Hiring And Firing Fundamentals: Becoming an Employer

If you just started to use a sewing machine, there are a few issues that you may run into. Here are a few tricky situations that you may encounter while using your sewing machine and what to do about them.

#1 Thread Is Balling Up On The Backside Of The Fabric

One common problem that first-time sewers run into is the thread looking fine on the top side of the fabric, but when you flip the fabric over, it is all bunched up on the bottom side of the fabric. This occurs when there you fail to add any tension to the upper thread that is going into your machine.

To fix this issue, you are going to want to raise up the foot lifter. Then, you need to put the thread back through the machine. When you re-thread the machine, you are going to want to lift up your machine's take-up lever. Next, place the needle on the highest setting possible. This should create the tension you need with the upper thread to prevent bunching on the underside of your fabric.

#2 Your Needle Is Breaking Frequently

You should be able to use one needle for multiple project before it breaks or needs to be replaced. If your needle is breaking frequently, you are probably using the wrong size needle. To keep your needles in tack, you need to adjust the size of the needle. 

Needles sizes run from 8 up to 18. Needles on the lower end of the scale are good for more fragile fabrics such as silk and chiffon. Needles in the middle range work for middle-range fabric such as linen or flannel. If you are trying to sew up some heavy-weight fabric, such as denim or canvas, you are going to want to use a needle on the upper end. 

If you use a needle that is too small for the project you are working on, it is more likely to break. 

#3 Your Stitches Are Not Even

There are two driving forces behind uneven stitches. One, if you are trying to pull the fabric through the machine instead of allowing the fabric to be automatically pushed through the machine with the feed dogs, you may be causing the stitches to be uneven. Make sure that you allow the machine to pull the fabric, not you.

Second, needles wear out after so many hours of work time. If the needle you are sewing with has become bent in some way or another, it can cause the machine to create uneven stitches. If you know you are not pulling the fabric manually through the machine, you may just need to change out the needle.