Marie and I, The Stitching Sisters, are mid-way through our six-city tour.  Last week, we spent Friday and Saturday with our host, Montavilla Sew & Vac in Portland, OR.  The event was held in the spacious classroom of Fabric Depot (a worthy destination for all sewers). It took a team effort to set up 28 top-of-the-line Baby Lock Ellisimos but we were ready for our 128 guests on Friday morning.  The staff at Montavilla was a dream team, each member greeted their guests and escorted them to their assigned seats.  They made an effort to treat each embroiderer like a guest in their home. 

And the fun we had!  Christy and Brett Moore (pictured here) lead the audience in the Baby Lock cheer - Baby Lock, for the love! (Ok, you had to be there to understand but it sure built team spirit.)   After we taught how to probably hoop and verify placement with some of the Ellisimo's unique features such as the camera, the whole room was cheering Baby Lock, for the love!  Oh it was fun and educational.  Marie and I worked hard and throughout the day our Jersey Girl attitudes came out of the closet!  Hey, you can't control 112 embroiderers in a meek and mild manner.  But everyone stayed on track and we finished six hands-on projects on day one and six more on day two.  Here's a glimpse at some wonderful people we had the honor of teaching.

If you bought a machine, you were crowned with a feather boa and your team-mates were awarded a free collection of Kriswell embroidery designs.  The whole Montavilla team got in the mood - sporting boas and crowns when one of their team members purchased a machine. 

The Stitching Sisters are embarking on a 6-city tour to teach over 400 embroiderers in 2-day, hands-on seminars.  We start in Longview, WA on Sept. 18, 2009 and end on Nov. 14, 2009 in Tampa, Fla - with four stops in between.  We are pumped!  We've been planning this and working on the details for months now and just can't wait to get on the road and meet other Stitching Sisters.

These events couldn't happen without the generous support of some the nation's most successful sewing machine dealers. The Stitching Sisters handle all the kits and tools but the dealers supply the classroom, machines and oh yes - the food!  The dealers also provide talented staff members to assist during the two-day event.  And believe me, do we need them - 25 machines, 100 students in a classroom is quite an event!  We haven't had a mishap yet because the Baby Lock and Brother machines are so user-friendly and extremely dependable. The editing features are a delight to show students - everyone goes home with a new-found respect for what these machines can do.  And many go home not only with that new-found respect but also a new machine!  There are great deals to be made at these events.  It's also the only time you can buy Designs' product at a discount.  So if you've been yearning to purchase some of Designs' tools or hoops, this would be the time and place to do it. 

Marie and I hope to see you this Fall.  The Stitching Sisters Embroidery Bash is a great girls-get-away, so grab a friend or come by yourself. Join us for two days of embroidery education, new friends, new techniques and great food! Just bring yourself - no machines or class supplies to cart.  We'll have everything ready for you.  Here's the schedule:

SOLD OUT

Sept. 18-19, 2009 

Longview Sew & Vac

Longview, WA

               360-578-2628        

Oct. 16-17, 2009

SOLD OUT

Montavilla Sewing & Vacuum

Portland, OR

               503-254-7317        

Oct. 25-25, 2009

B Sew Inn

Springfield, MO

               866-961-8209        

 http://www.bsewinn.com/product.php?productid=2827&cat=142&page=1

Oct. 28-29, 2009

B Sew Inn  http://www.bsewinn.com/product.php?productid=2828&cat=142&page=1

Oklahoma City, OK

877-415-702

Nov.  6-7, 2009

Rocky Mountain Sew & Vac

Littleton, CO

               303-979-2334        

Nov. 13-14, 2009

SOLD OUT

Keep Me In Stitches

Tampa, FL

               813-908-2334