good habits

sewing isn't all just sitting at the machine and zipping fabrics through.

there are maintenance chores to be done on a sewing machine to keep it in good running order and little clean ups constantly needed to maintain a creative space one can actually move around in.

i have developed at least one good machine maintenance habit: i clean out the lint regularly.

i don't change needles often enough or oil the machine as much as i probably should, but i do have a habit of swiping out all the lint each time i change the bobbin. i keep the lint brush close by and use it whenever i have the bobbin case open.

what are your best and worse habits?
how do you make them part of your sewing routine?

harp space

i recently saw someone post a photo on instagram of how she could fit a coffee in the huge harp space of her sewing machine. it made me look at my harp space and see what was there. juki definitely has a lot of room to spare. in fact, i have a regular assortment of helpful bits that pretty much live in the harp space so i can access them quickly and easily.

• a change of thread and matching bobbin
• pins, usually cast off during the sewing of one piece, waiting to be used in another
• my dush brush, for cleaning the interior whenever i change the bobbin
• mini ruler, for checking seam allowances or other small measuring needs
• snips

you can see that when i'm working on piecing and small projects these items easily stay out of the way of the working needle area. quilting, of course, is another story. that's when everything moves to the side for a while.

so what's in your harp space?
or what do you keep right closest at hand? and how?

juki reviewed

currently hard at work on some straight line quilting

 i've been sewing on juki for over 4 months now. goodness, it seems like so much longer since we've made 4 baby quilts, a few tops, and learned to fmq on several items during that time. i have to say, my initial enthusiasm for her has not died a bit. only grown. sew mama sew has a link party for sewing machine reviews, so i decided to sing juki's praises now that i've got more experience on her.

they requested specific information, so here you go:

What brand and model do you have?  juki TL2010Q

How long have you had it?  since june 2013

How much does that machine cost (approximately)?  $900

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?  quilts, free motion quilting, some zakka items

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get?  i sew several times a week. i've done a lot of sewing in the last few months with this machine. it has performed beautifully, even through sewing marathons and a few disasters of my making.

look at that throat space (underutilized here)!

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name?  i love this machine pretty passionately. i call her "juki". after struggling with other machines, i feel juki has helped me improve my sewing tremendously. she makes me look so good!

What features does your machine have that work well for you?  i love the simplicity of juki - not computerized, basic options, super durable. the thread cutter button is great. i'm getting used to the knee bar that lifts the presser foot - useful. i like the adjustable speed. there is the fabulously large open throat space and the quilting table, too. she seems to have all the right special features and none of those i don't need. additionally, all the specialty feet i needed, except the 1/4in foot, were included with the machine. that was a bonus.

my first full size fmq experience

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?  nope. i really am so very pleased with her. it took a bit for a beginner like me to get familiar with this professional machine, but we are quite happy together now. the very few issues i have occasionally had - some thread breakage and minor tight tension - have been caused by my product choices or inexperience, not the machine. 

the one and only thing i miss once in a blue moon is the zigzag stitch. but i still have my old machine for that. i thought i'd miss being able to move the needle position since i found on my other machine that it helped with sewing close to the edge when needed. but juki's feed dogs are so well placed that this hasn't been an issue at all. 

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?  i absolutely would recommend juki to any quilter, especially one who likes to fmq. i've already said it, but she's super durable - a real workhorse, sews quietly and beautifully, has improved my sewing tremendously.

the monster-sized walking foot that came with the machine

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?  i think durability is important if you are a serious sewer. for anyone, matching your needs to the machine are key. don't be lured in by bells and whistles you don't need but make sure the features you have to have are there.

fresh out of the box

Do you have a dream machine?  yes - juki! she was my birthday present.

