Magnets & Pins

I can't live with out my magnetics when sewing.....Too many of my pins end up on the floor. When I was about fourteen my father bought a brand new Bernina 730 Record to hem his overalls........I can't remember how I started to sew........I've always had a curious mind and it's my guess I just had to try it out this new sewing machine.......I think I take after my Granny and sewing just came naturally to me.

I would always make the mistake of leaving my pins everywhere........My father always complained that I was always dropping pins and someone would step on them (I used to sew on the kitchen table)....... He'd pick up a pin, peer at me and tell me off in his broad foreign accent. Being young I never took much notice and kept on dropping pins.......I was always engrossed in my latest project. If only I had a magnet to pick up my pins back then......But the best part was my father let me take the sewing machine with me when I married and then it became me who hemmed his overalls for him.......

My big blue magnet I give to the button thief and he runs around and picking up my pins off the floor.......The yellow magnetic pin holder I keep by the sewing machine and if I drop a tin of pins  I just magnet them all up!

I found a good blog site for making your own magnetic pin holders.......Why didn't I think of that? Such a good idea and good way to use up old dishes, etc. Click here.

I've had the magnetic pin holder for years.........

My first sewing machine Bernina 730 Record......
A very heavy sturdy sewing machine that
my father liked to over oil.....I ended up
with oil spots all over my sewing.......

Merrylock 4-Thread Overlocker

I've had the chance to use a Merrylock 4- thread 740DSA  domestic overlocker.  It is made by the Tsang Yu Industrial Co. Ltd. The company produces other well known brands such as Singer, Elna and Babylock.

There's not a lot of information out there about Merrylock overlockers/sergers........So I'll tell you a wee bit about this machine........The overlocker is made in Taiwan and it it can do  a 4 thread stitch and 3 thread stitch and you can do a rolled hem. It's a built in rolled hem, no change of plate is required (just flick a switch). The Merrylock has differential feed too.......but the tension is manual. To change the overlocker form 4-thread to 3-thread you just take out one needle.

The price of the overlocker is around NZ $350.00.......It comes with an instruction book written in English, fairly easy to follow if you've owned an overlocker before. I still got stuck with the lower lopper but got there in the end (it has a auto-lopper threader, took me awhile to figure this out). The Merrylock 4-thread overlocker comes with the usual basic accessories and a waste tray. The accessory box is built-in, you just pull out to open and everything is there you need.

The Merrylock looks very similar to The Babylock (I think this overlocker is a Babylock Prestige with out the brand name), though some say it is similar to the Elna.......The overlocker comes with a basic plastic cover also, just the same as my Tru-Lock one from all those years ago........

Click here to read about the Merrylock 007 (a Merrylock cover stitch machine not the 4-thread I'm reviewing ). The cover stitch machine looks very good for it's price.......This is a good website to browse and learn about different sewing overlocking machines.......wished I'd found it earlier.

Do I like using it? At first I found it a bit tinny, different from the the heavy Tru-lock. Once I got my threading organized (took me a wee while for first go) and then set the tension it has been very enjoyable overlocker to use. Certainly a good buy for an entry level machine. A good overlocker to use for hobby classes or just as a spare......and it's light to carry about too!

Merrylock 4-thread
The heart stickers are my instructions on how to
work the machine &  regulate tensions
Merrylock uses HAx1 needles......

Colour co-ordinated hearts.......I go this idea for instruction sticker
 from a fellow blogger. Great for learning how your overlocker works!

Not a bad stitch I quite like it.....(my Elna stitch doesn't
look like this Hmmm!)

Baby Lock Prestige 750DS looks exactly the same
as the Merrylock except for the cotton guide hooks
 There is also no inch centimetre markings on the front
 of the Babylock like the Merrlyock.........

Summer Wrap Around

This is the second time I have sewn this pattern, it's a fairly old Butterick pattern. I was pleased how it turned out, but I must say the original one I made was much better....sadly it had seen better days and has been given away to charity. I've always regretted that as the material was very flowing and an unusual tie dyed brown shade.

The fabric I used here wasn't very expensive and is quite a stiff cotton, vegetable dyed I think........ I've washed it a couple of times and it's getting softer (which is a good thing).....A good summer holiday skirt and a very good cover up for the beach........

Butterick 3326
A wrap around skirt size medium.

