Now, another book I have just finished.
I was shopping for books on Amazon and this book came up in one of those creepy we know what you really want suggestions. Um, yep. I did want that. When I bought my trusty Bernina 930 used, just a few short months after I started this blog, it came with lots of feet, many of which I have never even tried to figure out how to use. (I posted about it here.) Really, it is probably time, right?!
Considering the number of feet that are made for various purposes, I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to match up most of mine with the ones in the book- even though most look completely different. Figuring out what feet I have meant pulling out my manual and also a separate book that is specifically about the accessories.
There are some that I am still confused about though. In none of my resources are there explanations along the lines of- yes they look alike but they are different in this little way. Below are 3 feet. Two on the right are the same, Blind Stitch foot. The other is Edge stitching. ??? That one on the left has little indentations on the edge but I have no idea what they are for.
update– here is a whole blog post on Badskirt about the edge stitcher! Thanks Ryan!
And, amazingly, after 9+ years, I finally put in the double needle and tried it out. First I tried it with a regular foot and then with one of the pintuck feet. I never actually knew they went together- that was worth reading the book right there!
Here are my pintucks- a mid-weight wool, a quilt cotton, a light weight cotton.
And this is how many books I had open on my table to figure it out!
I can imagine I might use pintucks on something. I always thought that they were very hard to do but it turns out the right tools make it easy.
I was able to get this book out of my library which works really well for me- the due date gives me a deadline to get the book read. This book was worth getting simply because it gave me the kick I needed to pull those dusty parts out of the drawer and figure out how they work. And embarrassingly enough, I discovered I already had a foot that I bought on Ebay a few months ago and another one that I’d been planning to buy. Yikes! Clearly I needed to go through all my stuff again.
It’s always fun to add another tool to Ye Olde Toolbox! The lightweight cotton pintucks look Alice-In-Wonderlandish. (The bottom of the pinafore.) Or maybe a cumberband. A headband? The top of socks…A flower, even: make a running stitch about two inches away and pull it tight, like a pinwheel? Would that work? Well, it will be fun to see how this pops up in your work. I have an old Singer Featherweight from my grandmother, which came with all sorts of feet, and I did the same thing a few years ago, except I keep getting intimidated because I forgot most of what I learned the first time. But then I remembered that it just took some time to figure it out but that it was possible. ;) Fun post. Thank you for sharing your experiment.
I really enjoyed how honest this post is.
I too have equipment that came with my Bernina that I haven’t yet tried out.
Just imagine how your doll making techniques will evolve with your new knowledge and tools.
Thanks for sharing that with us. : )
Ah thank you – I must dust off those mysterious little feet in my old Bernina tool box and give them a go. I never think to use them. Strange.
I’m only guessing, but the little indentations are probably measurements, perhaps 1/4″, so that you can stop or start sewing that distance from an edge, or turn a corner that far in from an edge.
I just love that we still turn to books to find stuff out. There is something very exciting about having lots of books open and finding a bit in here and a bit in there and bringing it all together. I do love a good bit of research and it looks like you do too!
Mimi I think you can look your sewing machine feet up on line too. I know for the Janome you can. Loved the Paisley blog ! You have done well. Now you have the knowledge on your machine feet you can be even more creative !
Barb.
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