The Day and a Deal on a PFAFF!

A happy day..to celebrate national sewing month..bringing home a new Pfaff Quilt Expression 720!

I’ve been on a hunt for a second machine for quite sometime. I had a Husqvarna Viking Designer One that I got second hand in 2021, but it doesn’t really fit my brand of machine that I enjoy. I’ve been a PFAFF sewer for over 25 years with my very first machine being a Creative 7570 with Embroidery. Then a mechanical machine called a Tipmatic 6122. Both machines I still own, but I really need something with current sewing features and large sewing area similar to my Bernina 770 QEE, but need it to be portable. Love my Bernina, but it’s not a machine that make for a good travel companion.

Mary, who I’ve known at Linda Z’s in Arlington Heights, IL since year 2000. She is a sales manager and is fun to work with!

After going to several PFAFF dealers all over Wisconsin (none of which are near Milwaukee where I reside), I decided to make a pilgrimage to Linda Z’s in the Chicago NW Burbs. This is an amazing store and they are a dealer for Bernina, Pfaff, Viking, Babylock, Brother, Janome and Juki! I’ve never experienced anything like this place. When I first went there 0ver 25 years ago, they were Bernina, Pfaff & Viking. Boy, have they grown. They have a great YouTube channel that started in 2020 and it’s production team is Linda Z’s family. Deb is the daughter of Linda and I got to know her a little bit on this particular visit. I’ve enjoyed their YouTube channel, so it was kind of like meeting a celebrity of sorts in the sewing world. Please make sure you check their channel out! This store is a quilting and sewing hub for famous designers like Tula Pink and Alex Anderson. The fabric selection and classroom space is very inspiring.

This was a photo taken in 2018 at the International Quilt Show in Rosemont, IL with Linda Z herself! I had just won a drawing from them at this show.

So that’s my history with Linda Z’s and it started with a purchase of a PFAFF Hobby Lock serger in 1998.

I had been on a hunt for a PFAFF Quilt Expression 710 and was looking for a deal. Most of my PFAFF dealers do not deal with so many other machines and I had an old Bernina 630 that I really needed to unload. I remembered that Linda Z’s did an thought maybe they could offer a trade deal for a new 710 by taking in my Bernina 630. After a wonderful demo from Mary and a nice conversation with Deb, they offered me a fabulous trade deal of my Bernina that I couldn’t pass up. However, they gave me a better deal to get the PFAFF Expression 720 vs the 710. I think they really wanted me to take home the machine with more features and that wasn’t covered in purple…lol. It’s funny cause I really thought I was just going to go and look at machines and next thing I was doing was buying one. It was a deal I couldn’t pass up and I’m so very happy! Finally I’m a PFAFF owner again with the built in dual feed system. Yes, my Bernina has dual feed, but it doesn’t operate the same way for stability. PFAFF IDT (dual feed) is a miracle for attaching quilt binding. They also offered me a deal on the new Bernina 475 Kaffe edition, but I really didn’t need a third machine and I don’t have room in my apartment. I think having a Bernina and a PFAFF in my sewing space will make it feel like home for me. I can free motion quilt on the Bernina while quilt piece on the PFAFF. Then the PFAFF goes on my camping trips and classes. Works out really well! Btw…the Viking Designer One went to a wonderful home where it will keep sewing for an other 20 years.

Check out my unboxing photos below!

I’m very grateful to all the dealers I visited, especially Electric Needle in Madison. Although they couldn’t take my old Bernina 630 as a trade, I so appreciate their kindness and ability to make good customer connections. It’s a store I will continue to go back to and visit. Which leads me in to remind all of you to always build a relationship with your dealers when looking and buying machines. They will always support you! Never buy a new machine online or in a big box retailer if you can help it. Machines like Janome, Juki and Brother can all be purchased on line without the aid of a dealer. If you are looking for those brands, try to find a dealer instead. They will support you when issues arise and will teach you how to use your machine. We don’t want to loose dealer support, otherwise it would be like having a school with no teachers inside. Always try to find a dealer to buy your machine from. Shop around and use the internet to do your research. But buy from a dealer.

What’s your favorite brand of sewing machine? How has your dealer supported you? Please leave a comment below.

Thanks for reading!!!

I will conclude with a photo of my friend Katrina Walker who works for PFAFF Education and also designs her own very artistic cloths. You guessed it…all on a PFAFF. She is a phenomenal photographer too. Just saw her at the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show 2022!

Happy Sewing, Scott

Katrina was showing me how the ribbon attachment works on the PFAFF Creative Icon 2. She is so talented.