Sven, you cheating bastard.
So, after spending 15+ fruitless hours on embroidery, I finally gave in and decided to go with plan B. I was supposed to be embroidering strips on the four pieces of a vest. Well, between me smacking the machine once and throwing that section out of alignment, starting over, working on satin, embroidering color B over color A when it was supposed to be working on outlines in color B, and the outlines being just “off”, I finally gave in.
After unhooking all the embroidery bits from the machine, cleaning and oiling it, I attempted to start sewing. Just a plain seam. Nothing fancy. No such luck. At first it was just loops of bobbin thread. So, I took everything out, cleaned again and tried once more. Still no luck. Repeat ad nauseum until I was ready to pitch the freakin’ machine out the window.
At about 8:30 I gave up. Went to bed.
Today, TOH being the dear that he is, called the store I bought the machine from, asking how long it would take to get it serviced. Three to Four weeks. Excuse me? I have 19 days until Faire starts, more projects than I really need, and you want to take my machine for 3 to 4 weeks? This is one of the largest fabric stores in the area, with four area locations. All they sell are Bernina machines. You’d think they’d have a Bernina technician on site in at least one of the locations. You’d be wrong. So, in my frustration, I started searching for other Bernina dealers in the area. And found one close by. TOH called them, and they can probably fix it in THREE to FIVE BUSINESS DAYS. Now this second store is a tiny little thing. Drive by it and blink and you’d never know it’s there. But they’ve got a Bernina trained technician on site. What’s wrong with this picture?
Now, I know this isn’t a crisis. I still have many other useable machines in the house. And that’s a sad statement all on its own, but totally beside my point. What if this were my only machine? How can such a large company have such crappy customer service? Not only does it take 3 to 4 weeks to service a machine, they don’t give out loaners while yours is being repaired. I’ve spent well over $12,000 (and that’s being conservative) on equipment at this company and I can’t even get a loaner while they take 3 weeks to fix my machine? I am seriously reconsidering my loyalty to this store.
I was also seriously considering my loyalty to Bernina as a brand. After all, Pfaff has a new Top of the Line coming out in a month or so.
Add all of this to some general work frustration, and I was in a “puppy kicking mood”** for the better part of the day.
**No puppies were harmed during the typing of this post.