Dorothy
Dorothy, the only one of our group who sews for a living, tells us about her recent activities:
Hello!
It was a short month!
I have been doing a focus on sewing under garments which involve Lots of stretch fabric mostly blends with lycra. Most of the time I use a Pfaff 1514 (I may have # wrong) because of its flawless handling of knits, IDT foot and 3 stitch zig zag for elastic. I sent it in for a service. (The needle threader does work, but seems to take more time than normal - stab the thread through the hole.)
The Elna 62C has been Stepping Up and stitching very nicely on layers of Rayon Spandex and Power Mesh. I am very pleased as all I could reference in my history was sewing Quiana knits on my Kenmore before stretch needles and what a Miserable time it was.
Of course, A serger will do the seams for neatness. The elastic will be done with the Elna.
The 62C was purchased from the original owner including the fold down/ collapsible table. It had been set up so long she had to go look to see if the table did break down! The kit was complete! The only issue (Ha! It was covered in layers of masking tape to testify it was Used!) was the reverse which was slow to respond, half length stitches. Oil & patience have much improved the general sewing. There may still be a slight issue with the double cams, but have not checked recently. Most stitching can be accomplished using the 5 built in stitches which is really convenient! It is picky about every setting unlike a Singer 319 swing needle which I do not have stretch needles for. The photos are of the machine plus fabric being sewn. The table is deep in storage so no current photo.
I am signed up for a class "Men's Wear" utilizing the Garment Designer Software by Susan Lazear which starts Saturday. I need to get prepped for the class.
Dorothy
Dianne
Diane got a nice looking machine recently, which she tells us about in some detail:
The Edward Ward’s Arm and Platform is one of those iconic sewing machines that every collector lusts after. This one was acquired recently, and it has taken time to clean, adjust, fabricate a missing part and get it to produce stitches. Finally, with the help of my husband, that has been accomplished.
This is not the most perfect example, but it is very good and I am thrilled to have it. We do not have a good photo setup for something of this size, so please bear with these pictures. My impression is the one often mentioned – Ed Ward was a perfectionist, and no detail escaped his attention. At a glance the machine appears to have a simple upper tensioner…..but no.
... to be continued