, we all were privileged to experience some of the best sales and closeout specials ever. In particular, the severe price drop in flat screen televisions. 2 years ago a 32 inch LCD flat screen TV retailed at $599. This Christmas you could find them for half that price! Because of this dramatic change, places like Walmart and Best Buy were selling hundreds of them in a matter of a few hours. If you were one of the lucky purchasers of these TVs let me ask you, where does your new TV sit? Is it sitting on an old table or entertainment center that you bought years and years ago when TVs actually had tubes? Maybe, like your TV, its time for an upgrade. This may seem strange coming from a sewing cabinet manufacturer, but we might have something that would be perfect for you. The Boomerang entertainment and crafting center. This utilitarian piece can be used as a place for your TV with lots of storage cubbies for the DVD player, VCR, cable box, etc. And unlike the amazing sales on TVs, the Boomerang is still at a great closeout price. $799.00. For that price you receive everything you see here:

Got a new laptop or desktop computer? Let the boomerang be your spot, handling all your documents, Cd's and DVDs. Just visit our "Where to Buy" section of our website to find a dealer near your. Or if you live far from a dealer, check out our web dealers as well.

Our Post-Holiday wake up call

As the Holiday season draws to an end once again, we retreat to our everyday routine that is laid before us like a train track and realize there is no light on the path until the snow melts and Memorial Day arrives (unless your a teacher and are lucky enough to have spring break). But lets keep our mind off of the grind and focus on our hobbies or resolutions. For me, the resolution is to find time to learn how to sew better. Its true, I sell sewing cabinets which would lead most people to believe I know a thing or two about sewing, but this is not the case. I'm not going to pretend to be an expert sewing enthusiast who knows how to take some piece of fabric and make some beautiful lace curtain just to get you to buy a Betty Sewing cabinet. I do, however, think that learning some of the ins and outs will help me do exactly that - sell cabinets. So here is my goal: I am getting married in the Summer of '11 and my fiance and I aren't bursting out the pockets with money. So anything we can do to save a few bucks is great. So one of things I want to do to begin sewing is make chair covers to place over an ordinary chair so we don't have to spend extra $$$ to get nice chairs. Sounds easy enough, right? Well this is where I need your help, comment on this blog with any ideas of where to start or any websites you know of that can guide me. Or if you have a little story of your own to enlighten me please do. I'm anxious to hear what you have to say.

Kangaroo Studio Sets

Looking for a great holiday present for that sewing enthusiast closest to your heart. Check out our Kangaroo Kabinets Sewing Studios on sale this December. Guranteed to have everything you need - Large airlift cabinet, Deluxe cutting table with 9 drawers for storage, Sewing chair with lumbar support back, and custom made filler insert specifically designed for your machine.
All of this AND free shipping straight to your home (some assembly required). These are the lowest prices of the year and you can order them at almost any of our online retailers specifically http://www.homespunhearth.com/ or http://www.embroidery.com/. Catch this deal before it "hops" away!

Quilt Market Winner!

At the most recent International Quilt Market in Houston Texas, Arrow Cabinets teamed up with Mighty Bright, Elna and AccuQuilt to sponsor a give-away promotion to one lucky contestant. We handed out "passports" to all the willing participants, they then had to go to each of the sponsor's booths and get their passport punched. At the last booth the contestant handed in their passport. We had hundreds of participants but we selected only one lucky winner: Terry Schuld from Zoe's Trunk Quilt Shop in Chandler Arizona. Terry was fortunate enough to win a Elna Sewing Machine, an Accuquilt Go, a Mighty Bright Floor Lamp and an Arrow - Pixie Cutting Table (shown right). Terry was extremely excited to win

"I am still in shock to have won such a wonderful gathering of
products! I am already using them all and it’s been fun to unpack each one
and get to know it! What a treat! I’ve taken a couple of them to
meetings and groups to show and share with the quilters there so they can try
them out too. That was my first experience at Quilt Market and that alone
was so outstanding that to find out later I had won a prize was
amazing."

No doubt we will be running the same kind of promotion next year at the International Quilt Market in Houston. If you get a chance to go, check out our booth!

History in the Stitches

Recently we found out that one of our coworkers, Jo Jacobi, had a quilt published in a book titled Wisconsin Quilts: History in Stitches by Ellen Kort. Jo used an Appliqued Floral Medallion quilt created by Alice Huebner Besau in the late 1800's or early 1900's as inspiration for her quilt, Jo's Garden (left). The original quilt was a family heirloom that was passed down 8 generations and still is in possesion of the family to this day! I got a chance to bother Jo for a few questions (I kind of felt like a reporter interviewing a celebrity):

How long have you been quilting? I began quilting in the late 70's so that makes it about 40 years.

What made you decide on this pattern? I was reading the First edition of the book, Stories in the Stitches at the same time I had volunteered to make a raffle quilt for Wisconsin Quilters Inc., the statewide quilt guild. I fell in love with the original quilt because it was a very artistic piece with an unusual layout and the color combination was spectacular. I felt compelled to make my interpretation of it.

How long did it take to make this/how long did it take Mary Besau Leanna to make this do you think? I had a year to make and deliver the raffle quilt. I did most of the work in 4 months after I finishing the plan and finding the fabrics. I did the layout on graph paper to keep the proportions correct and hand drew all the floral pieces. I changed some of the elements to suit my style rather than simply copying all of them. I would imagine that it also took Mary Besau Leanna a year or more to create her quilt.

What (if any) are the main differences between your two quilts? Mary's quilt was entirely made by hand, needle turning the edges of the appliqué patches as she laid them on the top with tiny hand stitches. My quilt has the appliqués fused to the top and every edge was stitched by machine using a tiny zig zag stitch. I made each section separately and then machine stitched the pieces together. The sections of Mary's quilt were stitched together by hand because the sewing machine was not invented until after the Civil War in the 1860's. The quilting stitches which hold the layers together are done by hand on Mary's quilt and on the contemporary version the quilting was hand guided and moved under the needle of the sewing machine by a very skilled quilter, Penny Gerds on her household sewing machine.

Do you prefer to quilt designs in a historical fashion or more contemporary? I really enjoy making traditional quilts and I plan to reproduce another historical quilt that I saw pictured in a magazine. I am inspired by the fabric and the colors.

To beginning quilter's and quilter's to be (like myself), what advice would you give them to help them start this great hobby? I suggest that anyone beginning to sew or quilt should take a class and get a good reference book for help and then just start making things to see what you like to do. Also having a good sewing machine will make the experience easier and more enjoyable.

The book was written with material collected over a 15 year span by the Wisconsin Quilt History Project and published by KP Publishers, a Wisconsin company in 2008. Proceeds from the sales go to help build the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts and Textiles in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. www.wiquiltmuseum.com. Copies of the book for purchase can be found at Amazon.com.