The sewing thread

PipneyJane

silvasava said:

Bum and double Bum!  My old flat bed machine that I had repaired and serviced last year is awful! The bobin winder doesnt stop the foot moving up and down which it should. The reverse button is out of alignment and sticks, the machine has a 4 step buttonhole programme and I can only get the dial to move to the first position. It sounds lumpy and the zig zag is missing a stitch every now and then. I took it to a local guy who did tell me my machine was very old and he could do me a deal on a new Janome but its a heavy duty machine thats all metal (weighs a ton) and has always run beautifully even though its over 40 years old. Gonna ring another company that repair and have a good reputation.  Not my week for machines

I am not sure where you are based, but if you’re anywhere near west London, I can recommend the people who serviced my machine.  They are in Southall.  PM me if you want their details.

- Pip

silvasava

Thank you Pipney - a bit too far away for me in southern Hampshire! I phoned a local shop that has a good reputation and had a lovely chat with the engineer and DH & I took both machines in to him today. He's got quite a lot of work on so it will be 5/6 weeks before I get one back but needs must! I only had mending and alterations anyway

Miró

silvasava said:

Bum and double Bum!  My old flat bed machine that I had repaired and serviced last year is awful! The bobin winder doesnt stop the foot moving up and down which it should. The reverse button is out of alignment and sticks, the machine has a 4 step buttonhole programme and I can only get the dial to move to the first position. It sounds lumpy and the zig zag is missing a stitch every now and then. I took it to a local guy who did tell me my machine was very old and he could do me a deal on a new Janome but its a heavy duty machine thats all metal (weighs a ton) and has always run beautifully even though its over 40 years old. Gonna ring another company that repair and have a good reputation.  Not my week for machines

My 43 year old beloved Elna sewing machine packed up a couple of years ago and I took it to two local repair people who both tried to sell me a new machine saying mine was too old and beyond repair.  Like yours mine is all metal too including the case.  Anyhoo, I persevered and found a specialist in Elna machine repairs and trekked 50+ miles to a lovely chap who got it all sorted in a week, including sourcing a part that the others had said no longer existed.  Only use it now largely for alterations and repairs but I was so pleased to get it fixed as it feels like and old friend!  The other week someone posted a nearly new overlocking machine on my local Freecycle but someone beat me to it....I was so disappointed.

silvasava

Miro - thats how I feel about my machines! My old Singer was given to my Mum when DH bought me the Husquvarna. It was then passed to my Godmother after my Mum died and then it came back to me when GM's sight deteriorated. They were both excellent needlewomen and looked after it so I know its never been abused. The place I took it to seemed to know exactly what was needed so I've more confidence in his skills. Gonna have to wait a while though as he's been inundated due to covid!

markscott1

Well i just want to say you here that Unlike hand sewing which takes a lot of time to finish, machine sewing can be done very quickly. This is great when you’re in a hurry to finish a project or complete a pending sewing job. If you’re pursuing sewing as a business, then time is crucial. The faster you finish your task, the faster you can move on to your next project. When using a machine, since the thread and needle are already set, you can start and finish the job faster. Sewing by hand takes longer because you search for the needle and the matching thread- who has time for that?

Laura_Elsewhere

markscott1 said:

Well i just want to say you here that Unlike hand sewing which takes a lot of time to finish, machine sewing can be done very quickly. This is great when you’re in a hurry to finish a project or complete a pending sewing job. If you’re pursuing sewing as a business, then time is crucial. The faster you finish your task, the faster you can move on to your next project. When using a machine, since the thread and needle are already set, you can start and finish the job faster. Sewing by hand takes longer because you search for the needle and the matching thread- who has time for that?

I'm laughing as I read - I'm the other end of the scale - for me, hand-sewing is far quicker. I keep my sewing things where I can always find them, so never have to search for anything, and it's very easy and quick to do. 

Everyone is different!

I'm not a professional but I did hand-make historical clothing for quite a few years as an income-source, and never had a problem... 

markscott1

Hi laura,
I appreciate your response and added feedback and I
 agree with your thoughts.

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RosyRed

Hi there, got a surprise to see this thread on the front page of old style recently..I made quite a few pouches and beds for the wildlife in Australia at the start of last year, through a local Fb page and was able to drop off locally. I think they got people who were travelling over there to put stuff in their luggage to avoid big postage costs.

Then I got involved with making scrub bags for Nhs workers and carers, and also masks.

I haven't really done any constructive sewing recently, mainly just alterations on a few tops I bought from a cheap website but worth doing

Hope you managed to get your machine repaired SilvaSava! I know your post was months ago.

purpleivy

It's been a long time! I had a massive involvement with the scrubs making network in our area. That kept me going for a couple of months when I wasn't getting any sewing work. Then I started on masks, made somewhere approaching 700!  Eventually I got a bit of regular work, but not much.  Eventually the second half of April work picked up again. May and June were frantic! 

I've got a couple of nice projects on the go, a special occasion dress for a girl at choir and also mid way through 7 sleeveless blouses for a friend, who's able to travel again and coming next week. Just got the buttons and buttonholes to do I think. She is bringing sewing for me to do as well!


I must get some tops done for myself!  

thriftwizard

I did some scrubs for my eldest's beloved, but have mainly occupied myself during lockdown making little quilt/playmats from scraps for babies/toddlers. Practising for the big day - 1st grandchild expected imminently, "proper" quilt now made & presented! A few things have been altered; a number of long-sleeved t-shirts are now ½ or ¾ sleeved, which is far more practical for me; being on the not-overly-tall side, most sleeves are too long anyway! DD2 has got into shirring in a big way & has made herself lots of pretty tops out of old tie-dyed sheets & other oddments.

But I've decided that, whilst my new (OK, 18 month old) overlocker is lovely, I should have saved a bit harder & got the version that does coverlocking too; I spent many an hour trying to shorten all my mother's new clothes so that they looked acceptable, which was very frustrating. They're all jersey knits and other stretch fabrics... so I shall have to sell my embellisher (not currently being used at all) the overlocker, and a few other big-ticket items, bite the bullet & pay some serious money. To be fair, I could use it on lots of other things too so it'd be a worthwhile investment.