How Do You Choose a Sewing Machine? PART 2 – The Reasoning

PART 1 of this series is information overload, amirite?

If you were to do all the internet searching and talking to all the people, PART 1 is basically what you would find. Now, I’m going to go over some basic issues people have, and the more you pay for a machine, the more of these issues are removed for you, and you can just get to sewing something cool, smooth sailing all the way. The less expensive the machine, the more the tinkering.

In my experience, the biggest frustration people have with their sewing machine, if you ask them, is the tension. Sometimes they’re right…but I find it’s like a catch-all phrase for people to say the tension or the timing is off, which can be an expensive fix if that is really what it is….or at least you’ll get charged for it, take it home, and shocking! You’ll have the same issues!

A few little things.

Thread.

Yes, you gotta use the right thread. You just want to sew something cool, I get it. It seems trivial, doesn’t it?When you’re starting, get 4 spools of Gütermann All Purpose 40wt in light tan, med gray, black, and white. That will blend enough for quite awhile. Worry about the finer details and “correct thread” as you get better.

My cousin called me. She was piecing a quilt and her machine was skipping stitches. Before she went and bought a new machine, she called me to go through everything, inch by inch. The first thing she said was she was using quilting thread. I took that to mean Gütermann, Mettler, or Aurifil 50wt, which is what long time, experienced quilters mean…heh. See my mistake? We then went through everything….and I double checked her thread type and one last time before telling her it was time for a new machine…I asked the BRAND. That’s when she said, “It says ‘quilting thread’ right on it…” OH. A spool of “quilting thread” means a thick, coated, HAND QUILTING thread. I’m not going to reinvent others’ posts on threads and types and whens, but, yeah. It matters.

Just get the 4 to start. That’s like <$8 with a coupon.

Singer Touch & Sew 626

Needles.

I haven’t seen any modern machine that requires a particular brand, nor have I run across a vintage machine that requires any special needles. I’ve used Singer, Klassé, Schmetz, Organ, Inspira…I don’t see a difference. There used to be different lengths/sizes or “Types”…but not anything you’re going to find without an antique dealer is going to require anything other than a basic Type AA needle. I’ve ripped an industrial needle out of a domestic machine. Don’t let anyone shove in an industrial needle…but industrial needles are specialty and you’re not going to find one easily.

DO make sure your needle shank, or the flat side, is facing the right way for your machine.

DO make sure your needle is all the way UP before you tighten down the clamp. This can cause skipped stitches if it is hanging down too low.

DO use the right type of needle for your fabric. Lots of posts out there about that. Start with a Universal 80 for wovens, and a Stretch 75 for knits; go from there.

Bobbins

Bobbins.

You will need to use the bobbins required by your manufacturer. This isn’t the place to save money. If Juki tells you to buy only Juki bobbins, then buy only Juki bobbins. If someone hands you a bunch of Class 15 metal bobbins and some story about how they’re better because they’re metal, but your machine takes plastic Class 15J, use the plastic ones.

The photo above is an open Janome top-loading bobbin case. I bought this machine for $25, and took out the metal Class 15 bobbin, the nest of thread, the tangles, cleaned it, put in the correct plastic 15J plastic bobbin, and now it runs perfectly.

Class 15J and 15

Here I have taken out the bobbin, the bobbin case, and the plate of the 1960s Singer. I want you to see how much of a tight squeeze it is:

The amount of area between the bobbin and the needle is in millimeters. This is how you can have a home sewing machine and not a factory industrial machine. This is also why you want to use the correct bobbin. There’s a millimeter of room between that needle and the outer part of the bobbin rotary mechanism. This goes around at a high speed. Use the correct bobbin.

When putting bobbin in your bobbin case, there are directions on where to pull the thread through. When you do this, hold the bobbin and pull the thread through taught. You’re pulling the thread through the tension spring – which do not look like traditional “springs,” and if you don’t pull it through, the sewing-motions of your machine will not always pull it into correct position for you, and you’ll get skipped stitches/bobbin thread nest. In a metal case, which sits perpendicular to the machine bed, the “spring” is that metal flap:

Some bobbins lay flat to the machine bed. My Janome version easily slips through the “channels” while my Viking needs the thread to “snap” into place. I need to give the thread a little tug…these are all idiosynracies of owning a machine. Add another point to dealer classes from PART 1.

You can PAY more for easier bobbin features. There are machines with bobbin sensors, bobbin thread cutters, separate bobbin motors for winding, auto-tension…or you can be more hands-on. How much money do you want to spend?

I’m not going to get into the housing around it, or shuttle vs rotary shuttle. That’s a bit more advanced. We just want to sew something cool at this point. I’m also not going to get into the bobbin tension – when you’re beginning, don’t mess with the bobbin tension, and it won’t get messed up. The point here is how hands-on do you want to be? The bobbin is the #1 user error. Which brings me to:

User Error

Let’s go through some photos of the thread take up lever and the bobbin case.

For the TOP thread to wrap around the BOTTOM thread and make a stitch, the TOP thread goes down with the needle, gets caught by the bobbin “HOOK”, thereby gets wrapped around the BOTTOM thread, and the needle comes up, pulling it tight to make a full TOP thread revolution AROUND the bobbin CASE and completing the stitch.

Thread the machine and adjust the tension knob when the sewing foot is UP, when foot is down, it engages the tension disks. There are machines with auto tension if you want to pay more. These take away the possible tension frustrations, for a price, and you can just sew.

Take Up Lever, and Tension Knob & Disks

Here is the open bobbin case again, with the bobbin removed, so you can see the relationship between the UPPER thread, the take up lever, and the bobbin:

#1 Beginner error is not taking up that lever ALL THE WAY when you want to stop and pull out your fabric. The thread must finish the revolution around the bobbin, which is missing in this photo so you can see the UPPER thread doing all the work.

