Friday, May 31, 2013

Tip On Singer Serger, The Cheap One. It's Glorious



 I've been throwing fits about my serger. Why did I ever want one? I should have saved my money for a Baby-lock. Well, now I know....you don't need a fancy serger unless you're going in to business. This one works great but I went through a lot to learn it. It's better to know exactly how the serger works without the blown-in threader. It's just like learning basic HTML at the beginning and be able to find the tags and adjust your blog or website yourself. The foundation is needed. I have this compulsion to want to just start anything without thoroughly knowing all the directions and honest, even with my camera, I wanted perfect pictures without reading the manual. Directions read the manual, just like The Scriptures.

Taking Notes and Reading The Manual-Sewing a Little, Too
I started out and I did all tensions with each, both 
needles and both loopers. Same big fat stitch.




 I was using plain, easy cotton fabric that matched what was recommended. By the way, I did all the combinations of 50 different tensions, one end to the other. Steve made the most gorgeous tables for my machines. Each brace and legs are from old treadles and all metal bottoms. I even have a singer seat with metal legs to match. These things saved from the old recycling days, never knowing we would have a chance to use them. Well, maybe. I have to know how to use this. Not only was it a gift, but my husband made my sewing room truly fancy with the most gorgeous sewing tables a person could want.


So frustrated...I've spent most of today between our newborn puppies and trying to learn how to sew with my serger. Errrrrr! Is the second needle on for flat felted seams? OR do I use the three thread/one needle, maybe called the first needle? I know it's used for finishing frayed seams, if the 2 needles out, it makes a good seam-with it the seam is like this: |||||||||||| on the outside. This event has made me cry, I feel so completely "no can do." It's so HOT as H-E-Double Hockey Sticks in my living room. Steve finally aimed a fan at me--about the time I was resting my head in my arms and thinking crazy-stuff about my serger. I'm filing this experience under expanding my horizons

Great! No wonder they can't teach Sergering, Jo-Ann's doesn't care. This was my daughter's change that she received from Jo-Ann's yesterday. Made me giggle, but gave me an idea to call them, sometime.

Real Change To Bree From JoAnn's in Oklahoma
My cousin in Utah and so wise said to me, "Susan, your situation reminds me of when one of my piano students was having an especially hard time learning a certain technique. When I tried to encourage him be telling him that it wasn't that hard he said, "Nothing is hard if you know how." I thought that was really profound and I've never forgotten it. Hopefully, someone will show you how and then it won't be hard for you." and she said,"When I can't figure out how to do things, I find myself, asking, "How hard can it be???" or saying" It can't be this hard!!" but it is if I don't know how. Wish I could help you but I don't have a serger, so I am no help."  My husband LOVED our cousin's quote. He said that's worth writing down. Definitely passing on, "Nothing is hard if you know how." He agreed. That IS profound! Pat Patten Cowley is awesome.

Of course,THEN figured it all out. I did call Jo-Ann's and this simple things fixed my problem. It did! And, it took 3 whole days and where I was about to give-up. Here's what I had to do....I had to really "floss" the thread in the tension dials and push it in there very hard. Weird, but it works now...perfectly and I love it! There's one big thing I learned. I now know every button, lever, looper, needle, how to really thread easily (and it's fun!) This all forced me to learn-and then I called. It didn't even cost me a class. Hurray! Read and practice. Don't be in a hurry to learn it all and most of all call someone that can help you, Jo-Ann sells my serger so they were happy to give me help and told me to call back anytime I had a problem.

Don't wait...call a store and talk to someone, you may just sit forever trying to see all the You Tube videos ever made and read manuals that never address the problem. Find someone. Our dealer knew exactly what my problem was and was ready to talk me all-the-way through it, if I needed. I'm so happy. On my messy table there's a little strand of black material that I'm keeping with the settings and is going to be part of my sampler book. I will know from my book every stitch I need for every job. Now I'm using my gift card for extra presser feet. I need a corder, a ruffler, etc. and also some great thread in groups of four. I already have material, but I'm thinking even a pattern or two.

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