I liked the colours and design of the fabric........
The skirt ties on the side and has a back seam.......

Tru-Lock Stitches

My Tru-Lock is a heavy metal 3 thread over locker, a very dependable machine and over or nearly 30 years old.

• Where did I buy it?  I can't remember the brand of sewing machines in the shop, so have no idea who made this brand. It could be Janome, Brother, Babylock who knows? Today I noticed that  the brand Brother is stamped on the machine foot. (but I think that was replaced 15 years ago so may not be the original).
• Is it hard to thread? Yes it is ( mainly the lower lopper) but you get used to it, very simple to work out when it's been threaded wrong......
• Has it a Light? No it hasn't but I am told you can put one on.......I haven't bothered.
• Is it Portable? Yes but it's so heavy and not easy to lift so best left on the sewing table....
• Has it automatic tension? No you adjust the dials manually........
• What stitches does it do? Just a three thread stretch stitch......
• Does it  have differential feed? No it's too old for that!
• What fabrics does it handle? Most with adjustments but I hate using polar fleece because it blunts the knife

Tru-Lock 3 thread stitches...looking good!

I wouldn't part with this one......I've sewn heaps on this......
The Tru-Lock has been very dependable over the years

What's inside my Bernina 801?

The Bernina 801 is a 'free-arm zig-zag sewing automatic buttonholer and built-in plain and utility stitching'. Here are a few pics of the inside workings of the Bernina 801. As you can see she is really a simple machine, very easy to pull apart and clean the hook and the hook race when sewing thread jams the bobbin case.

She hasn't been serviced that much in her 30 years, I just oil her and a way she goes....In the last ten years her foot peddle gave up and that was replaced with another (not new) and this now has just been fixed with parts found in an auction. I also managed to get a spare foot peddle on another online auction just in case this one breaks down.

Sadly no parts are made anymore for this machine as the Bernina factory lost everything in the Tsunami in Thailand (I think that's correct). But if you ever see a good second hand one snap it up it will go for ever. I also think you can get generic feet for it too.........

Maintenance tips:
Oil the shuttle and run a lead pencil around it for maintenance of the machine.
Thread the machine with the foot up....
Test bobbin tension by holding it by the thread in it's case and shuttle
Use new needles every garment ( I forget)
These four tips have kept my sewing machine in good order for years.......

Everything is all metal......weight of machine approx. 8.1kg
Easy to pull apart the bobbin

Inside the bottom of the free-arm......

Inside the top of the machine.......

Because I mostly use the Bernina 801 with a free-arm
I have the joy of putting all my pins underneath the arm....

How to fix Stiff Squeaky Sewing Scissors

Don't you hate it when someone uses your favourite sewing scissors?.......I lose the plot because I hate it when they stop cutting well, if you re-sharpened them they are never the same (well that's my experience)....... I guard mine with my life, except I can't watch them all the time.........A young man found them and used them and they were never the same.......Although they are very sharp and can still cut fabric. They have become very stiff when I open and shut them, they squeak too!

Well I have fixed them by using a drop of Tsubaki Oil (Camellia oil). Now they open and shut perfectly and no more squeaking.....You need to give the scissor blades a wipe to remove the excess oil, then you snip away happily without a squeak (they are almost like new again).

Sewing New Look

I have just finished a skirt using New Look 6969......This is a project that was supposed to be done last year......but I never got round to it. I kept changing my mind what material I would use ( the Paris pink material was not my original choice for this skirt)......This fabric was in my stash and I decided to use this one instead of the original choice. I'm not disappointed with the result  it came together easily which made this an enjoyable project........I  don't know what the fabric is, it's a sort of taffeta type material.

The only thing I didn't use was my overlocker, I just turned the seams with a straight stitch to finish off.  I also hand hemmed the skirt too......and yes I made it on my old Bernina 801......Why?..... because I love her so much and I knew she would handle the fabric well. Not that Juki couldn't do the same job, but it is my newer machine and I'm still learning her limitations. I wanted to make this skirt fast and the Bernina 801 is so reliable and quick to thread, it became my choice for this project........

I liked making this skirt very much, the New Look 6969 pattern was great....... I virtually made the skirt without any alterations, I just lengthened it slightly.

Bow is in the centre of skirt....in this view

This pic pretty much the colour of the fabric.......

