I recently bought a new sewing machine.
For many years, since I was a teenager actually, I have
owned various Bernina machines. I think they
are wonderful but living in a small space in my bus
I needed something a lot lighter and smaller.
The small Bernina, called a Bernette, was far too complicated
and doesn't darn... So...
I looked at a lot of different machines for a long time
until I found exactly what I wanted.
My criteria were, easy to thread and use... Good straight and
zig-zag sewing, and it must darn.
So this is what I found... A Janome Jem Platinum 760.
It is fully computerised, only weighs 5.5 kg.
It's perfect for what I want. It does 60 different
stitches, 5 automatic buttonholes, has a drop feeder lever...
Janome specalises in machines for quilting...
So the drop feeder lever enables what they call free
stitching - for me that's darning. It's also made to sew thick
layers of quilts - for me denim hems.
It came with a 43 page instruction book, the usual cord to
plug it in. Because my bus operates only on 12 volt solar power
I will operate it through my 300 or 2000 watt inverter.
It has a foot control, bobbins, spool bits, a satin sewing foot,
a tiny screwdriver, a buttonhole foot,
an unpicker, 3 spare needles... I bought some extra
spare needles and a darning foot.
So I'm all set to go... I don't make clothes or anything
from scratch and I don't have plans to do quilting... But
who knows. I mostly mend and repair things... Shorten
my jeans, or ripped hems and darn holes.
A friend suggested I could cut patterns and make fishing kites!
Not sure about that... But like quilting, who knows.
So I can't ignore my pile of mending any more and the hole in my jeans.
Looks pretty good, you will soon be making a dent in that mending. If you are mending jeans, I suggest you get some "jeans needles" much sturdier than the usual ones.
ReplyDeleteAs for quilting, the female half of Romany Rambler is a quilter, so I'm always happy when others get the habit!