Here the UPPER thread popped off the rotary because I took out a few parts, but you can see, the needle is coming up, but NOT up all the way – the UPPER thread is not done:

This is where the lever is positioned at this time:

If you try to take out your fabric at this point as I did MANY times when learning to sew, you will get this…and this is difficult to capture on my camera, but if you see 4 threads coming out the bottom of your fabric, and you can’t quite pull your fabric away…this is why:

The needle is UP and above the raised sewing foot! BUT it is not up ALL THE WAY. See the UPPER thread still wrapped around the bobbin? It’s a bit blurry, but see there looks to be 4 threads under the fabric? See the threads still wrapped around the bottom of the bobbin?

This is user error. This is probably #1 user error. If you don’t make this error, pat yourself on the back. Really. I’ve had countless phone calls and emails with frustrated new sewists and this is the most common issue.

Alternatively, get a machine with a needle up/down button for a price. This error is why the up/down button exists.

Easy Buttons

When I bought my Viking, I had already experienced the older, mechanical version, and the $$$ fancy computerized version. I just wanted to sew, and I knew I was committed to sewing, but I was NOT committed at the time to learning the mechanics of a sewing machine.

For a price, I opted for a few EASY BUTTONS.

I’ve got auto foot pressure, needle AND foot up/down buttons, temporary reverse options, speed options, knot-the-thread-for-me options…because I hated messing with the #1 Error above, and these were the things I wanted after using my mom’s fancy machine. The needle up/down removes #1 Error possibility.

What I didn’t get/couldn’t afford were: Auto-tension, bobbin sensors/cutters, ultra speed, heavy duty, super embroidery, etc. BUT I could just get to sewing cool things quickly and easily.

So, in the car analogy from PART 1, I got a entry model Acura. Once I learned how to drive and drive very well on my Acura, then I branched out and got some old Fords to tinker on. See what I mean? Much like how an entry level Acura isn’t going to go 4×4 driving, my Viking or my mom’s Janome will not sew leather, 4 layers of denim, waxed canvas to leather, and those Sew Sweetness bags I told you about in PART 1? That was an adventure. The computer in high-end machines will shut down your machine if you try to push the motor too hard. 

Tension

A quick word about tension. Sigh. And “timing” for that matter. Yes, timing can get off – the photos above of the UPPER thread making the revolution with the needle – that CAN get out of sync. Tension disks CAN “freeze up,” BUT in all the machines I’ve cleaned, repaired, tinkered with… I’ve adjusted 1 bobbin tension screw. Ever. I have good reason to suspect the previous owner lowered the tension on the bobbin for free motion quilting on a machine that wan’t necessarily built for free motion quilting – and that is a more advanced option when you’re ready.

I’ve “flossed” the tension disks on the GUNKIEST ancient machines that smelled of the worst smells…and have yet to find a “frozen” set. “Tension” and “timing” are often the knee-jerk reactions to simpler user-errors. I’ve had skipped stitches from the needle not being all the way up in the needle-clamp, or the bobbin thread not properly through the tension spring, but never because of timing or actual tension problems.

I’ve never worked on a modern $100-$200 big box store Singer or Brother. Maybe this is where the mysterious tension and timing issues pop up? I don’t know, and I don’t want to know. I want to sew.

Bias

Yes, I have bias from my experience, as you will from yours. This is my 2 cents. I’m not a pro machine tech, nor do I want to be. I want to know enough to make this more approachable for you and enjoyable for me. I read dusty old books, tear apart gross old machines, read up on the latest embroidery software releases, and sew my heart out both for my love of it all and to be a helpful friend to other sewists. Every option has perks and caveats. Like with a car, mobile phone, laptop…anything. Pick what will make you LOVE sewing the most.

Any other questions, or details you want me to get into? Please, let me know. Both of these posts got far longer than I intended, and I’m afraid it’s a sea of word vomit…

How Do You Choose a Sewing Machine? PART 1 – The Options

Are you new to sewing? Looking to buy your own sewing machine? Usually 1 of a handful of things has happened:

  1. You’re inspired to make a quilt for a friend’s wedding or a baby
  2. You’re inspired by fashion (Project Runway, Fashion Week, WWD, Great British Sewing Bee)
  3. COSPLAY! Comic-Con!!! (and related price-shock!!)
  4. You’re tired of clothes not fitting / looking like everyone else / being cheaply made

Welcome to the tribe. We get you.

Now, you’re ready to buy a sewing machine. This is like buying your first car. Do you want easy to drive? Do you want cheap? Do you want cheap to repair? Do you never want repairs? Do you want high resale value? Do you want sturdy? Do you want speedy? Bells and whistles? Just like with a car, these are rarely all the same machine.

You search online for what machine to buy, just like with a car. On Reddit, Facebook, and other social platforms you’ll get 5 people telling you to buy a $100 Brother machine, 2 people telling you to buy a $25 garage sale “all metal machine that will last forever and sew through anything,” and usually 1 person telling you they love their $5 million dollar Bernina. Sound familiar? 5 people telling you to buy a Honda Civic, 2 people telling you to buy an old Ford with a manual transmission, and one person telling you they love their Land Rover.

You just want to make something cool. What do you do? Let’s go through the usual recommended options above, THEN I want to show you something that, unless you have a hands-on mentor, will help you really decide.

Let’s start with Bernina.

