sew4nin, Thanks for the response. I am hesitant to buy the designer unit because I just don't know if I will use it. I can see where you would use it more with little kids. I keep thinking I should get it and at least try it out. I suppose if I don't want it after that I could sell it separately or it could go with the machine when my husband sells it after I am gone ... assuming of course that I go first?!?!
I also am loving this machine. I need to try it out on piecing because I think it might make my sewing more accurate. Yep, love that built-in walking foot and the needle down position. The only thing I miss on this machine so far is the knee lift for the presser foot. Cannot tell you how many times I have moved my knee over to raise that and there is nothing there but air.
I did get all the standard feet that come with the machine and both the straight stitch needle plate and the zig-zag one. For true 1/4" seams I have found that for my piecing, I need to use a standard width foot and move the needle over a click or two so that the feed dogs are still grabbing all the fabric under the foot, IYKWIM. Well, that is how it works on my Bernina 153 but I have not tried piecing on the 7550 yet so we will see. I have been reading over the manual and thought I saw somewhere that it said there was a stitch that looked like hand quilting but now I cannot find that. (I remember that a Bernina machine had one in the past and someone told me that it took a lot of thread to do this.) I would like to know how to do that though. Maybe you know where it discusses this stitch in the manual? Actually the machine came with the standard manual and three ring binder called the Owner's Handbook. If it is not in the manual, I would greatly appreciate you emailing the directions. And thanks so much for offering!
Again, thanks for all the info. and I do hope to have some fun with this machine,
PS: Love your avatar! I grew up with a pointer. Did you make a dog quilt then? I grew up with a pointer and that's what your avatar looks like to me.
KLO
Last edited by KLO; 04-29-2012 at 11:53 AM.