Bonus: Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it!

needle breakage - but not machine, thank goodness - after sewing through a pinhead

oh, goodness! do i ever have stories about juki. just click on the links for the individual stories. she's survived some harrowing home ec moments of me sewing through pin heads, my fmq slider shifting and getting sewn to my quilt, as well as all my ineptitude at remembering all the adjustments that need to be made when changing feet and tasks. she's a trooper!

near finish, near disaster

backside of "romance in the garden", now fully quilted

i spent most of my day yesterday getting set up to epp,  so actual quilting had to wait until after bedtime. i broke the rule of "no fmq after 9pm" because i really just want to finish this quilt. i can taste the end, it's so close. (tastes like strawberries and smells of daisies.)

i am enamored with the texture of the stipple on the large strawberry field of the backing - yummy

everything went pretty well other than the usual nonsense of me forgetting simple, routine things. like putting my slider back on or not raising my thread antenna. maybe someday it will all be rote. i am pleased to report i no longer have to consult the manual to properly thread the machine or set up the bobbin. so that's progress.

i also tried using gloves. i'm undecided as to whether they are better or not.

i did make one new mistake, which makes for another lesson learned. i had to wind the bobbin shortly after starting and neglected to cut off that little tail that sticks up out of the top of the bobbin from where you thread it to start winding. big mistake. i kept getting these weird snags on the back of the quilt and what seemed like bobbin thread breakage. finally after 3 blips, i stopped to investigate. eventually i found the culprit, then was off to smooth sewing.

i am getting in the groove of fmq in spurts. you know how you hum along at a steady pace, just the right speed and stitch length? it's very nice. i don't like to interrupt the flow to stop for pins, so i got pretty good at maneuvering around them.

until about 1am, that is.

can you see the needle head dangling from the thread?

 i took a wrong turn and swerved directly over a pin! crash, crank, horrible screech and grind! oh, my goodness, my NEW machine!!! lots of exclamation marks.

 have you ever seen this? the end of the needle is embedded in the pin head. yikes! after i got my heart to restart, i began cleaning up the mess. you can bet i said a small prayer of thanks that no flying needle pieces pierced me. long story short: it took me an hour to get everything back on track. i pulled out all the screwdrivers and did open-plate surgery. for the first half hour i thought i had broken the machine because the needle wouldn't descend properly. diligence paid off, though, and i straightened everything out. thank goodness! another prayer of thanks offered. she does sound a tiny bit off to me, so i'll be sending her in for a good service after next week.

i got moving again, flinching every time i approached a pin, rather like i do whenever a bird flies near the car now ever since i hit a buzzard in may. (anyone want to hear that story and see pictures?) but after a bit i got cocky again and went around the pins that seemed a safe distance away.

btw, i really prefer #2 pins, the larger ones. they are much easier to get in when basting and a lot easier to get out when quilting, even with gloves on, due to the larger size.

i also got a bit of the backing's edge turned under again. all the big girls say to make the backing 2" larger than the batting on all sides, but it seems to be causing this tuck problem. how do i avoid this other than paying more attention, which is really hard to do when i'm concentrating on the flow of quilting? instead of unpicking and requilting these sections i just clipped closely around the spots. now i have a bit of applique detail on the back. just kidding. i'll tease the bits out later. mostly i'm miffed that i've cut into what will become strip scraps when the quilt is squared up and the excess backing comes off.

baby approves - she's my biggest quilting fan

i finished up the fmq  around 2:15am. sweet! good thing the kids let me sleep in until about 8:30. i still have a bit of a quilting hangover, but i'm surviving. (have i coined a phrase here, "quilting hangover", or did someone else state the obvious first? i would like to make at least one contribution to the larger quilting community. that may be it.)

with all my pins free, i think i'm ready to baste up "taite" and get her quilted!
that's been 2 years in coming.

her lipstick pink patent mary janes look nice with the quilt, no?

i have also finished unpicking "pom pom de paris"!
linking in with crazy mom quilts for friday finishes. i know, it's a cheat, but it was a good story. and the giveaway ends today so i needed to get the word out.

how she sews

 everyone wants to know how it's going with the new machine. i don't want to dwell on juki or appear to brag about her. i'm sensitive to those unable to get a new machine or who are struggling along with a less-than-satisfactory one. been there. i hesitated to even mention my new arrival at all except for two reasons:

1) when searching for a machine, i found it really helpful to read about others' experiences with their machines. there are so many options out there, i would never even have known about this machine if rachel at stitched in color hadn't posted about hers, bless her. i appreciated that and hope someone else might like to know the ups and downs of my experience with a juki. i wish more people would talk about their machines.

