Foot Hack Hold-up

Sorry for the delay in posting my foot hack for free motion couching, but it's been beautiful weather here today, and I'm also terrible behind in stitching for my sales booth. So I'm either outside with the kids or stitching like crazy.

Soon.

Free Motion Couching with a Janome Part 2



So Leslie was wonderful enough to get back to me about a free motion couching foot for my Janome. It seems her Janome using friend has a "Miracle Stitcher" which is out of production but can be found on Ebay sometimes.


So, being an impatient person (God's working on me), I went ahead and hacked my foot! Not to be confused with breaking my foot, which my husband did at my request when all I had was a generic closed toe foot. (OK, I admit it, it's fun to say it like it's an injury!) Check out Leah Day's blog for instructions to break your own foot.

[Edited to add in 2013- Janome now makes a free motion couching foot. Read my review and watch my videos on it.]

Ooh, look! There's yarn on my machine and it made that feather shape too! It worked! The first try, the hole was too small, but version 2 is pretty snazzy. There are a few misses, but are easily fixed and I think the motion of whipping out a feather is a pretty hard test. I have raided the old yarn stash and, uh oh, have been thinking of other yarns I'd like to try this with!



I have the new free motion quilting set from Janome, which contains 3 different toes for FMQ. A open toe, closed toe, and an echo foot (looks like a bullseye). See my first free motion couching post. The open toe is my good friend and we work together so well. The echo bullseye foot I never use, so I hacked it.


A piece of clear plastic from a Pringles can lid, a yarn needle, and some super glue and you can hack your foot too! I glopped up the glue so it's not as clear as it should be, but you can see through it. I'll do a tutorial tomorrow.


Leslie also gave me some info on some good regular couching feet that will fit my machine.


Now the question is: Why can I be fearless and confident enough to hack my foot, but have a total lack of confidence in most areas of my life, including quilting?

Going into Business

So I felt out my local art and antique mall that is supposedly a non-profit business and art incubator a few weeks ago and they didn't have any space available. Then they called last week and space had opened up and "how soon could I submit work to their jury committee?" Panic sewing ensued and I was juried in and offered a primo spot---8x10 for a monthly rental of $80.00 plus 11% commission. I took it and now I'm regretting it. $80 per month is a scary amount of money for me right now and my inventory? Three pillows, one small wall quilt, and a nearly finished lap quilt.

Sigh... I owe, I sew, it's off to work I go.

Free Motion Couching with Janome


Over at 3Creative Studios, Leslie is teaching about free motion couching. Imagine a lovely feather outlined in a nice yarn or cord. Imagine me using up the yarn I never use anymore!






But Leslie has a Bernina---one that costs more than my minivan (OK that's not saying much) that has all these special feet and all the great education of the Bernina folks behind it. Janome does not make a free motion couching foot.[Edited to add: 2013- Janome now makes a Free Motion Couching Foot. Read my reviews and watch the videos on it] Janome not makes a free motion couching foot So I've been fiddling around with what I do have.


This (below) is one of the "toes" that comes with the adjustable FMQ foot from Janome. It looks a lot like the Bernina #43 foot for free motion couching, except the center hole is way too wide, and there's no yarn guide to the side of the foot. I think the center hole is pivotal (I'm punny). So I tried the closed toe on this set. It kind of worked, but the hole is still a bit big for the yarn I used, so it got out of position and missed several stitches when changing direction.



See my little experiment below. Not a great pic, but nearly every bit of that yarn is stitched down and I didn't guide the yarn at all while stitching!



I'll have to figure out if there are any other manufacturer's feet that could be used on my machine for this fabulous technique, but right now I'm thinking it's time for a foot 'hack' only this time, instead of breaking my foot by removing a portion, I think I need to add to my foot. I'm thinking a little super glue, some clear plastic, and the bullseye-looking plastic foot/toe of my FMQ set.

To be continued.....

Scraps of this and that


  • I've been sewing like a mad woman; trying to get ready to fill a booth at a local art and antique place. The space wasn't supposed to be available until September.

  • I've been ruthless in purging my sewing space to make room for more efficient making.

  • My hubby bought himself some fabric with the intention of trying his hand at piecing! He wanted to try a Mariner's Compass block, but I've steered him toward some improvisational piecing instead.

  • Why is it that I forget about a fabric's directionality until I've already stitched it wrong?

  • I've got to go rip it, rip it.