  • OMG they’re beautiful and they really do sew very nicely.
  • Dealer support/sales/deals – and Bernina dealers are ONLY Bernina dealers.
  • Metal inside, Swiss engineering, some metal bodies. You can go from a $250 basic mechanical Bernette to full on free arm quilting and embroidery machines that cost more than a down payment on a house.
  • I never see them in thrift shops or garage sales for $25…I never see ancient basic models for less than $500 AKA they keep their value
  • If you get a bad one, repairs are $$$
  • Accessories are $$$
  • Tune ups are $$$
  • The Bernina tribe is strong and LOYAL. Just read comments anywhere and you’ll see what I mean.
  • Some Berninas recently had a software update….ABOVE a price point, while the machines below said price point did not get an update. Not hatin’ just statin.’ When you’re looking at a pretty high beginner buy-in point…it’s something you should know. This is unlikely to be different in any brand, and frankly, we’re not getting into embroidery machines right now, are we? No. So take it or leave it.
  • ***EDITED perk I totally forgot! Dealers will throw in free lessons with a machine – so they’ll train you to use it and maybe even a beginner sewing class too! Work out a deal with them!

Brother, et al.

  • Amazon reviews. Read them. Brother makes killer industrial/semi-industrial machines…you’re not buying one of those or even one made on the same planet.
  • I generally don’t talk about Singers made after 1960…that said, I’ve read from a mechanic that the Heavy Duty model would be a reliable home sewing machine. Not my words; not an endorsement; not an affiliate link.
  • $100 or so is a great starting price point
  • Plastic on the outside and inside – this means plastic gears that will eventually break. Maybe in a month, maybe in 100 years. The Singer in the top photo? Metal gears. Plastic cams (decorative stitch thingies)
  • Fairly universal and economical accessories
  • No dealer guarantees, no discounted service, no free tune-ups for a year
  • Anecdote: Told a friend to buy a Brother to start. Friend made a few quilts and curtains. Friend upgraded from $150 Brother to a $350 metal, mechanical Janome after 3 years. Friend couldn’t BELIEVE the difference in quality and sturdiness and fell in love with sewing again. Friend even got a serger, they got so into it after the Janome.
  • That said, Sew Sweetness started a huge business making bags on a basic Brother machine. Bags are tough to sew, and if she can make a mini empire on one, who’s to judge? I have bought, seriously, a half dozen or more of her patterns before she upgraded her machine.

Viking, Janome, Pfaff, Babylock, Juki…and all the other dealer brands not Bernina

  • Higher entry point than Brother, but not as high as Bernina
  • Dealer support/sales/deals and warranty options
  • Tons of variations in styles and reliability – read reviews. Ask the dealer pointblank: which machine gets returned/serviced the most?
  • Also in variations, some metal bodies, some plastic housing with metal inside in various amounts. For example, Janome has ~3 price levels and 3 different countries of manufacture for those levels.
  • Test drive them all even if it’s just because you can. They’re each so different and have their fans. I love Viking, Janome, and Juki. I know plenty of sewists that will fight to the death for their Pfaff. I have no experience with Pfaff or Babylock…I can’t know what I don’t know.
  • Accessories and parts are $$ and often brand-specific.
    • I have a 2012 Viking Sapphire 835. After an initial buy-in of +$1000, I have purchased:
      • invisible zipper foot
      • a quilting foot-set (see also: walking foot / differential feed foot, 1/4″ foot, AND darning foot)
      • ruffling foot
      • My Viking is hydraulic, which means no oil but also means I don’t work on it myself at this time. A single tune up is $180. It also means it does not like to ‘hand crank’ over tough spots.
      • extra Viking bobbins
  • ***EDITED perk I totally forgot! Dealers will throw in free lessons with a machine – so they’ll train you to use it and maybe even a beginner sewing class too! Work out a deal with them!

Garage Sale, Thrift Store, Hand-Me-Downs, or Craigslist

  • Do you know enough to look at it and know why it is for sale? If the power comes on, and the wheel turns freely by hand (toward you only, please), look at the bobbin area. In my experience, 90% of the issues are there, and 90% of THOSE are user-errors, but if you’re a beginner…those may soon be your errors.
  • $25 used sale price adds up if you’re wrong
  • Tune-up or a basic service to clean it is still likely to be $80-100, and that’s if you’re not wrong about why it’s for sale
  • Sometimes parts/accessories can be had cheaply on eBay, sometimes not so cheaply
  • ***edited*** you can find certified, warrantied machines at a dealer – if you do this, I highly recommend you negotiate an hour or more in classes/how to use said machine.

 

I say all of this, HOWEVER, in addition to my Viking and at the time of writing this, I have 9 used and/or vintage machines. 3 work flawlessly, 1 works mostly flawlessly, 5 are in various stages. 2 of the flawless, I bought working flawlessly (read: more than $25), the rest I’ve worked on/am working on. That said… 1 is a Janome and has 3 feet I’ve wanted but didn’t want to spend the money on for my Viking. I just got the 3 feet I wanted, on a 10+ year-old working Janome for $25, with a bit of elbow grease, and $10 for new bobbins. Those feet would have cost me at least $100 for my Viking.

BUT it did not start out that way. I am able to work and sew on old, mechanical sewing machines now because some years ago, my mom’s computerized, super-schmancy Janome (current comparable model is in the Memory Craft line) just let me sew something cool….AFTER I got frustrated on her 1970s Kenmore. Mom’s Kenmore is a 158 series – a machine you’re likely to find in the thrift stores and now one of my favorites. But then, I really just wanted to sew something cool and didn’t get that I needed to pay attention to a few mechanical details.

PART 2

Viking, Brother, and Bernina images owned by respective companies.

InsulBright By The Warm Company

I’ve used InsulBright now for a few projects. Nothing outside the realm of the quilted potholder, but I’ve got that one down with this product. I don’t really need a casserole insulator at this time, but I could see using it for that down the road.

Sew, Mama, Sew!
Sew, Mama, Sew!

I’ve used it for the Sew, Mama, Sew! BOM Potholder project, and I brought it back out this Mother’s Day for even more, and finally finished off Le Purple.

