Amanda
Gabryszak
Ever walk into
FWS and wish you had the know-how to do something with all the wonderful
fabrics on the first floor? Now
you can. Wednesday, November 4th
will kick off sewing classes offered by Buffalo’s own FWS Home Furnishings
store. Sewing Class 1 will run
that day from 5-6PM, and then follow up on Thursday, November 5th, from 7-8PM.
In this class, participants will sew a pillow with a fabric-covered button. The
cost is $15 per person.
Sewing Class 2
will take place on November 4th, from 6-8PM and costs $28 per person. In this
class, participants will create a pillow with an embellishment. Reservations
are required for both of the classes, and can be made through calling FWS at
716.874.5740. Signing up at the furniture desk at FWS itself, located on 1738
Elmwood Avenue, is also an option. Seating is limited to 8 people per class.
Anyone can
take the classes. “Both November classes are geared towards people with little
to no sewing experience,” said Andrew Johnson, marketing assistant at FWS. “The
one-hour basic class would be best for someone with no experience. The two-hour
embellishment class would be best for someone with some sewing experience.”
These classes
are taught by Tracey Palisano, owner and operator of Sew Creative. According to Johnson, “She has over 25
years of experience in sewing and teaching. Tracey worked in product
development and operator training for 7 years at M. Wile Fashions in Buffalo.”
Her credentials include attending the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC
for apparel production and management. Besides teaching, Palisano offers custom
window treatment design and installation, swatch coordination, and embroidery.
FWS itself
provides an interesting location for classes. “The Buffalo store is in a
building on Elmwood Avenue in North Buffalo that’s over 100 years old. Over the
years, we’ve heard the building housed a metal forge, radio station, hobby
shop, and a fabric manufacturer.” FWS was established in Buffalo in 1962, and
burst onto the scene in 1973, when the ceiling of a Levitz Furniture warehouse
collapsed. FWS has developed over the years to become what it is known as
today–Factory Warehouse Sales, where professional designers and casual sewers
alike find the fabric they are looking for to produce their art.
The classes
being offered by Palisano will help sewers become designers, as “class
attendees will choose their own fabrics, threads, and supplies based on their
own individual tastes and preferences.” For those interested in more than just
a couple of classes and more than just pillows, they will be glad to know that,
according to Johnson, the store plans on offering classes on table runners and
drapery panels. “Depending on customer response and suggestions, we will
offer appropriate experience-level classes,” Johnson says.
Most likely,
classes will be offered during the fall, winter, and early spring. “We can even
show people how to make things without sewing,” said Johnson. Aside from sewing and fabric
classes, Johnson and the staff at FWS hope to offer classes on a wide range of
home décor topics, like Oriental rug selection and quality, carpet style and
texture, and furniture quality. Suggestions for ideas are more than welcome and
can be e-mailed to: designseries@fwsfurnitureonline.com.
Participants
in the November sewing classes, and in the future, can take away experiences in
sewing that they can use in everyday life and can apply to the future. Anything
is possible. As Johnson says, “We are only limited by our own imaginations!”