What is the difference between stitches and stitch functions

Will be pinning a printed copy on wall above my machine for quick reference. Saves time not plowing through the inst. Great post! Thank you for the information here, it help me to look a little deep into my machine and see how it really work. I am going to have a lot of fun now. Its great for hems as well, it makes a stretchy stitch, less prone to breaking than a zig zag. I use it to sew elastic waist bands, and to hem t-shirts. I have been sewing for years but did not know what some of those stitches were for.

Great help. Thank you for your explanation. Hi Amber, thanks very much for giving this detailed information. I would greatly appreciate any help you can give me in making a decision on purchasing this machine.

I have had mine for 10 years and it is a dream! Had to take it in once for some problems but otherwise just perfection. Hi Amber, thanks for your prompt response to my question. Have you had any problems with those functions. Thanks again. Thank you so much for this very helpful pin. Very helpful. I am not a professional tailor.

I want to buy one mini sewing machine to stitch only old cloths. Please tell me which brand is good? Loved the Blog. Very useful. Thanks for sharing all of this some of these stiches may save me time. Thanks so much. Gold dust! What do the little 1, 2, and 3 mean beside stitch selections 45 — 48? They all look like straight stitches to me. Actually, I think I know the answer to my own question! I think they are used as spacers when programming stitches in sequence.

Give it a try! You must try them out. Stitch 52 looks like a smocking stitch on my machine, which is generally used for sewing elastic in garments, but I have used it once as a decorative stitch. Not really what I wanted, but worked okay as the stitches on my machine are mostly just the basics.

I wish I had a blanket stitch. So far…no winner. Clearly it will be something I want on a new or different machine in the future. My sewing machine is a Kenmore Janome DC ,computerized.

Can you tell me what this means? Thank you. Hi Amber! I am a new owner to a used Janome Horizon Can you tell me what the little squares made with dots mean? They are pictured next to L. Not really! Someone suggested they may for leaving a space in the stitch design. The saddle stitch is used for sturdier stretch seams, decorative top stitching on knits.

The one next to the saddle stitch is a mock running stitch, used to simulate hand quilting. From Dictionary com: Sewing. I am curious about using satin stitches or fancy stitches to quilt. Do these stitches look the same on both the top and bottom sides of the quilt? Thank you so much for putting this together. The three-step zigzag is intended for mending. You can use it to essentially recreate fabric where the original fabric has failed, such as L-shaped tears. Put a piece of backing behind the repair area, then use the 3-step zigzag to build new fabric.

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Save settings. In this technical bulletin we will look at the application of the sewing thread and specifically stitches. The basic principle of all machine sewing depends on consistent loop formation.

During sewing the needle descends through the fabric to the bottom of its stroke and as the needle rises a loop of sewing thread is formed in the scarf of the needle.

This loop of sewing thread is picked up by one of two stitch forming devices namely the hook or the looper. A third stitch forming device known as a spreader is used in some stitch types to carry the sewing thread from one stitch forming device to another. The sewing machine hook be it rotary or oscillating shuttle interlocks the needle thread with the bobbin thread.

A looper, used in chainstitch formations, interloops the thread that it carries with another thread. Loop formation — a loop of sewing thread is formed in the scarf of the needle as the needle begins to rise from the bottom of its stroke. Conformation — this is where the threads are arranged above, below or around the material being sewn.

Cast off — is where the needle thread loop is freed from the lower stitch forming device. The Single thread chainstitch is formed using just one sewing thread introduced by the sewing needle. Stitch Type is most often used for temporary stitching [or basting]. Its main disadvantage is its tendency to run back from the finishing end of the seam.

A derivative of stitch type is stitch type known as single thread Blindstitch or Blindhemming. Again its main disadvantage is seam runback. This stitch is formed by using a curved needle which enters and exits the fabric from the same side carrying a needle thread.

The needle thread interloops with a blind looper on the surface of the material. Typical applications are hemming and lapel padding operations. The most common stitch type is without doubt the single needle lockstitch. Its main advantage is that it looks the same on the top as it does on the bottom [it is reversible]. It produces tight, strong, low-bulk seams but its main disadvantages are low elongation and low productivity due to the need to frequently change the under thread bobbin.

Higher productivity and greater seam elongation can be achieved by using a single needle chainstitch. It is true to say that the chainstitch has higher elongation than the lockstitch and delivers lower seam pucker when the cause of the pucker is structural jamming.

Both lockstitch and chainstitch machines are available to produce multiple rows of stitching. The most common is twin needle but multiple needle chainstitch machines are readily available. Where there is a requirement for higher seam elongation with either lockstitch or chainstitch, a zig zag formation may by used. For example, in corsetry. To produce either zig zag formation the needle bar moves laterally as the material is fed. The main drawback is that the zig zag stitch formation may not deliver the desired appearance.

Derivatives of the chainstitch are the chainstitch coverseam stitch formations. This stitch, as you may have been able to gather from its name, is useful for finishing the edges of blankets or for creating buttonholes. Most sewing machines will have a zigzag stitch option. This stitch is mainly a mix of straight stitches and zigzag stitches. The purpose with this stitch is to either sew two pieces of fabric together or the fold of one fabric together.

While the zigzag stitch is good for stitching buttonholes, most sewing machines have the capability to create buttonholes with a special foot attachment or a pre-programmed buttonhole setting. These are incredibly useful stitches to know and will get you through most sewing projects. Your email address will not be published.

Beginner Tip: Always remember to tie a knot at the end of your thread before you start stitching 1. The Running Stitch This stitch is the most basic of all the hand sewing stitches and if you have any experience with sewing at all, you likely already know how to perform this stitch.

Start by taking your threaded needle through the back of the fabric the wrong side Once the knot at the end of the thread has hit the fabric, make a stitch by putting the needle back down in the fabric about a centimeter away in the direction you want to stitch and pulling all the way through Bring the thread back up through the fabric and repeat 2.

The Basting Stitch This stitch is just the running stitch but longer. Make sure you keep these stitches loose and even.