Learning Something New is Scary
Erica Here:
Do you ever get intimidated when it's time to learn a new skill? I sure do. You see, I love having mastered a skill, and I like being good at something, but oh, the learning curve.
My latest Mt. Everest to conquer is in my sewing room. My mother graciously gifted me with her serger sewing machine. And now I need to learn to use it.
I remember when my mom got this machine...I was in high school!I'm somewhat intimidated. I didn't really start sewing until a few years ago, and I've never used a serger. Did you know this thing has a knife in it? And changing oil on the space shuttle can't be more complicated than the diagram for threading this contraption. There are three separate threads, and a labyrinthine maze of hooks and levers and loops to wind those threads through.
My serger didn't come with the instruction manual, and since it's circa 1987, the company no longer supports this model.
So how do I go about learning? (BTW, my mom lives far away in Florida, and isn't available for tutorials...she hasn't used the machine in 15 years anyway and said it would be as much an adventure for her as for me to re-learn how to use it.)
My method in this case was to watch a couple of YouTube videos on sergers (not that they had any for my particular model) and dive in. :) Messing about with it promptly led to me breaking the only needle I had for it, two trips to the sewing machine store because they no longer sell the style of needle I needed and we had to guess as to what would work, and a few starts and stops with the sewing.
I am nowhere near proficient, but I am excited about having this new-to-me machine. It will make sewing baby gowns for Bundles of Love Charity so much easier! And I love the nifty way it stitched and trims all in one go. If you have never seen a serger work, or don't know how one works, here's an instructional video explaining the basics. And if you're wearing a ready-made t-shirt, flip the hem up and take a look. Your shirt has most likely been serged and sewn to keep the jersey from fraying.
So, question for you...what new thing have you learned to do lately?
SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER
Find me on AMAZON.COM
Find me on FACEBOOK
Do you ever get intimidated when it's time to learn a new skill? I sure do. You see, I love having mastered a skill, and I like being good at something, but oh, the learning curve.
My latest Mt. Everest to conquer is in my sewing room. My mother graciously gifted me with her serger sewing machine. And now I need to learn to use it.
I remember when my mom got this machine...I was in high school!I'm somewhat intimidated. I didn't really start sewing until a few years ago, and I've never used a serger. Did you know this thing has a knife in it? And changing oil on the space shuttle can't be more complicated than the diagram for threading this contraption. There are three separate threads, and a labyrinthine maze of hooks and levers and loops to wind those threads through.My serger didn't come with the instruction manual, and since it's circa 1987, the company no longer supports this model.
So how do I go about learning? (BTW, my mom lives far away in Florida, and isn't available for tutorials...she hasn't used the machine in 15 years anyway and said it would be as much an adventure for her as for me to re-learn how to use it.)
My method in this case was to watch a couple of YouTube videos on sergers (not that they had any for my particular model) and dive in. :) Messing about with it promptly led to me breaking the only needle I had for it, two trips to the sewing machine store because they no longer sell the style of needle I needed and we had to guess as to what would work, and a few starts and stops with the sewing.
I am nowhere near proficient, but I am excited about having this new-to-me machine. It will make sewing baby gowns for Bundles of Love Charity so much easier! And I love the nifty way it stitched and trims all in one go. If you have never seen a serger work, or don't know how one works, here's an instructional video explaining the basics. And if you're wearing a ready-made t-shirt, flip the hem up and take a look. Your shirt has most likely been serged and sewn to keep the jersey from fraying.
So, question for you...what new thing have you learned to do lately?
SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER
Find me on AMAZON.COM
Find me on FACEBOOK
No comments have been added yet.
