I have the babylock Ellisimo and my dealer and all instructors have emphasized always cutting at the spool and pull thread from the needle, in this way thread is not going backwards through the tension etc. I was always told this also with my Vikings. I don't know about the Crescendo for sure but I think they like the Ellisimo have an inspirational guide available in notebook form which is an excellent source for looking up anything about the machine and teaching yourself one function by simply removing that page from the notebook and follow it step by step at your machine. I was lucky enough to receive this in my ellisomo package but I am sure they are available for purchase from your dealer or BL website. I hope this helps