Equipment

This week has been full of great arrivals. Sunday, we were at our local Barnes and Noble, which normally doesn’t have any fashion books at all, and not only did I get a chance to flip through 100 Dresses (henceforth filed under “nice to have, but won’t spend my own money on it”), I found … Continue reading → … Continue reading →

…thread, that is. See, most of my life, I’ve despised sewing by hand. The thread tangles up into a ball of uselessness, it knots itself and pretty soon I just want to scream and run away. Not to mention my hand cramps up, I poke myself accidentally and I start getting needle indentations on the … Continue reading → … Continue reading →

When I was a kid rifling through my grandmother’s sewing supplies, I always got a kick out of the little berry thing that hangs off of the traditional tomato pin cushion. I never understood what it was for, I just thought it was cute and silly. Ok, no past-tense about it. I still think it’s … Continue reading → … Continue reading →

My partner and I both have hobbies that can get expensive. His is cycling, which is by far the more healthy of the two. Mine is (obviously) sewing. Once you reach a certain threshold, each can be about as expensive as you’re willing to make them—and dedicated hobbyists of either are often willing to go quite expensive to get the best gear. The two hobbies actually have a lot of financial similarities—especially when it comes to the cost of machines. So here it is: the cyclists guide to sewing machines, or, how to understand why that $5,000 sewing machine is just important to your sewist’s hobby as your $5,000 bike is to yours. … Continue reading →

The presser feet I ordered finally came in the mail today! I’m looking forward to all the things I can do with them. … Continue reading →

In my post about my machine being out of time, I counseled again and again on the need to use the right sewing machine needle for your project. However, I never answered the question of “What is the right sewing machine needle?”. All the numbers on the needle package can get quite confusing, as are the distinctions such as “sharp,” “ballpoint” and “universal.” Read on to learn what you need to know to choose the right needle for your project. … Continue reading →

My machine is headed to the shop to have the timing fixed, so projects are on hold for now. What is timing, you ask? I’ll get to to that… but story first: I was merrily sewing along the other day, trying to do a decorative stitch on another stuffed animal from the Simplicity 2613 pattern, when I noticed that the pattern was a bit lopsided. In fact, every third or fourth left-side stitch was being dropped. I figured I was using the wrong needle size for my fabric, and didn’t pay too much attention at that point, since it wasn’t in a conspicuous place. I hoped it was just a needle issue, because the other option is that the machine is out of time. … Continue reading →

After my 1976 Singer Touch and Sew super-cool Zig-zag+crazy other stitches-stitching model 750’s gears rotted, resulting in the complete crumbling of the hook gear, I debated spending ~$80 in labor to have the $10 part replaced or sucking it up and purchasing a comparable modern machine. The question is, will I use the new machine enough to justify its cost? … Continue reading →