Customer Reviews

The Sewing Machine Attachment Handbook

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a great little book for those of us who love sewing attachments (in this book it's 98% pressure feet). This is especially true of the pre-computerized machine owners like myself who can't just program in a special effect, and who wonder how to use all those little extra feet that came with the 1980 Sears Kenmore, or whatever. My original machine handbook had very sketchy descriptions for its attachments and barely covered what they were for, without any insight on how to use them. This book does a wonderful job of filling in all those missing details, along with handy little tips on how to expand the original purpose of all those exotic, odd-looking pressure feet. This is a book that will nourish the soul of mechanical gadget junkies like myself.

A caveat is that unless you do a heck of a lot of sewing, and feel compelled to make your own bias binding, etc. you probably won't purchase or use many of the special feet and attachments described. Even so I found this book fascinating reading, and really expanded my ideas of what I can do with my machine as far as creating my own ruffles, pintucks and so forth, should I ever need to.

The only quibbles I have with this book is that it isn't inclusive enough. I still have a couple of mystery pressure feet that weren't described in this book, possibly because for some reason Sears Kenmore isn't even mentioned in the book's long list of sewing machines. Also, I didn't find any discussion at all of why some of the more exotic feet are really necessary, when their function can be performed adequately by a standard zigzag pressure foot. Otherwise this is a great little reference, with nicely detailed photos and descriptions that make the various techniques seem so foolproof. We know it's not really that easy, but it's nice to have a book that gives you a good idea of where to start. Definitely a need-to-have for the serious home sewer.

Warm photos with clear details make this a must have for vintage sewing machine owners! Close up photographs, clear written instructions help a lot. I like the fact that it works for many different machines, not just Singer models or the 221 Featherweight. Entertaining as well to see what developed in time, and what is unchanged today.

I got this book in the hopes that it would shed some light on more uses for the 10+ presser feet that came with my modern sewing machine. What I found was this book focuses for the most part on old and VINTAGE presser feet and sewing machines. The first 20 or so pages of the book dealt with buying a used older sewing machine including the feet that may come with it. Then it went through the most popularly found vintage feet and how to use them. Thankfully a few of the feet are still being made and come with modern sewing machines so it was nice to get a better working knowledge of some different ways to use them, for instance using a hemmer foot to do Flatfelling if you don't have a flatfelling foot. There are plenty of full color photo illustrations in this book.

Don't count on being able to find the featured presser feet and being able to fit them on your modern sewing machine. I have two nonworking vintage sewing machines with plenty of old presser feet and none of them fit my machine. So if you are going on a presser foot hunt, be very careful that you get ones that fit your own sewing machine. This book at least helps you determine what to look for in the many types of presser feet that were manufactured.

I would have appreciated knowing prior to purchase that this book was mainly about vintage presser feet as I would have skipped buying it. If you are looking for hints on using all the different feet that come with your modern machine, you are most likely going to have to look elsewhere for many of them.

I have been sewing for more years than I like to admit, but this book has taught me what all those gadgets can really do. I should have had this book years ago....

Have you ever bought a new machine and been fascinated but clueless about some of those wierd metal bits and pieces? Or have you had the need to do something a wee bit fancy but did not know how or if you even have the tools to do it?

I own several sewing machine guides, but Charlene Phillips new handbook might be the one that actually gets used. And with two really good reasons:

1) The price!! Although this is a somewhat diminutive book at 8 by 8 inches, Ms. Phillips has given us the most cost-effective and quantity-laden (144 pages) guide currently on the market.

2) The pictures! Truely useful close-ups with real fingers handling real fabrics and notions instantly illustrate the gist of the text. Some other guides simply spell out the attachment name along with its purpose in a chart, but this guide shows projects in motion (virtually) and in progress so you can see not just how an attachment works, but why it makes a difference.

As a former teacher and professor, Ms. Phillips has a real talent for harnessing a lot of information while keeping the text simple. I have even attended in-person classroom instruction on my Bernina, yet I still balk and tremble when it comes to say, cording or ruffling. This handbook will definitely stay right by my machine as I ponder the latest trends in art quilts and dimensional quilting. It has already given me more confidence to try new things, and isn't that what is most exciting about crafts?

I adored this book. It is very thorough, clear, well-illustrated, and well-written.

It seems that some reviewers have taken off stars because the book is more geared towards vintage machines. However, it's information actually does apply to new machines, also. 1) Many of the vintage attachments described in this book DO have corresponding modern attachments that are easily available through a good sewing machine servicer or dealer (not Sears [unless of course you have a Kenmore-but even so, the reps usually-not always-know very little about additional attachments for their machines & don't stock them anyway, so one must know about the attachment before you walk in to order it], but a place that specializes in sewing machines and vacuums, for example); 2) It gives you an understanding of the mechanical foundation upon which your computer/electrical modern machine operates (i.e. pressure regulation, tension, needle choice and fabric choice as it relates to these respectively)-thereby allowing you to make custom adjustments as needed to improve your sewing and finished product (even on new machines).

Ms. P provides a concise, but still informative and interesting history of sewing machines, and also explains things that all sewers or potential sewers need to know about purchasing a machine-any machine. I have had several hand-me-down or garage sale machines, and this list would have been very helpful to me to methodically test out the machine (and make sure that I didn't miss any expensive thing that was possibly wrong) before taking it on, whether I bought it or it was gifted to me.

