Have you ever wondered what secrets your different sewing machine feet hide? If so, you’re not alone.
It can be overwhelming at first to see the large range of accessories which comes with a sewing machine. While a few seem pretty straight forward, some of them have hidden functions that can truly elevate your sewing.
That’s why this post series was created, to help you make friends with your sewing machine and become a master of your sewing attachements! So no more not being quite sure about how and when to use your sewing feet, this series of post will definitely answer a few of your questions.
Today we'll start with the most basic of them all: the standard presser foot!
You're probably thinking: "why talk about the standard presser foot? There’s nothing special about it and everyone knows how to use it."
Well, besides being used for pretty much all general sewing, this foot has a very neat and often unknown function for sewing thicker fabrics. Intrigued? Let’s discover its secrets together!
The standard presser foot or also called all purpose foot, is the most basic one you can find. It can be used for pretty much every seam and with most common fabrics. Ideal for sewing a straight seam or when using a zigzag stitch, its big opening for the needle is also very convenient for large stitches such as certain kind of fancy decorative stitches.
However, sometimes, when sewing a very thick fabric or when topstitching a jeans or a coat, it can be quite tricky to sew over a few layers. Especially when you have to go over several seam allowances at once.
While there’s some techniques you can use to reduce bulkiness in a seam, sometimes your machine will need a little extra help to get over it.
Here’s how you can use your sewing feet special function to help with this problem.
Start by sewing normally until you reach the thick part.
When the front of your sewing feet starts to rise due to the thick area, stop and put the needle down.
Now comes the neat trick! Raise the presser foot and locate a small usually black button on the side of your sewing feet. Push it and lower the presser foot. Like magic, it'll stay levelled over the thick area, making sewing over it a breeze!
You can now continue sewing without worry, the button will release itself automatically when you reach a normal thickness again.
Have a look at the beautiful result this technique produces.
However, if you machine doesn’t come with a sewing attachement that has this kind of button on it, there’s still a solution! You can artificially recreate this action by placing a small piece of folded fabric under your presser feet when it’s raised. This too will help the attachement stay levelled during stitching and will allow you to sew over thick layers easily.
Did you know about this mystery button? It’s such a useful technique to have in your bag of sewing tricks.
If you're planning on sewing jeans, topstitching a coat or even sewing over a few seam allowances at once, without a doubt, this foot and its leveled button will be a tremendous help.
Let us know if this technique was helpful or if you already knew about it.