lultiple-feature machines
ive sewers more freedom

page 20

in design, while Bernina and
Dme produce more of an outline.
ccording to Helen McCrindle,
teaches classes at the Thread
, these machines push sewers
bnd the fabrication of basic gar-
ts, and allows users to “express
miselves in many different ways.
ey help people develop their
tivity,” says Nancy Riemersma,
mer at Albees.

Bewers can use the new

hines to personalize clothes,

fts, table napkins and home
br items.
ther recent features allow the
stress to choose a fabric and
h type on the tiny built-in com-
screen, and then be directed,
by step, to putting in the appro-
e needle and making the proper
on and stitch length adjust-

ts.

‘They walk you through the
ess,” says Riemersma.

These “top end” offerings are

Some women who
e staying at home to
Baise their kids, take
up sewing to save
money on quality
ildren’s clothing. 99

wanced by the basic beginners’
hines in the $400 range, with
mid range in the “teens” sand-

hed in between. -

[A person no longer buys a
ing machine so that she can

out the “chore” of supplying

nembers of her family with their
‘drobes. .

Technology has taken a lot of
drudgery out of sewing and
ny women use the pastime as
tive escape from their profes-
al lives,

#Some women who are staying at
© to raise their kids, take up
ing to save money on quality
dren’s clothing.

There are easier ways to save
mey than to invest the time it

Bes to sew — not to mention the

bts of a sewing machine, quality
ric, patterns and notions.
/Riemersma, however, enjoys the
ble satisfaction of producing a
0-$300 outfit for about $80 —
Mabric she has chosen herself.
Others take pride in creating cus-
-made draperies and home
or pieces.
Interest in craft work has explod-

- Quilting has developed an

passioned following, combining

ry specific sewing techniques

the opportunity for artistic use .

color and geometric design.
Sewing machine companies
ve developed a growing number
presser feet for specific users and
es, such as quilting, making pip-
B for pillows and upholstery, or
h-tucking heirloom cotton night-

For many sewers, the serger is a
cessary accessory.

Utilizing multiple lines of thread

4d a variety of stitches, the serger

gone from use in stretch sewing

a machine capable of a varicty of

cy hem finishes that are attrac-

live as well as useful. Although a
basic serger can be had for a few
hundred dollars, there are more
electronically advanced ones avail-
able in the $2000 range.

Most of the major companics

make good busic machines for the-

beginning sewer that offer straight,
stretch and zigzag stitches plus
some kind of button holer which are
fine for almost everything. But if
sewing is becoming a major inter-

THIS
WEEKEND
WHILE
QUANTITIES

est, Riemersma believes the best
long-term value is in the mid-line
machines that arc now offering
some computer memory and better
button-holers.

With good instruction on the use
of a new machine, learning to sew is
a lot less frustrating than it used to
be.

And by using quality materials
and sticking to simple patterns, the
first projects can be rewarding.

NEWS photo Noll Lucan
DORI HOPKO demonstrates the use of an Eina Pro-Series
serger during a sewing workshop at Albes’s Sewing Centra.

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