When Jan Cowell’s business outgrew her home she opened a storefront at 915 Commercial St., where she has plenty of room for her longarm machine and other items needed to quilt.
Cowell, who opened up Cowell’s Quilting last week, has been sewing all her life. The long arm machine she uses for quilting is large and was taking up too much room in her home. Because of the machine’s size, she had her sewing materials on one floor and her machine in another. She uses the machine to make quilts and finishes quilts for others.
“It just outgrew our house,” Cowell said, adding that she’s had the large machine for 3 1/2 years.
The longarm machine took up the bulk of her storefront Thursday morning where Cowell was doing stitch in the ditch stitching on a quilt she was working on. This type of stitching serves to stabilize the quilt, she said. She can then go back and put designs in the quilt top. With the machine, the quilt top, batting and backing is each attached to rollers, creating a “sandwich.” The longarm operator stands on one side of the machine to follow a preprinted pattern called a “pantograph,” or on the opposite side of the machine to do free-motion or custom quilting. Longarm quilting machines can generally stitch up to 3,500 stitches per minute in contrast to domestic or home machines, which average 750 stitches per minute,” according to www.azlongarmquilters.com.
Cowell got into longarm machines when she was watching Linda Taylor’s show on quilting. Taylor uses a longarm machine.
“This lady came on and had one of these machines,” Cowell said. “She did this fantastic work. It just made the quilt so beautiful and I thought ‘that’s just what I have to do...’”
Cowell now takes classes from Taylor each year when she goes to the Machine Quilters Showcase in Kansas City.
Cowell said her Great Aunt Mary, who lived in Joplin, Mo., influenced her to quilt.
“She helped me piece a quilt when I was a little kid,” Cowell said. “I still have that quilt. It’s put away, but I still have it.”
Cowell said she enjoys all aspects of quilting including the beauty of the work and the feel of the fabric.
“Just all of it,” she said. “It’s the best job I ever had.”
Before getting into the quilting business, Cowell and her husband, Ron, would go to arts and crafts shows across the country to sell their products, which included chenille jackets, quilt jackets, handbags and hubcap clocks.
They traveled to arts and craft shows for more than 20 years, Jan Cowell said. They retired from the shows last year.
Cowell has won several awards for her quilts including a sweepstakes award at the Lyon County Free Fair and first place at the Lyon County Free Fair and the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson.
In addition to her shop, Cowell belongs to the Flint Hills Regional Quilt Guild and the Emporia Regional Quilt Guild. She values the knowledge the guilds provide her she said.
“We have two really active quilt guilds that are really excellent,” she said. “I get so much out of them with the history, the talent and the creativity. It’s a fantastic thing.”
Cowell said anybody who quilts or who is interested in learning to quilt should consider joining one of the guilds.
When asked about the economy, Cowell doesn’t anticipate it hurting her business too much.
“So far things have been all right,” she said. “I have a lot of loyal customers. I think it will be all right.”
Cowell’s shop is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. It is closed on Sunday and Monday.
For more information on Cowell’s Custom Quilting, call Cowell at 340-1033.
create (anonymous) says...
I am so pleased to hear about this quilting business opening in town. I love to make quilts, but quilting by hand takes forever. Now I know where to take my quilt tops. Yipee, I'm now inspired to dig out my stash and make more quilts!!! Welcome!!!
October 11, 2008 at 7:36 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )