March 24, 2015  Maintaining your new machine, fixing that old sewing machine, new projects and more

New work

Welcome back!  Spring has sprung...or hasn't yet in our neck of the woods.  We continue to be plagued by cold temperatures and maple sap buckets that just won't fill!  Fingers crossed for warmer temperatures in the April weeks to follow.

My lastest project is above.  I call it Belle Eau Claire Sunset. It is an evening view I enjoyed in my youth, looking across Georgian Bay to Collingwood on summer nights just as the sun was setting. Again it is quilt as you go, overquilted and bound.  It uses a slightly new technique to give the illusion of the fingers reaching out on the water and in the sky.  Onward I go to a spring tree scene inspired by my friends Joan and Mary.

Landscape quilters have to be mindful of their sewing machines.  A couple of tips to help you keep your machine functioning well:

1) change your needle often.  Quilt batting and lots of piecing tends to dull the needle.  Dull needles don't sew well.  Bent needles don't sew well either. Get in the habit of changing the needle after two or three quilts.
2) clean all the fluff from the quilt batting out of your bobbin case on a regular basis - use the brush that came with your machine, or a tooth brush or even a small vacuum cleaner.  If you can, remove the bobbin case so you can clean it thoroughly. Resist the urge to blow the dust out.  Moisture from your breath isn't necessarily good for your machine. Quilt batting can really build up so be sure to clean the bobbin case often.
3) Open the little door to the left of the tension and brush out the dust and debris in this area as well. Quilt batting has a habit of migrating everywhere.

Lots of people are still sewing on old mechanical sewing machines, which is just great.  You don't need anything expensive for piecing and sewing quilts.  In fact, I know people who have found $25 sewing machines at the Restore or Salvation Army that sew just fine.  The price of  new sewing machines ha come down in the last few years.  Great sewing machines with lots of features can be had for under $300.00.  I purchased a machine about 12 years ago for $1000.  A similar machine can be bought for $299.00 today.  These cheaper prices make you think twice before taking your old machine for a pricey clean and fix.  The price for this service can run about $60.00 and if parts or work has to be done you are easily over $100, which makes that $299.00 Janome computerized machine look pretty reasonable.  I took that $1000. machine in recently because it wouldn't sew through several layers of fabric without skipping stitches and I ended up leaving it at the repair place. The cost to repair it was more than I was willing to pay to get an older mechanical machine up and running.

If you have an older mechanical sewing machine that isn't sewing well, before taking it to a pricey repair shop try these things:

1. Change the needle.  An old burred or bent needle just won't sew right. Make sure you put the needle in correctly (usually flat side to the back) and tighten in place. Make sure you are using the right needle for your machine or a universal needle.
2. Clean the bobbin case thoroughly (see above).
3. Mechanical machines often need oil.  If you have the original manual, find out where to put the machine oil.
4.Ensure your are using the correct bobbin.  A bobbin that is too small in diameter won't make good stitches.  A good rule of thumb is to buy your bobbins from the manufacturer.  Some of the generic bobbins wont work in some machines,
5. Wind a fresh bobbin.  If the old bobbin in the machine wasn't wound right it could be the problem
6. If you can open the upper case on the machine to the left of the tension, clean dust and debris out of there as well.  Again, no blowing the dust.
7. Ensure that the machine is set for straight sewing and that the dials haven't been changed to something else.
8.  Put a quality new spool of thread in the machine and in the bobbin.

Timing is often an issue with older machines, particularly if you have run over and struck pins. Timing is a job for a pro.  Ultimately that was the problem with my older machine.  The timing was off and it needed to have the entire case pulled off to fix it, plus parts.  Not worth it!  On some machines, timing is a easier fix, but still for a pro.

Thread or bobbin tension can also be a culprit with a machine that isn't working.  I leave these issues to the pros too although it can't hurt to play with them if the machine isn't sewing correctly.  The worst that can happen is that it still won't sew.  Time for an expert or a new machine.

Check for dust an debris and brush it out of here too

Hope this helps.