Today is my turn in the “Meet: My Machine!” blog hop hosted by Sew at Home Mummy and The Tilted Quilt.
If you’re joining me from a hop link welcome to my blog, it’s really nice to have you here! My name is Jaclyn and I’ve spent the last 12 months at home with my daughter (thank you Canada for 1 year maternity leave). My sewing took a bit of a back seat to baby care but I’ve recently increased my sewing a lot in an effort to carve out more time for myself. Life is about to change again as I prepare to head back to my other life as an accountant during the day and transition Addie to full time daycare. I’m also co-chair of the Saskatoon Modern Quilt Guild which keeps me very busy.
Here is me and my girl just before Christmas (yep, we’re a little crazy!):
And here she is again approaching her first birthday (which is on the 25th of March):
So I bet you want to learn more about my sewing machine?
This is not the first time I have written about my machine, the Janome Horizon 7700 QCP. I wrote a blog post shortly after I got it two years ago. A lot has changed since then so I thought it would be fun to participate in this blog hop and update my thoughts on my machine. Janome Horizon 7700 is still the #1 search term that lands people on my blog.
So here we go!
My Current Machine: As I said I replaced my 1980s Kenmore with the Janome Horizon 7700 QCP about 2 years ago. After a year of sewing I had proven to myself that it was a hobby I was going to stick with, so I wanted a dedicated quilting machine. There isn’t much to say about why I chose the Horizon, I had heard many great things and it had all the features I wanted (large throat, auto needle down, auto thread cutter and table extension to name a few), so eventually my husband relented and let me buy it.
My Favourite Accessory: Hard to say! I love that this machine comes with a ton of feet including a built in walking foot. I love the extension table for working on large projects, and I love the knee lifter (lifts the presser foot hands free!). In terms of things I bought that did not come with the machine I’d say my favourite is my Queen Supreme Slider, it makes FMQ so much easier (and I am a total FMQ beginner).
Personalization: I am a type A purist. I don’t like mucking things up so I have no stickers or anything on my machine, she’s as clean and perfect as the day I bought her. And she doesn’t have a name either.
Favourite Features: There is some overlap here with accessories. I love the free arm for the little bit of clothing construction I do. Needle down is a MUST in my opinion if you do any quilting, I use it all the time, and can’t imagine not having it. The auto thread cutter is a great feature and saves tons of time and thread. I also love the single hole needle plate. For any straight stitching it really helps stabilize the fabric and keeps things moving smoothly, I use it all the time.
What could be better: Well, a few things actually. For one I am still having problems with the auto thread cutter. I have tried everything to get it to stop bunching and for now I am still running a leader through most of the time (kind of negates the feature I love so much). I have had many people tell me how to fix it, or that I am doing something wrong, but after having multiple people try it I know it is a problem with the machine. I’ve recently been put in contact with a repair guru who should be able to fix it (he agrees it’s a problem with the setting that holds the thread under the needle plate after it’s been cut) – and so I hope when I don’t need my machine for a week or so I can get it fixed. Another small annoyance is that the machine resets to default settings every time it is turned off, I wish it would stay on the setting that I last used so that I can pick up where I left off without a bunch of button pushing.
Sewing Space: I have some updates to come! You can see a preview on the first photo in this post. Regular readers will know my room is a bit of a work in progress and so I hope to share a full update in the coming weeks.
Thanks for stopping by to learn a little more about my machine.
Visit the other hoppers or join the link-up party at The Tilted Quilt!
SUNDAY, MARCH 17
MONDAY, MARCH 18
TUESDAY, MARCH 19
Elizabeth @ Don’t Call Me Betsy
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20
Patti @ A Yankee in Queen Liz’s Court
THURSDAY, MARCH 21
The Jolly Jabber Staff (Chelsey, Kimberly, Debbie)
Rachel @ Sew Happily Ever After!
FRIDAY, MARCH 22
It’s a pretty color too! I love that we both upgraded from Kenmore’s.
Fun post and happy baby : ) Come meet my machines at http://kwiltypleasures.blogspot.com/2013/03/nq-day-meet-my-machines.html
Thank you so much for stopping by my blog! I’m off to check out your post now.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 8:22 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
Built in walking foot! I need to look into this machine!
It really is amazing to have this feature – I think most of the dedicated quilting machines have it now.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 8:45 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
I have heard a lot of good things about your machine. I have a Bernina 440 and I love it. Do you do any FMQ on your machine? Just wondering if it’s a good machine for that. Thanks for sharing!
Yes I do FMQ with this machine and so far it has been great. Thanks for stopping by my blog!
