Sewing Business Blog

Keep Your Sewing Equipment in Tip Top Shape

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One of the most irritating things that can happen to those of us in the sewing, alteration, crafting, doll making and other “sewing” businesses is for a machine to break down in the middle of a rush project — or any other day of the week!  We simply do NOT have the time to spare to lug the machine to a repair shop, only to be told it will be a week or two before they can “get to it” to check it out and make necessary repairs.  Not only do we have to wait for the machine to be repaired, in most cases the repair COULD have been done easily and simply by YOU or me at our own home or shop, which would have resulted in almost no down time.

I learned a long time ago that unless you have a totally honest repair shop, and an efficient repair shop, you can look for long delays in getting the machine back, and THEN within a few days or weeks the same (or different) problem pops back up.  Interesting how “new” problems seem to happen so quickly after a visit to the repair shop.

For those of you who are like me and NEVER want to see my sewing machine leave my sewing room again, I would highly recommend a couple of repair books that are written in simple language, with diagrams and illustrations, that will allow you to repair your own machine, and get right back to work on those projects.

Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer is probably the most helpful repair book you can find –  it tackles the timing problems (have you hit a pin or heavy thick jeans seam and thrown it out of time?), shows how to take a tension apart and put it back together and gives great information on how to adjust the tensions (upper and lower).  And, oh those pesky problems with the needle and bobbin – thread breaking, knotting in the bobbin area, etc.  This book covers all of these problems.

And, for those Spanish speaking sewers, there is also the Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer written in Spanish  (Reparación de Maquinas de Coser en el Hogar  that is also available.

Serger Repair for the Home Sewer is written in the same manner that the sewing machine repair book is, except that it tackles the problems and issues that you’d have with your 3-thread, 4-thread and 5-thread sergers.

And for those of you who are lucky enough to have a treadle sewing machine, don’t forget to keep them in tip top shape as well.

 

By doing “regular” preventative maintenance on our precious sewing equipment will mean fewer breakdowns and fewer headaches while we’re doing what we love to do — sewing!

How To Adjust Your Sewing Machine Tension

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Have you noticed when you’re changing from one project to another the thread all of a sudden starts to loop, get tangled in the bobbin area or other crazy things?    The fact is that as you change projects and start sewing on different weight materials, you should test the stitching on a piece of scrap material of the same weight you’re changing to, before beginning the actual project.

As an example, if you’re changing from a denim type material to a silky type material, you would definitely want to make sure the tension is correct and the stitching looks right before you start to sew on the new project.

First, be sure you KNOW where the upper tension is located on your sewing machine (check your manual).  It can be on the front of the machine, the left side (or end) of the machine, or it could be at the top of the machine, depending on the make and manufacturer of your machine.

Before attempting to adjust the upper tension, you will need to understand how the upper and lower thread works together to form a stitch and do a test to see if the tension is actually “off” (see Figure 7A, 7B and 7C).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The above diagrams show you how the tension SHOULD be and how they would look if there is a problem.

To determine whether the upper tension is too tight or too lose for the fabric you want to use, try the following test.  Take a small scrap of the fabric, fold it, and stitch a line on the bias of the fabric, using different colors of thread in the bobbin and on top.  Grasp the bias line of stitching between the thumb and index finger.  Space the hands about 3 inches apart and pull with an even, quick force until one thread breaks, as in the following diagram.

 

 

 

 

 

If the broken thread is the color of the thread in the needle, it means that the upper tension is too tight.  If the broken thread is the color of the bobbin thread, the upper tension is too loose.  If both threads break together and take more force to break it, then the tensions are balanced.

 

 

The above sewing machine repair tip is brought to you by Reuben O. Doyle, author of Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer — as well as author of the Complete Guide To Treadle Sewing Machines, Serger Repair for the Home Sewer and Sewing Machine Repair as a Home Business.  In addition to checking out the Sewing Machine Repair book at SewMachineRepair.com, you can also check it out at Amazon.

 

 

 

 

 

Tip Junkie handmade projects

Handiest Product You Could Have In Your Sewing Room

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We have done product reviews on a wide variety of items, from button hole elastic to the Twelve In One Magic Ruler and a ton of other items that make the sewers and crafters work a little easier.

We’ve been getting quite a few requests to do an informational post on the Sewing Machine Repair For The Home Sewer book.  Molly from Louisville, KY wrote in saying she’d really like to see a post about this book because since she bought it (nearly a year ago) she’s not taken a single one of her 14 machines to a repair shop!  WAY TO GO MOLLY!!!

So, here we go —— ta dah!! Drum Roll Please…….

Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer - Do it yourself sewing machine repair

The Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer covers nearly 90% of all problems sewers have with their machines — from timing issues to needles breaking, thread jamming and bobbin problems.  It even tells how to take apart and put back together (with drawings) a tension so it can be fixed.

The Sewing Machine Repair for the Home Sewer is written in generic style so that it covers nearly every machine on the market.  Keep in mind, however, that if your computerized machine has gone haywire, it would have to be taken to the dealer, as the dealer is the only one who can get the specialized tools to get into the computer chip / computer board area.   You can still do other maintenance to your machine following the directions and instructions in this book — just not deal with the computer chips.

If you’d like to read more about this book, or the Serger Repair book, or Treadle Repair book, head on over to SewMachineRepair.com and check out the books.  We think you’ll be glad you did.

Sewing Machine Repair Business Stands The Test Of Time

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sewing gd 120408-01-wihr.jpgEdwin Pacheco’s new sewing machine repair shop is already filled with dusty old machines and dozens of well used metal shelves and drawers.  The Elliot Sewing Machine Company was started by Pacheco’s uncle over 50 years ago, but moved this week from south Boston to its new location in Quincy, Massachusetts.

Pacheco was working as a medical assistant twelve years ago when his uncle, George Candora, asked him to join him in the shop, which specialized in repairing and selling standard and commercial sewing machines.  The fact that the business has continued to prosper for more than half a century is a testament to the long standing prevalence of the sewing machine.

Pacheco said he didn’t know anything about sewing machines at the time but his uncle told him, “I’ll teach you, I just want somebody to talk to while I do this.”  Bit by bit his uncle taught him the ropes of fixing the machines.  Candora suffered a stroke in May and is now unable to work so Pacheco took over the business.

Candora owned the building that housed the business but has been forced to sell the building to pay for medical expenses, however Pacheco refused to see the thriving business close so he has moved to his new, smaller location.  Pacheco says the smaller space means he’ll have to reduce the inventory of machines for sale, but since 80 percent of his revenue comes from repairs he doesn’t expect the smaller shop to affect his bottom line.




Pacheco says, “most people, they see this kind of business and they say, ‘Sewing machine? Who’s sewing?’” But Elliot Sewing Machine Company has developed a nice niche business that targets tailors, dry cleaners, clothing stores and universities.  He says there are still plenty of machines that need to be fixed, but fewer young people are following their parents or grandparents into the repair business, so that leaves more business for him.  In a typical week he repairs 10 to 15 sewing machines.

In the meanwhile, Pacheco has found his own assistant, a 25 year old cousin who helped run the store during the move.  Read more about Pacheco’s story in The Patriot Ledger or go to SewMachineRepair.com to learn how to start your own profitable sewing machine repair business.