For all my Handy Stitch Bitches!
As most of my pals know, I'm a sucker for As Seen on TV items. I want them all to work, so desperately. But alas, they never do. They are just more junk Made In China that, through the power of latenight advertising, seduces us. Damn you late night television!
Well, for a mightly long time, I've been wanting to take my beginning sewing skills to the next level, but there's no way in hell I'm investing in a $100 sewing machine to make this happen. I bring enough junk from yard sales home as it is, so I know I'd be in the doghouse if I tried the "look how cheap this sewing machine is" trick. Still, when I see some marvelous fabric at the thrift store or if I am lucky enough to stumble into an estate sale or yard sale from an old sewing lady, I instinctively snatch up all the goods, despite my lack of machinery.
One day, my #1 Fan returned home from work and told me that she had a surprise for me. She reached into her bag and pulled out the Handy Stitch--an item I'd been longing for not-so-secretly for years.
"Woooo Hooooo! I love you, hon!" She really knows how to make me happy. It's the little things, really. I began making little projects here and there, mostly repairing seams or doing simple alterations for Burning Man. With each use, I feared the end of the thread on the pre-threaded bobbin. How the hell am I ever going to figure out how to rethread this sucker?!?
Well, after an hour of trying to understand the directions, I realized there was a missing step. So for all those cheap-ass sewers out there like me, I am sharing with you my version of the directions, complete with the missing step. If these don't make sense to you and you need help, contact me and I will work with you to get this shoddy piece of machinery back into half-assed order.
Handy Bitch directions:
1. Pass thread through bobbin eyelet (bobbin eyelet: the framed hole poking out the side of the top bar that holds the needle) Thread on bobbin must flow from top down into the bobbin eyelet. (Think of toilet paper on a roll with the t.p. hanging over, not under the roll).
2. Pass thread over top of tension control knob. That's the silver circle with the white button on the end of it. Don't wrap it once around this control knob. It should wrap just half way around until the thread comes down near the needle.
3. Pass thread through eyelet underneath Needle Arm, from left to right (bobbin side to other side).
4. Here's the bitchy part. The directions say use the needle threader to pull thread through eyelet from back to front. This will giver you an ulcer if you spend more than 5 minutes on it! you need to take the needle off the machine before threading it.
5. To take needle off the machine, turn the silver screw above the needle counterclockwise. Use a very tiny, skinny screwdriver if it's too tight. Remember to keep the flat side of the needle (needle is #14 style DHx1) facing toward the front of the Handy Stitch.
Well, for a mightly long time, I've been wanting to take my beginning sewing skills to the next level, but there's no way in hell I'm investing in a $100 sewing machine to make this happen. I bring enough junk from yard sales home as it is, so I know I'd be in the doghouse if I tried the "look how cheap this sewing machine is" trick. Still, when I see some marvelous fabric at the thrift store or if I am lucky enough to stumble into an estate sale or yard sale from an old sewing lady, I instinctively snatch up all the goods, despite my lack of machinery.
One day, my #1 Fan returned home from work and told me that she had a surprise for me. She reached into her bag and pulled out the Handy Stitch--an item I'd been longing for not-so-secretly for years.
"Woooo Hooooo! I love you, hon!" She really knows how to make me happy. It's the little things, really. I began making little projects here and there, mostly repairing seams or doing simple alterations for Burning Man. With each use, I feared the end of the thread on the pre-threaded bobbin. How the hell am I ever going to figure out how to rethread this sucker?!?
Well, after an hour of trying to understand the directions, I realized there was a missing step. So for all those cheap-ass sewers out there like me, I am sharing with you my version of the directions, complete with the missing step. If these don't make sense to you and you need help, contact me and I will work with you to get this shoddy piece of machinery back into half-assed order.
Handy Bitch directions:
1. Pass thread through bobbin eyelet (bobbin eyelet: the framed hole poking out the side of the top bar that holds the needle) Thread on bobbin must flow from top down into the bobbin eyelet. (Think of toilet paper on a roll with the t.p. hanging over, not under the roll).
2. Pass thread over top of tension control knob. That's the silver circle with the white button on the end of it. Don't wrap it once around this control knob. It should wrap just half way around until the thread comes down near the needle.
3. Pass thread through eyelet underneath Needle Arm, from left to right (bobbin side to other side).
4. Here's the bitchy part. The directions say use the needle threader to pull thread through eyelet from back to front. This will giver you an ulcer if you spend more than 5 minutes on it! you need to take the needle off the machine before threading it.
5. To take needle off the machine, turn the silver screw above the needle counterclockwise. Use a very tiny, skinny screwdriver if it's too tight. Remember to keep the flat side of the needle (needle is #14 style DHx1) facing toward the front of the Handy Stitch.
posted by Freewendy @ 8:10 PM
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