Hem looks crooked but it's just the angle....
New Look 6969 View D

Looking After Those Patterns

I don't know if your like me ......You cut out your sewing pattern use it then can't fit it back in the envelope. I know I should press the pattern pieces, then they  all would fit back into the pattern envelope. But lately I've been lazy (well too busy too) to keep my sewing patterns in an orderly way......

I found these perfect zip lock plastic bags which I use to put patterns in. I use them for my sewing patterns I have not packed away properly, or for the ones I'm about to sew. It keeps everything all tidy and I also put my sewing notions in there too. Saves me hunting for the exact matching cotton later on......

Something to make in the future maybe?....packaged in
Family Choice Slide-Lock Freezer Bags

Finished and Ready to Wear

Well almost......I  just have to sew a eye in the back and press the hem.  I had to hang the skirt as the hem was so uneven and when I went to mark it up I was not left with much fabric for the turn up While I like the material.........in this design it looks a bit sack like....I think it would better in another style, maybe more of an A frame skirt......

If I was to make it again I would use a smaller size as it's a bit big fitting......and of course have a bigger hem if I'm sewing Linen blends.....

I took in a bit on the sides giving the skirt a
 more tulip like shape....it looked like a sack without it

I sewed down the pleats.....
Pleased it's finished!

Looking for Buttons

The witch is back......I was searching for buttons for the Burda girls dress I made (earlier post). The little boy who is now much older said. "There's your witch". Yay, it can live in the Button Jar again.....Hmm
perhaps it wasn't lost after all......

I'm not getting a lot sewing done .....
Still tidying resources!

Froggy & Pins

I found this little frog when I was cleaning up the garage. Froggy is filled with wheat I suspect.......a mini bean frog.......He's mine now I'm keeping him ( no I didn't sew him)....he'll make a great pin cushion, the pins just stick in wonderfully. I've left him by the old Bernina....he's guarding it!

Finding a use for a beany frog....so cute!

The Button Jar

Do you have a Button Jar? I have had one for a very long time, my mother had one and no doubt my Granny would have had one too........I am ever so possessive over my Button Jar........no one can take out buttons with out my permission.  A bit silly really who is going to make off with my button jar with just contains plain old buttons.......there are no precious buttons in it.

A tiny witch on a broomstick once lived in that button jar....... I put it there to frighten a little boy away who liked to steal my colourful  buttons......I rather suspect he stole the little witch too as she's not living in that button jar no more........

Even today I still cut buttons off old clothing in case they may come of use some day.......It saves money and it nice way to recycle buttons and use them again.......Now not only do I have a Button Jar I started an Odds & Ends jar and a Lace Jar......

The Odds and Ends jar has a Teddy in it....
Poor thing he's waiting to be fixed

Juki F600 Accessories

Where to find bobbins plastic Class 15 bobbins for this wonderful sewing machine? At present my answer is Trade-me a NZ online auction site......You get 10 for $6.00 or E-bay where you can get a lot more for almost the same price.

Time to let go

What do you do when you've got no spare dollars to buy a dress up outfit for school?....You go through all the stuff you haven't been able to let go of........like one white dress shirt from the early 70's (broke my heart to cut it up). The Great Babcia's old scarf......that got the chop too. It was a very pretty colourful scarf but I never wore it,  I just kept it........

It was goodbye to a red and white cotton stripped table cloth that I sewed years ago......I especially designed it for the outside wooden table. It even had a carefully bound hole in it for the umbrella. Except we have no umbrella or table now......Someone left it up all summer and a gust of wind lifted the umbrella up and tipped the table over and smashed all the wood....That was the end of that so the table cloth was given the chop (I did wonder if it might have been useful in the future)....... All of these items were cut up and sewn into a pirate outfit for a little boy to wear to school.

I needed a waistcoat though......so I searched the net until I found one on this great blog here. You can find the download pattern on the Frontier Vest Tutorial....I had some brown suede type fabric, in fact metres of it stashed away for a jacket that never got made. I cut that up into a vest but I and didn't bind it like in the tutorial..

One very proud school boy put on his pirate outfit already for a day of fun at school....knowing the shirt was his Grandads from long ago and the scarf once belonged to his his great Babcia.

The download pattern used for the vest

I cut off the cuffs on the shirt added lace
and elastic to the sleeve....

The legs of pants I ripped and washed to fray....
The pants legs were meant to  be straight
to tuck into black boots
Except I forgot he had none