Come Visit Me at Pink Rose!

Hi friends!

I know it has been a long time since I last posted here.

I have a good reason. I've been busy with Stitcherie, and share most of my sewing with my followers on Instagram (@stitcherie).

But I also have a super fun announcement, one that I'm so so so proud of and excited to share with you.

I'm blogging now at Pink Rose Organizing Company where I share my true calling: helping women and moms feel confident and encouraged.

I have a passion for organizing and I believe that a little bit of organization can help you feel amazing. I believe in lifting women up and helping each other with a positive attitude. I believe fresh, pretty spaces lead to inspiration and productivity. I believe we can do anything we want when we feel supported. I want to give you the tools and encouragement you need to accomplish your goals!

I hope to see you over at Pink Rose Co. I really think you'll love it!

You can also follow along on Facebook or Instagram (@pinkrosecompany).

Thanks so much for joining me on this journey! I can't wait to share this passion with you!

Link|Love: 4 Entertaining Podcasts

Ever since I discovered Serial, I've been hooked on podcasts.  Here are some that I really enjoy right now!

Elise Gets Crafty - I binge on the archives of Elise's podcast while I'm working because her guests' stories are so inspirational and motivating.

She Percolates - This one is new to me, and I'm really liking the content, which is all about successful creative ladies.

Playtime (BBC) - Okay, so this one is more for my son when he's hanging out in the studio, but he loves it and it engages him so well.

The Leviathan Chronicles - I'm digging this drama, and I'm not even into sci-fi.  It's like watching a movie, without using your eyes.

I use Podcast Addict on  my Android phone to play subscribe to and stream or download episodes.  It has a playlist feature which is nice, but I haven't been able to figure out how to go directly from the player to anyone's show notes, if that's even possible.

What are you listening to?

Janome Horizon Memory Craft 8900 QCP Sewing Machine

Meet my new machine!  I've named her Rose, named after Eleanor Roosevelt, because I am a history nerd and I really admire her.  Rose is a Janome Horizon Memory Craft 8900 QCP.  That's a mouthful, and most of the time I just refer to her as a Janome 8900.

I purchased my Janome from Sew Vac City of College Station, TX at QuiltCon this year.  I'll admit it was mostly an impulse buy.  They were running a great special, and because I had been considering a new machine since Fall Quilt Market, I just went for it.

I'm not going to go into all the specs because that's available all over the internet.  But I do want to compare it to my previous machine, a starter Brother XR-9000 (which I believe is now called Brother XR-9500PRW - Project Runway edition).  Which I still totally recommend to anyone that asks me what machine they should get for their first one.  Seriously, that machine is a workhorse.  Had I not wanted to work on my free motion quilting skills and start making large quilts, I probably never would have upgraded.

I was always hesitant to get a "fancy" machine because they seemed very complicated to me, like a rocket ship.  I think this Janome is a good blend of the features I wanted in a fancy machine, and the simplicity I loved with my starter machine.

After using Rose for about a month, I'm ready to share my preliminary list of things I like about this machine:

• I like that the bobbin is just a drop in plastic bobbin.  No intimidating metal bobbin case.  Yes, those intimidate me!  
• Although I haven't quilted anything very large yet, I really like the large harp space.  This thing boasts 11 inches.  That's huge!
• I like the automatic thread cutter.  I am finally starting to get used to the motion of pushing the little scissors instead of picking up my snips to cut thread.
• I love the Start/Stop button alternative to the foot pedal.  I am finally teaching my 4 year old son to sew and he's loving it.  I am too.
• I'm obsessed with all the storage.  Like embarrassingly obsessed.  What can I say, I love organization!

In this past month, I've found some things that I'm not sure of yet.  It might be a feature I am not impressed with or just an area where I need more practice with a more complicated machine:

• I have a lot of trouble winding bobbins.  I waste a lot of thread trying to get it right.  I follow all the steps in the manual, but I'm still getting loosely wound bobbins that sometimes get pretty tangled up.  I'll eventually get a bobbin wound that works, but it's a little frustrating.
• I cannot chain piece without breaking thread.  This is by far the most frustrating thing I'm trying to figure out with this machine.  Every single time I try to feed fabric under the foot while chain-piecing, the top thread breaks.  I've figured out that it happens when the edge of the fabric grazes the needle while it's still down.  So I to combat the problem, I have to slow down and make sure the needle is all the way up before the fabric gets near it.  I didn't have to do anything like this with my Brother, so I am just at a loss.
• I'm not sold on the knee bar thing.  It's not positioned right to be useful for me.  It's like I can't reach it or something.  I do have really short legs so maybe it's just not for me.  I've tried it a few times but I just don't get it.  I'm not mad at it though.
• It's really super heavy.  The table I sew on is also my desk.  I keep the machine on an oldrotary mat so I can easily slide it back to fit my laptop down for work.  In my old house, I sewed on the dining table where we ate dinner every night.  This machine would not be practical for having to move it every time I wanted to sew before dinner the way my little Brother was.

So far I'm happy with my purchase, despite my current issues.  I would definitely purchase again if I could go back in time.  But I'd love to be able to figure the things I'm having trouble with.  I'm certain most are due to user-error, because I'm so used to using a lower-end machine.

Do you have any tips for me to help me where I'm struggling with this machine?  Please tell me!