What difference does a straight stitch plate make?

     In the photo, you will see three different needle plates. The one on the left is a straight plate, the middle is a 5.5 mm plate and the one on the right is a 9mm plate.
     When the tip of the needle tries to penetrate the fabric, it initially meets resistance and tries to push the fabric down into the opening of the needle plate. The bigger the opening, the more it is able to push the fabric. When the needle pulls back up, it then pulls the fabric back with it. This movement of the fabric can make it look like the tension is off. The position of the knot in the fabric will not be consistently in the middle. In extreme cases, it can cause skipped stitches. When you are sewing on very fine fabric or starting on  a corner, it can also cause the fabric to be chewed up.The tiny hole in the straight stitch plate prevents the fabric from being pushed down and will give you better stitching. Of course, choice of needle also plays a role, but the right plate sure helps.
     The thing to remember is that you will not be able to zig-zag or change needle position, or you will hear that crunching sound that means a broken needle. If you are fortunate enough to own a machine that lets you tell it what plate you are using, it's a feature to take advantage of.  
     Until next time, Bernie

Loon Lake retreat

I just want to thank the ladies that attended our first 3 day retreat at Loon Lake. Shelley and I really enjoyed having you there and helping when we could. It was great to see all the projects get finished or closer to finished. There was some serious sewing going on. I think my cappuccino making skills might have improved while I was there. Thanks to Vicki for the Mexican coffee!! Shelley will do a post at As The Spool Turns, with pictures, as soon her schedule allows. Thanks again and see you soon!!

The effect of lint on your sewing machine!

In these two photos, you see a sewing machine that has a lot of lint build up in it. The lint in the first pic, is not in a place that is easily reachable by the user. In the second pic, you can see the build up in the feed dogs. This is very easy to access by lifting off the needle plate and then cleaning. 

There was so much lint in the mechanism, that the plate was lifting up with each stitch that the machine made. Because of the impact on the underside of the needle plate, the feed dogs were pushed down and would not feed the fabric. As a result, they had to be adjusted to properly transport the fabric again.

If the customer had cleaned this area herself, the machine would still have had to be serviced to remove the rest of the lint and to be properly lubricated, but, her sewing would have been less frustrating to that point. 

              Innocent as it looks, lint can interfere with the proper functioning of a sewing machine and can create premature wear by wicking away oil where it is needed. Be kind to your machine and clean and lubricate where you can. Have it serviced regularly. You won't regret it. Cheers!                                                      

                                                                     

Machine quilting class

Shelley and I taught a machine quilting class today at Quilt Essential Fabrics in Abbotsford. I just want to thank the ladies for their attention and enthusiasm. It was a pleasure to work with you and I'm sure you will all be successful quilters!!

A little story

As I am sitting here getting more and more tired of the rain, I'm reminded of a time when I was anchored  on my sailboat in La Paz, at the bottom of the Baja peninsula. Endless beautiful sunny and warm days. Great food, fishing, snorkeling. Every morning there was a cruiser's net on the radio. You would introduce yourself to the rest of the fleet and tell everyone what your trade or skill was. I let everyone know that I repaired sewing machines. After the net, one of the boats radioed me and asked me if I could come over and repair his portable sailmaker machine. I got in the zodiac and motored over to his boat, enjoying the sun and the sounds of this beautiful town. After I had fixed the machine, the owner asked me how much he owed me. It gave me great pleasure to tell him " Nothing" When he asked me why, I told him that it was warranty. They had bought the machine from the shop that I had in Victoria about 8 months prior. That was the longest distance I'd ever traveled for a service call!! He was quite surprised and happy and we were invited for supper. We took him up on it. That's how things work when your cruising. It's a great way of life!!

Merry Christmas!!

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and all the best in the New Year!! It's been great to meet a lot of new people in this last year and to continue so many wonderful friendships. May 2012 bring everyone only good!!!!Bernie

Topstitchers Club

We have just finished another year of Club. I can't believe how fast it went by!! I want to congratulate everyone on how great your projects looked! I've never seen so many people do their homework.  This year was the most enjoyable one for Shelley and me since we started Club 15 years ago. You have been a great group and we hope to see you again next year. Thanks for making this such a pleasure!! Bernie