2) i wanted to celebrate juki's arrival with a giveaway! it's in the original post about her from monday. i enjoy spreading the love.

oh, and for the record, i don't plan on getting another machine, like, ever. i plan on making the most of this investment and this lady is a keeper, built to last and last. i don't foresee a need for anything more than her. i still have little brother to fill in her gaps and i am good with that. i certainly don't want to be greedy.

so, how is she sewing?
dreamy.

yep, that's cliche, but like most cliches, true.
i can not believe the difference a machine makes. i did some piecing with her on my paris nightmare over the weekend. she was great, my ideas not so much. but that was all me. yesterday i finally put my brave face on and tackled fmq with her. oh, what was i waiting for?! night and day, ladies, night and day difference here. juki was made for this.

i'd finished off both my little doll quilts with little brother and had no more sample projects to work on. i didn't want to go straight to a real quilt with a new machine untested. so i lifted (that's what we call it in scrapbooking, "lifting") liz's not really a quilt baby quilt idea, explained here. brilliant.

i was in need of a baby gift for two new upcoming friend babies and this fit the bill. it also gave me a whole yard of practice space for my fmq. the first one is for a girl and while digging through my pile of purchases from cia's palette (two years ago!), i happened upon two lovely prints that had the same shade of purply-pink for the background. (what do you call that color, anyway? 10 years ago i would have called it ugly, but it's growing on me. hyacinth?)  that amy butler daisy chain is so fantastic! i first used it on "at last"'s binding, which it was perfect for. glad i still have another yard of it.

here's what i like about this pairing: one is totally vintage and one completely modern. that is either super cool or completely doesn't work. i'm going with the first idea. the line between innovative and really stupid can be so fine sometimes. my kids just stared at me when i shared so i think they might be leaning toward the latter assessment. well, hopefully my friend, who is of my same generation as i am, agrees with me.

the baby really likes it. she plopped down on it and began plucking at the pins the moment i sat it down to examine my progress last night. but she does that to everything i sew, so it's small consolation or compliment. (she's wearing a diaper, not that you can see it behind her head. we're not complete heathens here.)

the fmq was just wonderful with juki. well, her part of it. i definitely still need improvement on my end. but she did marvelously. juki comes with 2 fmq feet: 1/4" and 1/5". i have no idea what the difference is or under what circumstance to choose which. i went with the smaller one so i could see better around it. i must say the feet for juki are hard core, heavy weight industrial attachments. they are solid.

before i started the not-quilt, i had just a row or two of work to do on the 2nd doll quilt. for some reason, i was having a lot of trouble at the very end of quilting it when working on little brother 2 weeks ago. the bobbin tension was going nuts with tons of ugly pulling on the back. it was horrid! nothing i did to fix it worked, either. in the photo above you can see all those pinprick marks of the needle going over the same spot about 4 times. i finally gave up. this is one of the reasons i decided i definitely needed wanted a machine upgrade. with juki here, i attempted one last time to finish the area. not a single problem. the stitches in the bottom of the photo are done on little brother. the top stitches are done with juki. better, for sure.

after a few inches i checked to see how the backside was looking. wow. same as the front. no birdnests or tension problems at all and i hadn't even adjusted tension from my piecing yet. it took about 30 seconds to finish doll quilt #2 and i moved on to the not-quilt.

side note: the supreme slider really does help! i accidentally started without it on so i can attest to the difference it makes. now i just need some gloves. i was feeling the lack of them by the end.

the not-quilt went great. the machine was making me look like a pro, or at least not like a complete novice. i kept thinking, "oh, that was bad! it's going to look bad there." but when i looked at the expected problem area, it wasn't too bad after all. in the hands of an experienced person this machine could do wonders, i'm sure.

the throat space is amazing. not once was i ever even near to running out of room. my whole shoulder could probably go through it. of course, this was only a one yard quilt. i have yet to work on a larger size, but it's huge. room to maneuver.

i had to stop half-way through to tend to dinner and bedtimes. it was rather late when i got back to the machine, but i wanted to finish as much of the project as i could. that was probably a bad idea. i find sewing after about 9pm is not so good for me. going directly to bed and getting up earlier works much better.