Le Purple
Le Purple

I like the weight of it. The instructions are to have the top, the InsulBright, low loft cotton batting such as their own Warm & Natural, and then the bottom. It’s thick to work with, but once it’s together and an actual potholder, it’s surprisingly thin. I know that defies logic, but it’s true.

It has this crinkly sound to it- it’s almost like it is made of one of those thermal blankets you find in emergency kits. In fact, I wouldn’t be shocked if that is what they used to make it. It was weird at first, but now I like it. It’s subtle, but there.

The one caveat if you’re going to use it. It dumps a TON of lint in your machine. Well, my machine. I cleaned before making the purple potholder. I thought, “DANG, my machine has hairballs!” when I cleaned it out.

Then, I made Le Purple. Just Le Purple. Nothing else.

And I opened up Ms. Viking again.

Linty
Linty Under Bobbin

Oh, that’s nothing….look at this:

Viking Hairball
Viking Hairball

There were at least 4 good clumps that size. From one potholder. I dug it out from under the feed dogs and bobbin area.

Will this detract me from using InsulBright in the future? No way.

Will I make sure I clean it every stinkin’ time afterwards? Until Ms. Viking starts eating wheatgrass, yes.

Bonus – The Warm Company is only a few miles from me, so I have my Pacific Northwest native pride to think of as well!

Bustin’ Needles

In my frenzy to babble about the potholders yesterday, I totally forgot to tell you that I busted a needle AND overloaded the motor on Ms. Viking 3 times! Her screen pops up with this exclamation point and she just stops short of swearing at me. I used InsulBright, batting, quilted tops, backing and bias tape with loops on the potholders. In the corner for the loop….that makes at least 6 layers of cotton plus the batting (low loft cotton) and the InsulBright. I get it’s thick, but my Swede did NOT like it.

Busted Needle
Busted Needle

That cream binding is a purchased poly bias tape which my machine did not like at all with the layers. It still didn’t love the homemade gray Kona bias tape but I didn’t break anything. I was using a Schmetz Quilting needle, 90/14, Aurifil 50wt, the right settings and 3.5 stitch length….

I love my Viking but I think I’m a bit too rough. She makes garments just great, but I’m starting to eyeball Jukis more and more. I have the Elizabeth Hatman sewing circle bag pattern and I just know it’s going to be a rough ride.

Viking Quilter’s Presser Foot Kit

original FMQ foot

Since I’ve signed up for a few quilting classes and joined the Portland Modern Quilt Guild, I bought the Viking Sapphire Quilter’s Presser Foot Kit. I was mostly looking to add on a walking foot, like I tried to get earlier, but it was less expensive to get the whole kit. Go figure.

It came with a walking foot, a 1/4 inch plastic piecing foot and an open-circle, spring free motion quilting foot. I thought I would be ho-hum about the walking foot, and really into the new FMQ foot, but I’m actually reversed on that.

The walking foot is substantial.

Viking Walking Foot Front
Viking Walking Foot Front
Viking Walking Foot Side
Viking Walking Foot Side

It should have come with a longer bolt to attach it to the machine shank, I’m a bit irked about that, but it works really well. I’ll have to hunt down a longer bolt – right now it stays on if I tighten it down perfectly, but I don’t trust it….there’s just no way there’s enough threads of the bolt in there to sustain it for any lengthy period.

It sure makes for pretty and easy stitching though. These are the feather blocks I’ve been working on, pattern by Anna Maria Horner.

Viking Walking Foot Stitching
Viking Walking Foot Stitching
Viking Walking Foot Stitching
Viking Walking Foot Stitching

I have no idea what those blocks will be turned into; it has batting and stiff canvas as the backing ala Oh, Fransson!, thinking I’ll want a bag or a dust cover for my KitchenAid or something.

Then there’s the spring tension FMQ foot.

spring FMQ foot
spring FMQ foot

I’ve never had a problem with my original FMQ foot….here next to it and I’ve used previously in a few projects….

original FMQ foot
original FMQ foot

but it seems like everyone else uses these spring-loaded ones, so I thought I’d give it a whirl.

It’s….well, it…it makes me scream “WTF??” a LOT.

It will work great…

Viking Spring FMQ Pebbles
Viking Spring FMQ Pebbles

And then suddenly my upper tension will go just crazy, like the tension disks are stuck together and will not adjust down no matter what. I didn’t take any photos of the craziness it did on my feather blocks…I just ripped out the crazy stitches put it away before I cried.

But then I used it in class….we intentionally used contrasting threads to watch the tension. I was using 50 wt cotton yellow and gray on white muslin and cotton low-loft batting…

nonono
nonono

Then, there’s the back…see what I mean by WTF?

suckage
suckage

So, then I moved back to my little clip on plastic foot….and it was fine.

Paisley FMQ
Paisley FMQ
Paisley FMQ back
Paisley FMQ back

So…I don’t now. There’s an entire Yahoo Sapphire Group and I swear 90% of the threads (no pun intended) are on this topic alone – the tension and the FMQ foot. I’m seriously considering a Juki for quilting by this time next year….I will not put up with a machine not performing its function. Ms. Viking may just turn into a garment only machine if she keeps this up.

Lastly, it came with a plastic 1/4″ piecing foot. It’s too bad that it’s plastic, but I have to admit, I like it. I’d almost rather switch feet than remember to move the needle to the 1/4″ and back…Ms. Viking resets its needle position all too often, so this is a nice tool. I like the metal guide that comes down and keeps me in place. I like it a lot.

This photo was taken before I forgot I changed to a zig-zag stitch on something else and left this foot on…and put the microtex/sharp needle right through the plastic…so…that hole is a little wider now.

quarter inch foot
quarter inch foot

So….there’s my novella on the Viking Quilt Kit for now. I’ll let you know if that spring foot gets me mad enough to chuck it.

