My Sewing Machine and I

I got my camera and computer back on speaking terms. Turns out all I had to do was jiggle the cord until they connected. Go figure.

I promised to talk about my sewing machine in response to this question:

Karyn said...

Thank you so much for the wealth of information! I need to re-read it and take notes! This brings me to a question: what type of sewing machine(s) do you use/recommend?

I have a long and short answer to this question.

The short answer: A Singer CG590.

The long answer: A Singer CG 590, which is a commercial grade machine. It is made out of metal, have a very powerful motor, very few bells and whistles and is a mechanical sewing machine.
I read in Threads I think, that there are two types of sewers -- mechanical and computerized. I am a mechanical gal and here's why. I'm going to have to go back to when I first learned to sew to explain why I prefer a mechanical sewing machine rather than a computerized model.

My mother had two sewing machines in the house when I was a kid. A Singer that was nicely mounted in a sewing cabinet, with all sorts of bells and whistles. Then there was a Singer from the 60s with two stitches: straight and zigzag. Guess what machine I was allowed to use? Yep, the 1960s Singer. Let me tell you, this sewing machine was great. It was a work horse. Made of metal and basic. In order to start sewing, you had to reach up and turn the wheel toward you. There was no way I could break this machine even if I tried. (This was also the sewing machine that I was going to take with me when I was planning to run away at 6 years old. I was packing chocolate chip cookies and my mom's sewing machine and I was leaving -- LOL!!) The other Singer, however, always seemed to run into problems with the timing. It was always "off." Now hindsight tells me it was the operator. You see, mom never had her machine serviced until something broke, and she also left the pins in when she sewed. She would put the pins in (dressmaker pins) horizontally and then just sew. A lot of times those pins were in the seam allowance and bam -- a broken needle. I imagine that in addition to the broken needles, she was beating the hell out of the bobbin case.

When it finally came time for my own machine (mainly because I had an apartment my sophomore year of college so I was without one), I saved up my money from my part-time job and my mom took me shopping. We went straight to Sears where we tried out machine after machine after machine. Finally the salesman fessed up to the fact that the Kenmore I had been eying (made by Necchi at that time) was going on sale the next week and he would give us the sales price that day. We jumped on it. I had finally purchased my first sewing machine at the wonderful price of $300 (I think that was in 1984). I used that machine until 3 years ago when my mom decided that I needed a new machine. Aren't mom's great??).

The next purchase was a Serger, which my mom decided I needed and she wanted to get me for my birthday. We went again to Sears and tested them out. We decided on a Kenmore Overlock 3/4D (still being made by Necchi at this time). I walked out with my machine, a video, the book and a promise to call and schedule a class with the in-house sewing instructor (I never did take the class -- I don't recommend blowing it off though -- I just prefer to learn on my own). I still have the Serger and have had it for about 20 years. The price was around $450.00 at the time.
It's typical of 1980s Kenmore products -- they are very hard to break and work very hard. This serger is a workhorse and I have a love/hate relationship with it and always have. I love it as long as it doesn't become unthreaded do to operator error. Then I hate it. Once I have it threaded and the tension back where it belongs, I love it. It is built solid and it is metal. One day I will get a new one. I know exactly what I want in a serger, but, unfortunately, the features I want have not yet been made available. When I find it, I'll get it because I really want the ability to do a cover stitch. In this situation, however, I will keep my Kenmore and keep it threaded with 3 threads so I don't have to go back and forth between 3 and 4 thread sewing.

Fast forward to 3 years ago.

My mom decided that I needed an upgrade. This was, of course, after she bought herself a machine and sent it here for keeps. When I got tired of all the goofy things I had to do to use my Kenmore (some things had to be taped down -- it had no mechanical problems - -the problems were due to things like having to use a seam ripper to hold the bobbin up enough for it to catch while threading. Annoying, but workable. Kind of like an old car). Anyway, her machine was from the annual "we used these machines for sewing class last year and now we're going to sell them." I think she was hooked on this sale after coming here and using her machine for the first time. The following year, she went to the sale again and called me from the sales floor. She had found an commercial grade sewing machine and wanted to know if I wanted her to test it. I spoke to the salesman on the phone about features and then had her run it. She had also spotted a couple of others and told me the features. In the end, armed with a list of features that I wanted, the CG590 was purchased for under $500.00. I gave my Kenmore to Goodwill. I sure hope it has a good home.

Why a Commercial Grade Machine?