I have a 1935 Singer portable and a new Brother Embroidery/Sewing Combo machine, and the information presented here is invaluable to me, not just because even though I still have the Singer's manual that explains the old attachments, this does such a better job and shows it in action, so I didn't have to rely on the written explanation alone (which can be pretty awful and make absolutely no sense to visual learners).

The reason I say in the title of this review that this book can save you money is this: With the detailed explanations of tension, pressure and how these affect different fabrics, you may not have to bring your machine in to a specialist. Ms. P not only describes and illustrates the problem (by how the thread looks on the fabric), but also provides troubleshooting to resolve the issue and/or tips to avoid it in the future. Tension in particular is a killer to master, especially on any machine-even a new one that maybe doesn't have all the bells and whistles-knowing how to handle these adjustments on your own can mean the difference between you fixing it for free or paying someone a small fortune to fix it for you (these fixes can run you $100-200!). Ruining your expensive fabric, breaking a needle into the machine where it can't be reached or does damage to the machine in some way, sloppy stitch appearance, and hours of fighting with your machine (even a brand new, expensive one) w/ problems like these can be reduced or eliminated by knowing what Ms. P has provided here.

I certainly wish I had known these key machine fundamentals when I started sewing, but am so happy that I have this reference now. And at eleven dollars and some change, this is the best sewing machine deal going, hands-down.

Thank you to Ms. P for a job well done!

I have collected several books, magazine articles, pamphlets, and even a DVD on presser feet, often finding much too brief of instructions or unclear photos or drawings that left me wishing I had someone to show me in person so I could ask questions.... but that was BEFORE finding THIS gem of a book! It contains wonderful instructions for almost every attachment I have, plus even more that I now WANT! I'd consider this to be truly the ultimate book of sewing machine attachments, especially vintage ones. Every large clear color photo, with the instructions in easy to understand terms, will make you feel as if you're sitting right beside her actually SEEING what she's doing. I can't imagine any better book that could be created on this subject, this same one would have to be done as a video to be one bit better or any more easily understood. Granted, I have had mostly older sewing machines, no computerized modern ones, but I've found that most of the really old presser feet that are low shank will fit almost all my low-shank sewing machines, even up to my 'newest' machine that's perhaps 10 years old. (The author also covered some of the modern attachments that I'd only recently purchased.) This book will always be next to my sewing machine attachments, and I'd readily recommend it to anyone who wants to do more than just sew a straight seam. She specializes in both old and new sewing attachments, really knows her stuff, even sells all kinds on her website at what I'd consider amazingly reasonable prices. I wish I'd known that before I paid about double at my local Hancock's Fabrics... oh well, live and learn!

I cannot say enough good things about this book. The directions are clear, useful, and they work! I have been using vintage and non- vintage sewing machines for twenty years, and am a dedicated manual reader. Despite this, I have never been able to successfully use many of the attachments and presser feet available. When I have been able to work it out, using the minimal instructions from the manufacturer, I have had inconsistent results with attachments and thus have been unwilling to risk using them on sewing projects.

This book is like having a kind, clear, warm but not distractingly chatty instructor with you. I am now able to use every single attachment I own, many of which came with my machine and I had never figured out, or thought worth the trouble.

This book is aimed at the mechanical machine crowd, with a strong emphasis on those of us who admire and use the classic, solid metal machines made mid century or earlier. Even if you only use a modern machine, however, a narrow hemmer foot, seam guide, walking foot, or stitch in the ditch foot hasn't really changed in all the years of sewing. A bonus is the beautiful photography of the author's machine collection, as well as the clear photographs of all of the machine attachments in use. A nice, non- sentimental history of the development of home sewing machines is also included. I highly recommend this book for people who really want to learn to master their sewing machines, and would also recommend it to machine collectors who just want a better appreciation of all the "bits" than come with the machine.

The first part of this book briefly covers the history of machines and attachments to getting an attachment on your machine be it vintage or modern.
The second part, and bulk of the book is an attachment by attachment explanation, photo graphs, and instruction of that particular foot or attachment. She tells you what the feet are, what they are used for, and shows you how to use them. The writing is easily understood, and presented in a logical manner. It makes me want to get more attachments for my machine.

There is a slant twards vintage machines rather than modern, and quilting rather than garment construction. HOWEVER, this book certainly covers modern machines and attachments, and attachments or feet used in garment construction.

I think is significant for the reader to realize that these attachments were for the most part invented, patented, and manufactured decades ago.


Newer machines probably don't have tuckers or underbraiders available that were made for a modern machine, by their manufacturers.

It looks like a lot of the vintage attachments are still state of the art, and some of the contempory attachments are photographed of vintage machines although they are manufactured now.

This book shows you how to use all those attachments whenever they were made, and how to determine which ones will fit your machine.

The photographs by Tim Grondin are in clear focus from edge to edge, and show the subject precisely. Thank you for that. I have to remind myself that the choices of fabric and thread are for visual contrast.

This book is a good book to refer to if you love accesory feet for your sewing machines. I had several older ones that I had no clue how they should be used.....nice book....well written and great illustrations.