Star Wars Babies

Creative Patching Front

I haven’t always had the best of luck with my Steam-A-Seam adventures, but I was determined to make it work for the sake of Star Wars, and the fact that I would be giving them away therefore not have to deal with the aftermath of failure. Wait….they know where I live…damn!

Out of that first disaster applique craft, I did have one survive without me having to stitch it down. It happens to be the Star Wars onesie. Coincidence? I think NOT!

Star Wars Baby
Star Wars Baby

It’s a bit bubbly and would be better stitched down, but that’s 1 out of 4…that’s a 25% success rate…whatever…look, CUTE BABY!!!

Moving Model
Moving Model

I’m just following modern business culture – when there’s failure, distract!

Not to disappoint you, as per usual, I do everything in Costco amounts – including onesies:

Pile'o'onesies
Pile’o’onesies

One of the new onesies was pre-ruined out of the package! Someone at Target was a little too excited to restock shelves. I can’t get upset about it, though, when I’m technically planning to patch perfectly good onesies.

Box Knife Bastards - My New Band Name
Box Knife Bastards – My New Band Name

My, how my art board has changed over the years. I cut out the images I wanted from the fabric with great meticulous detail. No, not really. I just cut them out, stuck them to one side of the Steam-A-Seam2 in the most efficient arrangement I could take the time to bother with, and cut them out.

Art
Art

Being that my “canvas” is a 12 or 18 month sized onesie, I did check to make sure my images would fit.

My Artboard Circa 2013
My Artboard Circa 2013

I spent more time making sure I really pressed these down. The Steam-A-Seam2 is this layer of gel-like plastic that takes effort to melt between the layers. I did much better this time. This is a picture of covering the box knife slash that went through the back of the onesie too. The selvage is just too funny not to use.

Creative Patching Back
Creative Patching Back

And the Death Star right on the Juice Belly? Yes please.

Creative Patching Front
Creative Patching Front

I ironed all the fronts and backs on, then piled them up to Ms. Viking and zig-zag stitched them all down just to keep them extra, extra secure.

Batch Sewing Onesies
Batch Sewing Onesies

Hopefully you have a nice, narrow free-arm option. The onesie is already sewn together, so moving around the knit fabric without tweaking it too bad and getting the woven fabric stitched down one a baby onesie takes some manipulation. My machine is a ‘little bit of everything’ kind of machine, so works great for this, but your mileage may vary.

finagle
finagle

Tomorrow I will post photos of the whole thing – pants, onsies, Star Wars cute overload!

What Kind Of Batting To Use?

poly batting

When I was a little girl in the 70s, my mom made a basic patchwork quilt that she tie-quilted with polyester batting. It was fluffy and squooshy and great until I wore it out by the early 80s. I wish I had a photo of it – matching burgundy and cream calicos. The poly batting was just kind of weird and it wasn’t really mendable. My mom made me a second quilt in 1989/90 and it’s a double Irish chain in solids of lavender and white.

Double Irish Chain Quilt
Double Irish Chain Quilt

It was hand-quilted with a cotton batting.

80s Lavender
80s Lavender

It is soooo beat up. I feel like such a little sh*t looking at it now. Of course my mom wanted me to use it, but now that I appreciate these things so much more, maybe I wouldn’t have spilled black candle wax on it (no, not on Halloween…I was a teen in the 90s, every day was Halloween, boppy-bop-bop).

Black Spot
Black Spot

I used the paper towel/iron method to get that wax up, but it still stained. I’m such a bastard. It’s so worn out that anymore I just keep it folded and out of harm’s way.

Worn Out Quilt
Worn Out Quilt

I’ve used poly batting for a dragon tail & spines, for a furry bat costume, to save a cuddley here and there and for the Christmas stockings.

Baby's Stocking
Baby’s Stocking

For a craft here and there, I’m ok with it, but it hasn’t been my favorite to work with.

As I was finishing up the pillows for Liam’s chevron bed set, I thought I’d test it out to see if I really didn’t like it or if it was my imagination. Time to set up sewing area as test lab again!

I really don’t like it.

Here is a pillow top pieced, basted with batting and backing, and quilted with the Sulky thread.

poly batting
poly batting
poly batting testing
poly batting testing

Here’s a close up of those stars – do you see how wonky they got? Ms. Viking Did Not Like. I tried and tried, but she was not having anything to do with it.

embroidery w poly
embroidery w poly

Compared to how the cotton batting turned out, I think it’s a safe bet to say I’m sticking with cotton batting or bust.

top finished
top finished

Now, I do mention using an organic bamboo/cotton blend here in the baby quilt and in the Liam quilt. If you can afford that every time, more power to you. It is very, very nice to work with and is my favorite so far. I haven’t tried wool yet. If you can’t afford bamboo/cotton every time or just don’t want to, the Warm and Natural cotton works just fine for me and Ms. Viking. You won’t be seeing me buy poly batting again any time soon….well, until I need to make another dragon tail.

Last Pixar Post – Chevron Pillows

finished corners

When all was said and done with Liam’s Cars quilt, this is what I had left…about a yard of the blue Cars fabric in pieces, less than a 1/4 yard of the black Cars 2 fabric, 3 chevron blocks and a lot of embroidery thread! Listing it all makes me think there’s a missing character in the Clue game…It was Ms. Saffron the seamstress in the craft room with the glue gun! 

Leftovers
Leftovers

I decided 2 throw pillows in the 18×18″ range ought to do it.

Pillow Tops
Pillow Tops

Here are 3 pillow tops ready to go – 1 extra just in case. I’ll get to that later….yeah….

Anyway, here is the Sulky thread on top and I used a cream Gutterman in the bobbin. This made the tension a lot easier to tweak and adjust for a smoother look. It still got a bit of pull-through here and there, but what are you gonna do? We’re not entering this into the Smithsonian, we’re just having fun.

close up embroidery stitch
close up embroidery stitch

It also makes the inside look cleaner to have a solid cream thread in the bobbin.

squaring up
squaring up

I squared it all up, and added the back. I decided against a button closure or zippers in favor of an envelope style…it’s for a kid. Kids roll around and smoosh pillows and my Alex has complained about buttons on bedding before, so I thought it would be best to leave them off.

