Tag: DIY

Sewing machine tariffs – revisited

July 26, 2025

I finally caught up on all the email that arrived while I was in Oregon last week. Apparently, Bernina has announced significant price hikes on all Bernina and bernette machines effective August 1st. They’re joining Janome, Brother and Baby Lock in hiking prices due to tariffs. My local Janome/Brother dealer raised prices 10-25% across the board a couple of months ago. Stopped in today after guild meeting (7/25) and was told the price on the Janome 9480 with ASR (very competitive), but was also informed prices would be going up again on 8/1. I questioned this as I know there’s inventory in the back that’s been there since last fall. The clerk responded it was a “business decision” that applied to all inventory, regardless of when received.

If you’re seriously in the market for a new TOL machine from a dealer, you may want to consider finalizing your purchase in the next week. The good news? Prices on more modest machines available through mass merchandisers such as Wal-Mart appear to be holding steady for now.

What’s a fair price to pay for a sewing machine? Only you can decide. Check eBay, Check FB Marketplace. Check patternreview.com. My personal rule of thumb? The sweet spot for a new machine is about 65% of the suggested retail price (less if you can get it). For a machine that’s used – no more than 50% of the MSRP for a current model. Classroom machines from consumer shows should have every option available and carry the full manufacturer’s warranty that a new machine would have.

Am I ready to move on the purchase of a Janome 9480? Absolutely, but not at $1000 more than what the same damn machine (still sitting in the backroom at my local dealer) was selling for last fall.

No thanks, I’ll pass. I can wait. Maybe I’ll get to the point where I don’t need a stitch regulator for FMQ on a domestic machine.

Where to find supplies in person now that Joann’s is gone?

May 27, 2025

For the past two days, I’ve been restitching straps and reinforcing stress points on some of the protective gear used by hubs and other TR members out in the field. A big operation closed down recently and all the equipment has come back to the Atlanta warehouse. Hubs sent 120 pounds of chaps out to the laundry and he’s been inspecting each pair to see what repairs need to be made. Last night, I noticed I needed to pick up another small spool of orange Coats & Clark thread. Normally, I would head to Joann.

Where to buy it locally now that Joann’s is gone? Good question. I started thinking about the items I routinely picked up at Joann’s and wondered if I could find them at Hobby Lobby, Michael’s or Wal-Mart? Here’s a quick run-down of what I can find at which store:

Hobby Lobby – Kona cotton + other quilting cotton fabrics, Pellon interfacing, Warm & Natural batting, Fiskars mats & cutting tools, Schmetz needles, and my favorite budget-friendly SewOlogy 50/2 cotton piecing thread on the cross-wound spool (good alternative to Aurifil). Their ribbon & trim selection is pretty good, as well.

Michaels – Coats & Clark thread, Singer sewing machines

Wal-Mart – Waverly precut fabrics, Pellon interfacing & Nature’s Touch quilt batting, some Fiskarts mats & cutting tools, Schmetz needles, Brother and Singer sewing machines, best everyday prices I’ve found on pillow inserts and PolyFil stuffing.

Worth noting: Michaels and Wal-Mart stores near me are redoing their sewing & quilting product assortments. Some Michael’s stores now offer fabric by the yard and feature a sewing machine sales/education center in-store. Wal-Mart may still carry some Coats & Clark thread, but it’s been shifting over to a store brand. Not impressed with it or Hobby Lobby’s store-brand polyester thread. Actually, my favorite polyester sewing thread is Mettler’s Metrosene, but it’s only available at an area sewing machine dealer.

FWIW, Sadie & I made our last visit to the Kennesaw Joann’s store yesterday. It was surreal seeing a practically empty store. We did our usual lap and said our final good-bye.

Achieving consistent seam allowances and accurate topstitching

May 5, 2025

Accurate seam allowances play a vital role in the successful outcome of any project. A 1/4″ seam allowance is standard in quilting and most smaller sewn projects like zipper pouches and placemats. Topstitching is one of those little sewing extras that takes an item from homemade to handmade. If you make bags, zipper pouches, journal covers, placemats, fabric boxes, bookmarks, lanyards, etc., you’ll find find 1/8″ topstitching in your project.

What’s the best way to achieve consistent seam allowances and accurate topstitching?
Experiment with the different feet that came with your machine. Practice, practice, practice.

Perhaps your all-purpose presser foot looks like the one in this picture. Here, I’m showing a 1/4″ seam, scant 1/4″ seam and an 1/8″ topstitch. All were made using the foot that came with the machine. Use the edge of the presser foot as the guide for 1/4″ seams and adjust the needle position (change the stitch width) accordingly. Use a similar approach for 1/8″ topstitching, except use the inside right toe as your seam guide (long metal lip on the right side) and adjust the needle position.

My personal favorite, and most consistent means of 1/8″ topstitching, requires a specialty foot. Janome refers to this one as the SE foot, but it’s very similar to a common blindhem foot. Here’s a an earlier post where I discuss using the Janome G blind hem foot. The Elnita EC30 pictured here has a 5mm wide stitch width, and I find the SE foot easier to use than the adjustable blind hem foot demonstrated in that post.

For 1/4″ seams, I do best with a guide on the right side of my presser foot (similar to topstitching). The Janome 02 presser foot delivers consistent results.

These sticky notes will be pasted inside the front cover of my sewing machine manual. Having this info at my fingertips helps me make the most of my limited sewing time.

What about vintage straight stitch machines and modern mechanical machines where you can’t adjust the needle position on a straight stitch?

  • Use the original presser foot and painter’s tape on the machine bed to mark seam allowances.
  • Buy a 1/4″ presser foot for your machine. Can’t find one? The Little Foot works well.
  • Singer makes a Sew Easy foot with an adjustable guide. Using the inside toe as a guide with a center needle position yields a nice, consistent 1/8″ topstitch.

Experiment with the different feet and attachments out there to discover what works best for you. Another hack for vintage machines is use an old credit card along with the painter’s tape to mark seam allowances. This way you get a lip to run the edge of the fabric against and you can still use pins/clips up to a point. Beats having to pin everything to the left.