Back in early 1986, I moved to Victoria, Texas, roughly 2 hours southwest of Houston, to work at a hospital there. I had been working with machine embroidery for a few years then, on a Necchi in a flatbed cabinet. Of course, I used my mother's Elnasuper when I went to visit her, but really hadn't looked at what was available for me. A few months after moving to Victoria, I decided I'd really like to learn garment sewing, and I knew the Necchi at the time wasn't what I wanted. I drove daily on Navarro Street, one of the largest streets in this town of 50,000 (then), and I kept passing a small sewing machine store in a strip center with an Elna sign in the front. I eventually went in, and that started a machine relationship that lasts to this day.
B & B is owned by a man and wife team, both named Billie Stehling. Honestly, I don't remember what else they were selling in terms of machines, but Elna, the real Swiss ones, were their main line. After detailed talk about what I needed, the Elna Jubilee was the machine for me. Mrs. Stehling also had many patterns in Kwik-Sew and a number of books on machine embroidery and thread painting. Her colleague in the store was Mrs. Dale Orr.
Over the next 5 years I ended up purchasing an Elna 7000, the first full-computer Elna, an ElnaPress, and lots of DMC thread and even more advice. Mrs. Stehling and Mrs. Orr are both very accomplished seamstresses, and Mr. Stehling took care of my machines. However, by the time I moved from Victoria, they had relocated to their current location, which I think was a Dairy Queen extensively remodeled.
As Elna went under the control of the Asians and the high-end machines disappeared, B & B became a Bernina dealer, to my delight. I'd started buying Bernina machines with my 1031 and now my favorite dealer could keep them up! B & B also became a full-line Janome dealer.
I just bought a Janome MyStyle for my niece about a month ago from B & B. She is a beginner and I knew B & B would take the machine out of the box, test sew and check all features out before I gave it away. Yes, it's a 2.5 hour drive one-way from my home, but in my opinion, it's worth it. I have taken in my various brands of machines countless times over, to be cared for by Mr. Stehling. The store offers training for new machine buyers with a training area. There are many, many machines for both Bernina and Janome on display, with Mrs. Stehling and Mrs. Orr available for full demonstrations. There are two other employees working there, but I deal with my old friends when I go there. There is an extensive display of notions, a complete array of Janome and Bernina accessories available, and several brands of thread also.
I read on this site about lousy dealers, machines purchased on the web and in fabric chains, and this only reinforces why I still make the journey to Victoria from my home for the care of my machines. A complete tuneup and lubrication runs around $60-65, which I consider extremely reasonable. I guess, 25 years later, I hadn't realized that this couple must have been younger at the time I was, as they certainly aren't old, now! Victoria is not an area replete with wealthy sewers, and I would expect most machines sold there tend toward the practical range, along with service on all sorts of machines, in all conditions. I just feel extremely fortunate that B & B has always been there when I have needed them. And, in fact, I bumped into Mrs. Orr at the Quilting Festival in Houston last weekend!
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