I embroidered the back to match the front.

front and back embroidery
front and back embroidery

Here’s a close up of the Sulky thread on top and the bobbing thread on the bottom against the blue so you can see it.

close up
close up

I layered the back on the front so that the shorter part of the envelope would be on top when turned right side out.

layering back
layering back

I decided to serge it together. It’s super thick with the batting and again with the idea that a boy is going to be rolling around on it, even though my sewing machine would easily sew it together….I want it to be sturdy and hold up to big squoooshing and smooooshing and many story times and wrestle matches.

Here’s a finished right-side-out top on a finished inside-out top to see how it looks.

finished corners
finished corners

Here’s the finished back.

Pillow Back
Pillow Back

I made a fairly deep overlap for the envelope – again, with the idea of them being play objects…I know if it’s not deep enough, the pillows will squish out the back.

pillow overlap
pillow overlap

And….the finished top!

top finished
top finished

They’re about 19″x19″, which, with the quilting and seams, should comfortably fit 18″x18″ inserts. I used, as you can see, a star embroidery stitch. I have the Viking Sapphire 835 which is pretty awesome but she’s not a full-on embroidery machine, she’s more of a little-bit-of-everything machine, so corners were a bit tricky but I’m still very happy with it. I went for a simple Cars-LIAM-Cars embroidery motif in the center.

Embroidery Thread For Quilting

Embroidery Thread Spools

I have the top and back of the VIP Liam quilt basted and ready for actual quilting. The top chevrons and the large block patchwork back intentionally don’t match up other than the Disney Cars theme. The top was more for the aesthetic of grown-ups, while the back is just for Liam to enjoy.

My thought process for the quilting was that I didn’t want to use my usual cream Gutermann thread and just quilt the top like I normally would. This has to be special. That and the cream thread would look silly on the colorful back. So the obvious choice would be to use a colored thread, right? That would still cause really obvious lines in the crazy patterned back….so, I decided to take advantage of having embroidery functions on my machine, the variegated threads at the store and see what happens.

I did some Google searching (that’s like soul searching, right?), but couldn’t find satisfactory answers to my thread question: Can machine embroidery thread by used for machine quilting? I get the weight, ply, strength blah blah blah issues that MAY occur, but can it be done?? The only thing to do is just try it myself and figure it out by making my own sewing lab.

Enter a $45 dollar receipt for thread. That’s with sales and coupons. Keep that in mind if this whim bites you in the…yeah.

Embroidery Thread Spools
Embroidery Thread Spools

The Signature Cotton thread is a 40 wt thread and the display said it’s ideal for machine quilting. The Sulky is a rayon and I read a LOT of contradictory statements about rayon embroidery thread. Some love it. Some say it bleeds, snaps and isn’t ideal – and that was just for embroidery. I’m going to put this through layers of cotton and batting. I read all kinds of business about bobbin tension issues, using the wrong needle will make embroidery thread snap, etc. I’m a little headstrong and don’t like coulda/shoulda crap. I just decided to find out for myself.

Both A&E Thread, makers of Signature, and Sulky have horrible websites. Just horrible.

A&E Thread has built their website for resellers, not you, the consumer. So, if you can move through a reseller site with ease, you’ll be ok and I will admit they have really thorough specs on their site. If it’s too confusing, hopefully you can find a fully trained reseller (that’s like a flying pig sometimes.) A&E’s site is also built with way too much old-skool coding crap like javascript that I can’t even link you directly to the thread. I have to tell you it’s here and go to “Signature Quilters’ Threads Cotton Variegated Assortment” – not really consumer or reseller friendly.

The Sulky site isn’t much better, but it is built more for consumers. It’s just really messy and looks like a school kid did it. However, you can find Products listed in the mess on the side and you can get to your thread. I can say I have #2240 in 40 wt. listed on this page. Looking at the site, 30 wt. would have been preferred it seems, but life goes on. Their specs are pretty good but you HAVE to read the first paragraph of the answer to poly vs. rayon thread here.  I don’t know who at Sulky wrote that, but I love them. That is a fantastic answer with solid reasoning and a bit of a back-slap thrown in. They get my respect for that and I did read exactly who they’re talking about….what a perfect response. Here’s my love, mwah! They didn’t mention one other bad point about polyester, which is it will eventually cut through cotton. Just nature of the beast. Anywho…

I made some practice pieces of cotton and batting, and loaded up a fun program to practice with. I’m not going to embroider the quilt, but just quilt with embroidery thread, so this is more testing than necessary but more fun too! Plus, I kill two birds with one stone knowing what I can and can’t do down the road.

Liam Program
Liam Program

These first tests weren’t for tension adjustment, but instead just to see if the thread would go through the Viking ok, and the batting and a 90 universal needle and…you get the idea.

I tested the Sulky rayon thread first.

Rayon On Machine
Rayon On Machine

 

Rayon In Bobbin
Rayon In Bobbin

I’m happy with it. It feels flexible through the fabric and really as soft/silky as you think rayon would. It obviously needs tension adjustment, but this was just a machine and material test.

Embroidery Thread Test On
Embroidery Thread Test On

Next, the Signature Cotton.

Cotton On Machine
Cotton On Machine

 

Cotton In Bobbin
Cotton In Bobbin

Again, overall I like it. It’s not as silky as the rayon and the colors come across more…Crayola if you know what I mean. I think if I wanted my thread color to be true to what it looks like on the spool, cotton is a sure bet. It is also easier to adjust for tension.