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 9:49 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
Looks like a fun machine! I’m sorry about the thread bunching…that would be slightly annoying. Hope you get it fixed soon. I’m really enjoying this blog hop. =)
Glad you enjoyed the hop, and yes, I’m working on getting my bunching fixed. It is an annoying issue.
sounds like a great machine, I have a bit of machine envy now!
I find no matter what machine I read about a have a little envy, I think it’s normal
You need a software update to fix the problem with the machine reverting back to the original settings. I have a Janome also. You can get the updates on the Janome website.
I looked into this but I didn’t see anything for the Horizon on their website. I looked through the manual too and it doesn’t mention anything about updates via computer. Do you have any additional info for me?
Your tot is so, so cute! Thanks for sharing about your machine, and I can’t wait to see more photos of your sewing space.
Thanks for stopping by, it’s nice to have you.
Really enjoyed reading about your machine!
)
Thank you for stopping by.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 3:45 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
your machine sounds similar to my Pfaff.. I wonder if they are distant cousins? Can’t wait to see how you organize your new space!
They very well could be related! And I hope to have an update on my space up soon.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 5:08 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
Great post! Thanks for the info on your machine and pics of your little cutie pie! Nice to meet you through the blog hop!
Nice to meet you too!
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 5:10 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
I have the same machine, and I LOVE it! You can set your machine to resume the last stitch you were sewing, it is called “resumptive stitch” and is on page 26 of your owners manual. Good luck and happy sewing!
Thank you! I am checking this out for sure.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 5:41 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
I was JUST thinking that I wished my settings were preserved after the off/on cycle… I’ll have to check and see if my machine has that ‘resumptive stitch’ on it.
Tinkering is required indeed.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 6:08 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
Awesome post J! Thank you so much for participating in the hop!!
Thanks for hosting Erin!
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 6:53 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
Your machine is very pretty. I wanted the new Janome with embroidery but didnt have the credit. I did have a Bernina card so bought the new 780. I loved the look of that Janome though. Im waiting for some classes.
It is a very pretty looking machine, I love the red. Thanks for stopping by.
On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 8:20 PM, Jaclyn Quilts
I loved reading about your machine and seeing the pics of you beautiful little girl!! Thanks for taking the time to participate in the Machine Blog.
Thanks for stopping by!
It sounds like you have a wonderful machine…I too have a Janome Memory craft 6500 that I love.
Janome makes a great machine, I’m glad you love yours as well.
On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 1:16 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
I have the same machine. Got it 2 1/2 yrs ago and it has been the best investment I ever made. I love everything about it. The one and only thing it doesn’t do that I wish it did is signal low bobbin. If they could have included that it would be perfect. Oh, and I don’t remember ever programming my machine to revert to previous settings when turned back on but it does. So yours should, too. It’s late now or I would go check my manual. Hope you get that straightened out and the bird’s nest thing too. I’ve not had that happen. Have a good week!
Good to know! I’ll do some more reading to hopefully fix my issues. I also wish there was a low bobbin sensor, and a way to wind bobbins without unthreading the machine, that would be fantastic.
On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 1:18 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
Those are some AMAZING pictures! And that baby of yours- GAH!!!
Here’s where I blogged about my machine today- http://meandelna.blogspot.com/2013/03/meet-elna-and-her-crib.html .
Thanks for stopping by, and yeah I think she’s pretty cute too
On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 7:58 AM, Jaclyn Quilts
I have the same machine and love it. I haven’t experienced any of the problems you have. I do have a problem with the self threading needle fraying my thread.
ktreve (at) hotmail (dot) com
I have that issue with the thread sometimes too if I don’t get it just right.
Hi there! I’m one of those searchers who found your blog through the ‘janome 7700′ search! I’m trawling the internet because I’ve found an amazing deal secondhand but I’ve found out Janome doesn’t carry over warranties to second owners (So silly!) so I want to make sure I’m happy with it. In my searches the other day, I found this youtube tutorial on setting the machine to wake up to what you were doing before (at least, that’s how I understood it!) Hope it helps! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcyavcMso2w
Good luck! It really is an amazing machine. And thanks to the comments on this post I now have my machine set to resume the last stitch!
I purchased my Janome 7700, it has been a good machine so far. Just wish I could get rid of the bird nest problem when I first start to stitch. The machine has ben at the dealer 3 times now and he is not able to fix the problem. I just paid $70.00 shipping fee to mail the machine back to Janome, I’m hoping they are able to do something about this to me big problem. I just can’t have a machine making this big nest on every seam when I start to sew. Looking for answers to fix this problem. I hnate to have to trade the machine in for another more expensive model.
Carolyn