rryder

Hey all,
A while ago I posted a question about vintage machines that might work for me in my art quilting. I got lots of very thoughtful responses, which was incredibly helpful since I didn't know that some cam machines decorative stitches don't have stretch capability. I just wanted to let everyone know that I ended up with a Kenmore 158.19141 with all it's original feet and cams. I've been playing with it all weekend and am having so much fun.

In addition to doing all those nifty decorative stitches I have used it to put a rattail binding on a piece that had lots of lumps and bumps from fabric layers and padding---no problem. In the past I've had to fight with my machines to do this kind of binding, often resorting to laying paper under the piece and the rattail in order to get it to feed properly. That meant lots of removing of little bits of paper from the zigzag stitches used to hold on the binding which took hours. Today when I bound a small art quilt for a charity auction I was able to get it done without the paper, no headaches, perfect feed, beautiful zigzag stitching etc.

Wow! Thanks everyone for taking the time to consult.

Rob

Cari-in-Oly

That's awesome, glad you made the right choice for your needs. I'm not a Kenmore gal myself but I know they are great and often overlooked machines.

Cari

tessagin

So happy for you but what is a rattail binding?

rryder

Rat tail is a satin cord. Rather than putting a traditional double fold binding on some of my art quilts, I zigzag around the edge of the quilt to stabilize it. Then I lay the rat tail cord alongside the edge of the quilt and use a zigzag stitch to attach it. When done properly one side of the zigzag stitch lands on the quilt top and the other side of the zigzag stitch goes over the edge of the rat tail (not into it). The rattail cord lays alongside the edge, not on either the topside or the backside. It's a nice sturdy edge that gives a little bit of luster and is suitable for a wall quilt.

Rob

Sunflowerzz

I am so glad you are having so much fun with your new/vintage machine. I had to go look up the Rattail binding and I really like the looks of that. Thank you for sharing and I think I might try that on a quilt soon.