Cotton Embroidery Test
Cotton Embroidery Test

After some deliberation and input from “Uncle R” I decided to go with the rayon as long as it passed the colorfast test. I read that rayon thread had problems with this, even though the Sulky spool does read “silky, shiny, strong, washable & dry cleanable.” I’m too well-versed in marketing to believe labels!

Here is the rayon thread after cold water, hot water, rubbing, soap and just about everything else I could think of to do to it.

Colorfast Testing Rayon
Colorfast Testing Rayon

Alright! We have success! Good on Sulky!

To get the tension adjusted…or rather to see if it was even possible with the lower 40 wt. through the batting, I tested again.

Tension Setting Rayon
Tension Setting Rayon

I just ran the machine and made little tweaks until it was where I liked it and it has worked fine. No breakage, no snaggle-messes, no cussing like a sailor.

So, for me and the Viking, embroidery thread is working just great as a quilting thread. I have about 1/3 of the quilt done in simple echo-lines on the chevron, and it it looks really cute and fun. I did experiment with a little FMQ and it held up just as well.

If you’re ignoring the extra functions on your machine, this, like FMQ, is another “just dig in and do it” thing. It’s totally worth it…maybe just don’t buy so much at once like I did!

Other details: Kona cotton, Warm & Natural batting…I mentioned above it’s just a 90 universal needle. Get on it!

Free Motion Quilting Practice

Second Section FMQ

And practice and practice and practice…

Free motion quilting (FMQ) is a crazy concept. There’s a FMQ’d baby quilt on one of our walls that has these intricate vines with heart-shaped leaves. Now, if you’re not familiar with FMQing, do this: hold a pencil still in one hand, and move a piece of paper under the motionless pencil, and make a border around the paper around little squares complete with heart-shaped leaves. Crazy, huh?

Chevron Quilt Blocks
Chevron Quilt Blocks

I have a nice pile of blocks leftover from the Chevron Baby Quilt and since I love the fabric so much, I thought I’d make a little wall panel out of the remainder and practice my FMQ skills, or lack thereof.

My Viking prinCESS came with FMQ functionality and an acrylic FMQ foot.

Viking FMQ Foot
Viking FMQ Foot
Viking FMQ Foot Front
Viking FMQ Foot Front

I’ve used it somewhat and I like it quite a bit. I have yet to break it anyway.

FMQ Practice 1
FMQ Practice 1
FMQ Practice 2
FMQ Practice 2

I did some practice and watched some tutorials online before I decided what I wanted to go for on the real deal. I really dig this Leah Day channel on YouTube. She’s really easy going, she’s doing it on a Janome (which I have mad love for as well) and she really gives you the confidence that you can just jump in and do it.

So…I just did it. I’m still doing it….

First Section FMQ
First Section FMQ

That’s my first section. It’s….creative. HAHAHA. I’m good with it though. This is on Warm and Natural batting…and it’s going well. I can feel the difference between it and the Nature-Fil bamboo/cotton blend, but it’s ok.

Second Section FMQ
Second Section FMQ

And here’s my second section – ignore that I was less picky about the pattern matching up. The FMQing is more uniform, but I got a bit of puckering down at the bottom right. Again, I’m okay with it. As I go along, I can feel what needs improvement, how things need to be approached a bit differently and where I can tweak it to make it better. Also, how I may pick a less geometric patterned fabric next time! I won’t have it done in time for Valentine’s Day, but I think it will be cute as a headboard sort of hanging over our bed. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes, but so far, I’m diggin’ it.

Chevron Pattern Baby Quilt

Quilt the Quilt

My most fabulous and talented man is from Seattle, and the Seattle cousins are having babies! There are 2 due this spring. We ventured up this weekend for a bit of Zoe’s first birthday, a bit of VIP special delivery, and I took up a baby quilt for Robert’s cousin’s baby shower that we could not attend, but I could not resist making a little something.

I saw this glowing Tiffany blue argyle pattern from the Denyse Schmidt Fancy Free line.

Denyse Schmidt Fancy Free
Denyse Schmidt Fancy Free

It has the silkiest feel to it and is really nice to work with…it’s also never going to make it into my ‘cheap and easy’ category as it’s certainly not cheap, but is sooo very worth it. Besides, when we’re talking a quilt for a family baby, we don’t want cheap to enter into the equation unless it’s happenstance, right? Right. It was 30% off when I bought it, so, for giggles, you’re looking at about 4 yards at around $10 each, and I have a yard leftover…not too bad before batting and all.

I got a 9.5″ square ruler by Omnigrid to make my life a bit easier. I knew I wanted it to be a big, chunky chevron pattern and that I would be repeating the pattern later with the large Disney Cars print, so it was a good buy.

Omnigrid 9.5x9.5
Omnigrid 9.5×9.5

My batting was a baby quilt size 60″x60″ – which gave me plenty of room to work with. When all is said and done, I have 6 half-square triangles (HST) across and down that are 8.25″ once sewn together (6×8.25=49.5″) and that’s plenty of wiggle room.

Cut, Centered & Stacked
Cut, Centered & Stacked

Enter the batch sewing. I borrowed this technique from my Craftsy Block of the Month class. My quilting experience hasn’t always resulted in the best end product, but I have been working on it. While apparel remains my more natural mode, I must grow! hahaha. Okay, seriously. Take your stacks of squares, I’m using a Kona white as my contrast, mark the lighter fabric down the center on all of them, stack them all right sides together (not gonna matter with a solid), and get ready to sew, sew, sew.

First Run of Chain
First Run of Chain

My first run of stitching 1/4″ down one side of the center marked line.

Needle Adjustment for Viking
Needle Adjustment for Viking

On my machine, I move the needle to the right 1.8 points to make the edge of my foot 1/4″ – your machine or foot may make that unnecessary, but this is what I choose to do.