the second half didn't go quite as well for me. i began to feel less controlled rather than more so. i got more jerky instead of smoother. but that was my tired reflexes, not the machine.

 oh, and this was my fault, too. can you see i sewed through my slider? yikes! i saw that spot where the feed dogs were way down and thought it was the hole. wrong-o. the real hole was a bit south and is round. now my slider has a hole, too. but somehow it didn't affect the stitching at all.

the one problem i did encounter that's never occurred before: thread break. the thread broke on me twice during my second session. i did notice that was when i was very close to the edge both times, possibly going through the selvage on the backside, which i didn't bother to remove. it's my first time sewing with this thread, also, so i'm not really sure of the cause. it was only a minor inconvenience. juki is rather tedious to thread. i still have to pull out the manual to make sure i do it right. same with loading the bobbin. but it's not that bad and i'm sure i'll get used to it time. i'm just used to little brother taking about 3 seconds to thread and juki takes more like 10 or 15 since there are more steps involved.

no complaints, really.
that's my report on how she sews.
dreamy.

linking up with kelly's first ever "needle and thread thursday" at my quilt infatuation!

meet juki and a giveaway

 move over little (pink) brother . . .

and meet the new big sister, juki.
juki tl2010q, to be precise.

i'm feeling happy and blessed, and want to spread some of the love around, so i'm doing a giveaway. you can find it at the end of this post. read about juki first or just scroll on down to the bottom.

i first heard of the juki machines from rachel at stitched in color. she got one in march and wrote up a tantalizing review on it. i've had my brother project runway for about 2 years now. at $400, i felt like it was a pretty sizable yet doable investment for a solid entry level machine with some bells and whistles. it was beginner friendly with some room to grow with my skills. and little brother has been fun.

but lately, with a few more quilts under my belt and 3 waiting to be quilted, i was feeling the need to have more throat space and get a machine that was geared more specifically toward quilting. little brother was not super friendly to quilting. it's a project runway, after all. made for garment production, right? and i'll still be keeping it around for that and other projects.

as i began my fmq adventures, i really began hankering for a new machine. a big girl machine. rachel's review had me thinking juki was probably the gal for me. and then the amazon reviews cinched it. fortunately for me, there was a local dealer so i wouldn't have to mess with shipping (and waiting). all i had to do was get permission from the mr. for such a purchase. our marriage works like that: we confer on large purchases.

lucky for me, i had an ace up my sleeve in the argument: my 40th birthday is right around the corner. i could have waited to ask for it, but i started getting really antsy. mid-way through last week when he got home from 3 days of scout camp with our oldest son, he decided he missed the wilderness so much that he was going to take all the children except the baby on another mini, over-night campout, giving me 2 days home by myself with baby. with all that time to sew, i didn't want to waste anymore time with little brother. so as he was heading out the door, i pitched him.

and he said, "we'll talk about it when i get back."
bummer.

after he'd been on the road a bit, i called him and tried again. i very kindly but firmly pressed him to let me get the machine now.

and he finally said, "yes."
bless him!

bringing the new baby home through the front door

i did not go to the store in my pseudo-pjs this time. no. i showered, kind of did my hair (no comment), put on a skirt (but didn't iron it), and dabbed a minimum of make-up on. one can shop for a bit of floss and some project boxes at joann, etc in one's pjs, but not for a big girl machine at the real sewing store. i made myself presentable.

i headed over to mulqueens for my birthday present. (you can shop them on-line, too.) i was helped by lynn on the sales floor. she showed me how to work the machine and helped me pick out a few accessories. i felt really lucky to get the machine for $100 less than rachel said it would be and $150 less than the amazon advertised price. (although when i looked at amazon's package again later, it included needles and bobbins in an amount that equalled the price difference.)

apparently juki is rather funny in that the dealer you buy from is your only warranty option. in other words, wherever you buy it is where you have to take it for warranty work if any is required. that means if you buy it on-line, you will have to ship it to the dealer you purchased it from if it needs help. so i'm really glad i got one locally.

