Anyway, know what's super fun? Working on the last seam of one of your (previously) unfinished objects and having your serger go through a meltdown. Soooooper fun. Yeah. I decided it was time for a segment on taking care of your stuff. I've had my serger for less than a year, but I've used it quite a bit and I figure I'll take it in for maintenance this week. This'll be the first time for the serger, but I've taken my Bernina in for regular yearly tune-ups since I bought it several years ago. It costs about $50, but it's totally worth it. I've been doing so much sewing lately that I think I'll probably take that in as well. I may wait a week, though, just so I'm not without a machine.
I have an old Singer I got when I was 22. It has never been in for maintenance. Perhaps I'll take that one in, too. That machine took me through a lot of costumes and clothes. I always oiled it and cleaned it, but never had it in for a flu shot. It moved with me From apartment to apartment. I made a lot of bridesmaids dresses with that one. I made a brisk business building medieval garb for my friends in the Society for Creative Anachronism (usually for trade. I made a kilt for a package of Double Stuft Oreos once. Once). I made a friend's bridal gown, several costumes for many plays and some clothes for myself. It went with me to New York where I used it to make more costumes, including the fuchsia satin suit of which I used the remainder to line a skirt last week. The machine still works, but it makes a loud racket. I should have that looked at.
Anyway, my old machine is pretty easy to maintain. It even has little red dots to show you where the oil goes. My Bernina isn't as simple. It has a computer in it. I also decided when I got it that I was going to be extra diligent with the tune-ups. I saved up for a long time for that machine, and I haven't been disappointed with it yet.
I guess what I'm saying is, you don't need the best machines or the most expensive and they'll be better, work better and last longer if you take good care of them. You'll also be a lot less stressed when your machine is working properly. When you buy a machine, find out where the store suggests you take it for maintenance. They should tell you anyway, but in case they don't, that's important stuff to know. It happens that our local Hancock Fabrics has a guy who comes in on Wednesdays I can drop off my machine at any time during the week and by the end of the day on the next Wednesday, it's done. I can even take it in that day. There's rarely a huge line of machines to be done. Maybe right after Hallowe'en when everyone's done all their costume sewing.
Some things you can do in the meantime to make sure your machines are happy and humming:
- When unthreading your machine, do not ever pull the thread backwards out of the track. Why? Well, thread looks like it's one long piece of fiber, but unless you're working with fishing line, it's not. Even 100% polyester thread is actually a bunch of smaller fibers twisted together. Manufacturers do this so that it looks like a natural fiber (usually cotton). Fibers are like your hair. If you run your fingers on a strand of your hair from root to tip, it's smooth. If you do it in the other direction, it's not. Fibers have a natural "grain" to them. When polyester thread is made, they use a process to texturize the synthetic fiber to mimic natural fibers. If you pull your thread back through the track, loose fiber bits rub off and fill your machine with lint. Ew. Cut your thread at the spool and pull it out in the direction of flow out the needle. Thread is probably your cheapest notion, and you can save the bits for hand stitching.
- Speaking of lint, NEVER blow your machine! It's very tempting to try to blow lint from your machine. There are even cans of air you can use that have a straw so you can direct forced air where you want it. These are made by the devil. What happens is, instead of getting rid of your lint, it's forced deeper into your machine. That's asking for trouble. Your machine should come with a small brush. This is your lint picker-upper. The bristles are typically made of acrylic, the ends of which are ideal for grabbing lint from your machine's nooks and crannies. You barely have to touch the lint and it'll pull right out. As for those cans of air, don't even use them on your computer keyboard. If they jam lint into your machine, they're going to jam your keyboard.
- Oil is your friend, but not friendly to your fabric. Make sure you have a spare piece of fabric around to run through your machine after you oil it. Oil can ruin your fabric because it's almost impossible to get out. Save yourself that stress by taking a few stitches in a hunk of muslin or scrap.
- Use the right needles. I'm notorious for not using the right needles. I'll cop to that. When you use the right needle for the job, you create less lint. Less lint is good. That's our new mantra: Less Lint is Goooood.
Well, I'm off to the studio to clean up my space (yeah, right!) Take care of your machines and yourselves, flowerpots!
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