Second Run Chain Piecing
Second Run Chain Piecing

Without even cutting anything apart, I stitched the opposite side of each block’s center line next.

Set, Slice, Press & Stack
Set, Slice, Press & Stack

Alright! Does anyone reading this have any experience with the LEAN manufacturing theories? I always giggle when I’m in this batch-sewing mode and think of that. Anywho, set all of your sewn lines at the same time, cut them all apart, slice along your marked line, and press all of them open. For me, giggling about LEAN and getting it all done in like-batches is easier.

Directional Pattern
Directional Pattern

Now, this fabric has a directional pattern. Keep this in mind when selecting your fabric – it adds a bit of time to your assembly if you need to make sure the patterns are all going the same way.

Chevron Block
Chevron Block

This is where I leave the Craftsy BOM class instructions and move to something simpler. This is more like the Missouri Quilt Company YouTube tutorial idea. I know, I know, I can’t just stick with one thing; I have to mix and match and make my own. I personally don’t love the Missouri Quilt’s version of making HSTs because they’re too wiggly on the bias afterwards for me and honestly, adding wiggly to geometry doesn’t work for me at this time. Maybe when I get better at it.

Sew It All Up
Sew It All Up

Sew it all up! I use the more classic quilt construction by making quadrants of blocks that get sewn together, but if you can sew in strips of blocks, more power to you. I tend to get some extra wonkiness when I do that, so I stick to what works best for me. Less wonky works best for me.

Quilt Top
Quilt Top

My fabulous and talented man can also hold up quilt tops with ease! Aw, he’s so sweet. Hold on a second while I go give him a kiss.

Okay, I’m back.

Now, you baste your top to your batting and backing fabric. Baste as you like…I use spray baste. To each their own. My usual Warm and Natural batting was out of stock, so I tried a new kind.

Nature-Fil Batting
Nature-Fil Batting

It’s like buttah, I tell ya. It is Nature-Fil which is 50% bamboo rayon and 50% organic cotton. It’s a bit more pricey than my usual, but damn was it easy to quilt. Vikings are great machines…better at some things than others, and she can be a persnickety one at times, but she didn’t blink an eye at this batting.

Quilt the Quilt
Quilt the Quilt

Purred like a kitten right through it all, and didn’t even need a walking foot. I just traced the patterned chevron on the white for quilting – kept it simple and fast.

Trimming For Binding
Trimming For Binding

I’m a big fan of the backing wrap-around binding – especially if I’m going to have mitered corners. I trimmed down to 2 inches after quilting. If your quilt is wonky and didn’t stay square after quilting, this may not work as well, but I did minimal quilting and it stayed square.

Sew Down Binding
Sew Down Binding

I wrapped the raw edge of the binding edge in itself, and pinned it down. Again, Ms. Viking had no problems at all purring through through it.

Front Finished
Front Finished

Here’s the front, all finished and pretty.

Baby Quilt Back Finished
Baby Quilt Back Finished

Here’s the back. I had some blocks leftover that I incorporated. I think it looks a little nautical, which is fitting for Pacific NW families.

Altogether, it only took about….10-12 hours I’d guess, including the extra fussing needed for the fabric directional pattern. If you’re curious, with getting some of the fabric and the batting on sale, you’re looking at about $60-70 dollars for this finished baby quilt, not including labor :). I think that’s pretty good. Sure, you can get 3 or 4 blankets at Target for that, but they won’t be nearly as nice or have that special family love sewn in. And like I said, while this may not fall into the cheap category, it was certainly easy.

I’m definitely glad I found a way to make this pattern work for me, and I’m definitely going to do it again. I’m not quite pro yet….here’s leaving you with a close up of a block that did get wonky…

Wonky
Wonky

Sewing Gadgets – Bobbin Winder

Pile'O'Bobbins

Next to my rotary cutters, my bobbin winder is my favorite sewing gadget. I have the Wrights SideWinder I picked up with, you guessed it, a coupon at Joann’s.

I haven’t even figured out how to use the bobbin winder on my Viking – why? This little guy does it fast, easy and I don’t have to rethread my machine, stop a project, change thread colors…and I can do a dozen in a few minutes with no hassle. My Viking has very specific bobbins, but I’ve also used my winder with an old Kenmore and a Janome and it works great on all 3 very different bobbins.

Vikings in particular are very….particular. This is my bobbin.

Viking Bobbin
Viking Bobbin

Most (newer) bobbins have a thread hole you pull the thread through before winding to keep it secure until it has a few rounds of thread in it. My Viking logo has to face down on my winder to get the thread the right direction and depending on your machine, that may not be necessary. My little Swedish bitch is picky, though, and everything has to be name brand.

Empty Bobbin on Winder
Empty Bobbin on Winder

I pop the bobbin on, slide the guide to the bobbin – when it reaches thread capacity, it turns the winder off. I lightly hold the string from the hole and let the winding pull it from my fingers – that is my highly technical way of getting the thread started.

Full bobbin
Full bobbin

When it’s done, it stops. I pop off the bobbin, trim the thread, and do it again.

Bobbin Winder
Bobbin Winder

Here is the whole machine in action…again, my fussy Viking likes Gütermann thread or better…so I buy the big spools usually in neutral colors like cream and gray – a trick I learned from mom the quilt master.

That should be capped. Mom The Quilt Master. It’s a reverent title.

Your mileage may vary – just do the thread test: if you can pull on the thread and it snaps easily, it’s going to snap in your machine. That is bad. Save it for basting, or what I like to call, hand-sewing that there’s no way in hell I’m going to do.

Pile'O'Bobbins
Pile’O’Bobbins

This pile makes me happy. I will still scream in pain as if I was bit by Cujo every time my bobbin runs out and I notice after I’ve gone several inches along…but it’s a little less dramatic if I know I have a pile of bobbins waiting to fill it.