at home and reading the manual

 once home with juki, i set her up immediately on the dining room table. i'm the type to read a manual thoroughly, which i did before turning her on. i noticed the words "professional machine" on the manual cover. gulp. am i experienced enough for this?! the manual definitely read like it was written for an experienced sewer. no hand holding here. it's only about 20 pgs long and all instructions are written in 3 languages, so there's not much there. but it was enough.

this lady has an aluminum frame and casing. she feels like an old-fashioned workhorse machine. and performs like one, too. she's very sturdy. i could not believe how quiet she runs, either: she purrs and hums at a whisper.

 i like how the casing opens up so i can see inside. little brother didn't do that and it bugged me. now i can look at the light or the tension more closely if needed. look at all those shiny, metal parts. beautiful.

 this is my first time dealing with a metal, side-loading bobbin case. very fancy for me. definitely a professional machine. the needle plate just pops right up to access the bobbin. even with the quilt table on it is easy to reach.

 the few buttons and dials on the machine are easy to understand, very intuitively marked. you can see the tension dial (so glad it's not computerized!), needle up/down button (needle and arrows), thread cut button (scissors), speed control lever (tortoise and hare: my favorite), reverse bar (u-turn), and feed dog lever (up or down). pretty simple. the only other control on the machine is the presser foot pressure dial, which allows control over how high or low the presser foot rests in a down position.

one of the reasons i liked the juki was that it is such a basic machine that performs the most important functions well. no unnecessary bells and whistles to dial through or have to reset every time you turn the machine on and off, which i do a lot since i sew with children around.

juki is a straight stitch ONLY machine. no zigzag or other fancy stitching. i have little brother if i need to do any of that. i can still use it for piecing, straight quilting, and for fmq.

 she accommodates large cone thread bobbins or regular household-sized ones. i've never had a machine with an antenna before. i hope she gets good tunes!

 juki has a knee-lift bar that allows you to raise the presser foot hands-free with your knee. i haven't got in the habit of using it yet, but i bet it will be really helpful when i start thinking that way.

 because it's a straight stitch machine, there is one hole only in the needle plate. to the right are several guidelines for stitching. the left side of the plate is lifted up to access the bobbin.

 the sewing stage is very well lit by the led light inside the case. super bright.

i'm just in love with this gal! some selfies with juki:

 cheesy, of course, but i'm giddy over her. i still have a girl's heart in this now officially middle-aged body.

 when the little sister of the establishment woke up from her diaper-only nap, i introduced her to juki. she likes her!

i've been working on my pom pom baby quilt with ms. juki but have yet to do any fmq. that'll come. so far, she sews smooth as butter. and is so quiet, like i said. it's dreamy. i don't have the table on yet in any of these photos, but it's nice and roomy, too.

i usually piece with my 1/4" guide foot on little brother. mulqueens did not have any juki guide feet in stock but they recommended the janome foot if i didn't want to wait to order one. they promised me it would be okay and i hope they're right. i did try using the plate guide to piece, but i did terribly. my seams were coming out more like 5/8" instead. so i put the foot on. so far, so good. accurate seams once again.

now i did not want this to be a brag post. i know most people don't get a nice, new machine every day or even for their birthdays, 40th or otherwise. so i want to invite y'all to celebrate with me by giving a gift out for my birthday. i'd love to give a juki to someone, but i'm not able to be that generous. sorry. instead, i picked up a cute quilt top kit at ETC to send off to one lucky visitor. it includes the pattern and fabric for one twin-sized quilt top.

to enter for the drawing, just leave me a comment on this post. (note: if you are a no-reply blogger, please include your email.) now closed

quilt top kit

a sample of the kit made up in the store

personally, i think i'd rather use that colorful chevron print for binding or the backing and put a solid between the pieced rows. but this will be your quilt, not mine, so feel free to make it up however you'd like. in reality, you could skip the pattern all together and just do anything you want with the fabrics. the kit includes 9 fat quarters and a little over 2 yards of the colorful chevron.

i will pick a winner from comments next saturday, june 22nd. one entry per person, please.

i linked up with "let's get acquainted" over at little and lots today. and sorry i didn't read the rules closely enough. my embarrassing quilt moment . . . definitely some tool purchases before i knew what i'd be doing.

thanks for coming to my birthday party. giveaway entry now closed.