I decided on a commercial grade machine based on my sewing desires. I did not wanted to be limited in my choice of fabric. I did not want to struggle with thick fabrics and broken needles. I wanted a machine with a powerful motor that sewed fast. I did not want a bunch of bells and whistles. I knew that I would never use 280 stitches that come on some machines -- that is a big waste of money for my style of sewing.
Instead it has a limited number of stitches, most of which I never use.

I had to get used to manually controlling my buttonholes because I was used to a separate buttonhole attachment (I will eventually buy one).
I also knew that I wanted the feed dogs to drop out of play for home dec, lame attempts at quilting and a bit of control with thick fabrics.
This machine and I make a good pair. Now, while I don't have a lot of fancy stitches (because I won't use them), I do have a large selection of feet. I did make one change to the machine when I got it -- I changed out the shank so that I could use snap on feet. It did come with a "snap on" foot shank, but it was particular to Singer feet. I put on a universal one so I could use any snap on foot. I have a walking foot, a cool one that allows me to put a button in a slot when I'm making buttonholes so I don't have to worry about the length of the button hole, I have a free motion quilting foot, satin stitching foot, rolled hem foot, bias tape foot, button foot, ruffler attachment, blind hem foot, edging foot, rolling foot, invisible zipper foot, 2 different size zipper feet and a serging foot (I don't use this, but you never know) (there may be others, but you get the idea). I would rather have specialty feet then a host of fancy stitches. This machine promises to be a good friend for many years to come. I have only had one problem and that is a split sole plate cover (my fault). $13 and I was back in business.

Can I recommend a sewing machine?

In all honesty, no, I cannot. The reason is that I do not have experience will all of the machines out there. Your sewing machine is a very personal choice. Your selection should be based on your needs. That having been said, I can pass on some pointers that I learned at the Sewing and Quilting Expo.

1. Do your homework. Think about what features you need/want and then start researching machines that fill this need.

2. Take your time in your selection. Do not rush into it.

3. Stick to your guns -- don't let anyone talk you into buying more sewing machine that you want, need or can comfortably afford.

4. Buy your machine from a sewing machine dealer, not Walmart or Target. You cannot test run a machine at a discount store. Plus you have no support. Your sewing machine should be purchased from a store that will support you with sewing classes, repairs, and a trade-in program. (Sewing machines are like cars -- you can trade up when you're ready, if you so desire). If you have a friend that wants to give you a sewing machine, take it before they change their mind! But make sure that they are going to be there to teach you to use it and make doubly sure that it's been properly maintained and doesn't have any problems that require it to sit in repair for a month. (One time my Kenmore would only sew in reverse. It was hilarious. Thankfully, when sewing machine repair arrived at my house, she took it back to the shop with her, fixed it and had it back in a day.)

5. When you go to test machines, take a couple of different types of fabric with you or, at the very least, a woven and a knit. You needs to see how it performs with different fabrics because many times, the test fabric is muslin.

6. Once you decide on a machine and they hand you that brand new box, ask them to open it there and sew on that machine before you walk out the door. NEVER take a brand new machine home without sewing with it first. The majority of our sewing machines are coming to this country from Asia via ship. Ships get caught in storms and cargo gets bumped around. Then the machine gets on a truck and/or train and is transported to the store. They leave the factory tuned and ready to go, but you have no way of knowing, without opening that box, whether or not your machine is actually working properly. If the store won't allow you do to this, walk way and find someone who will.

A good salesman will try to talk you into things you neither need nor want so do your homework, test a lot of machines, find out about the store's customer service and then you'll be ready to pick out the machine that's right for you. If the store is not willing to do their part as far as customer service or are giving you a hard sell on a machine that you (a) can't afford or (b) don't feel is right for you, then don't be afraid to walk away and find another dealer.

Karyn, thanks for a great question and giving me a chance to talk about my sewing machine. I included the approximate prices that were paid for my machines and what they gave me in return in terms of realibility and service. Trust me, if mom hadn't suggested a new machine, my Kenmore would still be sitting on my sewing desk (but actually bolted in because the desk came from Sears -- I haven't even bothered to check to see if I can mount this one to my desk. Ah well).

I also forgot to add that for the past 30 years I've been anti-Singer sewing machine. It's actually amazing that I now have one, but they gave me what I wanted so we'll just have to wait and see. All indications lead to a very long and happy friendship.

Happy sewing y'all!

Oh no!!: I noticed in the picture of my serger up above that there is a bit of fuzz by the looper threads -- I was serging boucle before tossing it in the wash and forgot to tidy up before taking my pictures. Talk about dusty work but it's all cleaned up now and ready for my next project.