How to Care for Your Sewing Machine
We’ve said it before: To achieve successful projects, it is important to have good tools and to maintain them! Today we’d like to share a few tips to help you care for your sewing machine.
Make it a habit (or maybe these will make good new year resolutions for you) to do the following on your machine:
- Every time you change a bobbin gently sweep the bobbin with a soft brush. Shannon’s favorite is a natural bristle artists brush
- Every time you finish a project remove the needle plate and gently sweep out the entire area with the same type brush. Remove the Inner Rotary Hook and sweep under the area. Take care not to knock any sensors or wiring loose. It takes a very light touch.
- Change your needle every project! A dull needle can scratch the needle plate, damage the rotary hook, damage the fabrics, and compromise the stitch quality.
- Bring your machine in for regular maintenance.
Birdsong Quilting is an authorized service center for Brother Sewing and Embroidery Machines and HandiQuilter Longarm Machines. The technician will clean and lubricate the machine in multiple places with different specific lubricants. In addition, they can remove lint and dust from small crevices, check for overall adjustments that can be related to timing, tension, needle drop positions, clearing of service stitches, and inner rotary hook cleaning in-between the tension clasp. They can also assist with updating software as available or required for better machine performance. It’s not just the inside of the machine they attend to, technicians will also wipe down the outside covers to clear any buildup of adhesive or scuff marks.
Proper maintenance can help your sewing machine run more smoothly, efficiently, extend the life of your machine, and prevent costly repairs down the line. These factors lead to a better sewing experience and less frustration when using the machine, especially if you use your machine frequently!