82-Lancast«r Fanning, Saturday, Fabruary 7,1987
Sergers Add Professional
Look To Homemade Garments
BYjALLY BAIR
Lancaster Co. Correspondent
COLUMBIA - Most home
seamstresses agree that the
garments they make are better
sewn, more economical and better
fitting than ready-made clothing.
However, they frequently have
that telltale “homemade look.”
Now home sewers can get more
professional results by using an
overlock machine, or serger,
which makes the seam, cuts off the
excess fabric and overlocks in one
operation. Not only does the
machine produce professional
looking seam finishes, it also cuts
sewing time drastically.
Janet Herman, Columbia, who
teaches a workshop on using the
serger through the Penn State
Cooperative Extension Service,
says, “It has really revolutionized
home sewing. There is a whole new
interest in sewing, especially for
people who have no time.”
Herman, who also works at the
Columbia Garment Co. Factory
Outlet, adds, “The most frequent
comment I hear is, T just love it. I
don’t know how I sewed without
it.”’
John Binkley, who owns
Binkley’s Sewing Machine Shop of
Elizabethtown, agrees that it is a
boon to the home sewer. “It speeds
up sewing tremendously.” Binkley
displays a dress which his wife
sewed in 28 minutes, after it was
cut and ready to go. He says, “The
overlock machine does for the
sewing room what the microwave
does for the kitchen.” Binkley sells
several brands of overlock
machines, and his store is the
oldest Singer dealership in Penn
sylvania.
Binkley believes the machine is
useful not just to the home
seamstress, but also to women who
make crafts for sale.
The overlock machine first
started to appear for home sewers
about five years ago, though
Herman says her research shows
This is the serger, or ovei ;k machine, which has been on
the market for home sewers for about five years, but has
been used in the garment industry for decades. This small but
mighty machine cdts sewing time in half, but canot completely
replace the conventional sewing machine.
that they have been available since
the 1940’5. The serger has been
used in sewing factories since the
early 1900’s, but professional
models are heavier and bigger.
What the serger cannot do is
replace a conventional sewing
machine. While some models do
sew a single straight seam, they
are not designed to do all the jobs a
regular sewing machine can do.
What it does do is finish seams
and edges in record time. Herman
says, “It sews at twice the speed of
the conventional machine.”
Sergers can do the job on any
kind of fabric, from heavy cor
duroy and denim, to lightweight
lingerie fabric. Binkley points out
that the only limitation on
thickness of fabric is the space
between the machine and the
cutting edge.
Binkley says there are three
kinds of overlock machines. One is
a single needle, three thread
machine; the second is twin
needle, four thread machine which
will make a straight chain stitch
and overlock; and the third is a
twin needle, four thread unit which
will overlock and make a safety
lock stitch which will not unravel.
Prices vary considerably among
the many models available, and
Binkley says the choice must come
down to which features a home
sewer wants. He said he has
guidelines which suggest questions
a potential buyer must ask herself,
including, “Which suits me the
best?”
He said the single needle will
work with all types of fabric,
makes a good overlock stitch and
is probably the one to buy if price is
the important factor.
The chain stitch model is useful
for people who may have a cottage
industry, or who are doing
draperies or alterations. He noted
that it is easier to make alterations
look like the original garment.
The top-of-the-line model with
the safety lock stitch offers the
met rman works on a turtleneck sweater on her serger. She says the machine has
revolutionized home sewing and allows seamstresses to complete garments much more
quickly and professionally than with a conventional sewing machine.
versatility of purchasing extra She urges, “Women should buy
attachments for doing the blind from a reputable dealer who will
hem stitch, adding elastic to sit and go over it and where she
lingerie, and attaching lace. It also can go bade if she has a question,
does rolled hems, though some It should also be someone who does
single needle models can do rolled repairs right there.”
hems, useful for napkins, Binkley says he always
tablecloths and scarves. welcomes machine buyers back to
Herman says that an increasing his shop. He explained that
number of the sergers are being someone may buy a machine, and
used to make curtains with ruffles, not put a buttonhole in for the first
something that takes yards and six months, and then realize they
yards of finished fabric. Perhaps don’t know how to use it. He said
the most popular use is for T- they are always welcome to come
shirts, turtlenecks, jogging outfits back. He and his wife have at
and other garments made from tended schools on the serger to
knit fabrics. The finish is truly become familiar with all its
professional, with no raveling and operations,
no extra threads. The overlock The overlock machines have no
finish also adds to durability of bobbins; the threads go directly
clothing. through tensions and thread guides
Binkley says it has been his to the needles. Binkley pointed out
experience that interest in the that there is now thread
overlook machine has peaked, manufactured for overlock
primarily because of the cost. Most machines, but regular spools of
of the machines are manufactured thread can be used. Herman says it
in Japan, with at least one made in is important to use only good
West Germany, and the price has quality thread because of the
been affected by the drop in the speed, the tension and the amount
dollar in relaton to the yen. He said of friction. Cheap threads will tear,
the price has risen at least $l5O in leaving a frustrated sewer,
the last year. Obviously, it is
difficult for a seamstress to justify
the expense if she is sewing to save
money for her family.
Both Herman and Binkley agree
that there is a market for used
sergers, and Binkley says they can
be traded in if someone wants to
upgrade the machine they have.
Getting familiar with the serger
is important for anyone who
purchases one. Herman says,
“They must read the book that
comes with it and use it. They must
leam by experience. The book that
comes with the machine is the
most important.”
*lCotncs{ead
Binkley says it is possible to
simply knot a thread when the
color must be changed or when the
spool is getting empty. The fine
knot can go through all the holes to
the needle, and at that point, it can
be snipped and re-threaded.
The threading process looks
difficult to a novice, but Binkley
noted that usually there are dif
ferent colors for each tension guide
and different symbols to guide the
placement of the thread. It is
important to get the thread
through all the spools correctly,
because, as Binkley notes, “If you
wies
miss a threading function you
mess up the stitch quality. And you
must be sure to tuck down the
thread in the spools.”
Another feature of the overlook
machine is an extra long feed dog,
to guide the material safety
through the stitching. Herman
notes that pins cannot be allowed
to go through the machine as they
will blunt the knives which do the
trimming. Binkley cautioned that
some models of the overlook
machine have knife blades whid)
are easily accessible and says,
“You must be careful of your
fingers.”
Both stitch length and stitch
width are adjustable on most
models. i
In her class, Herman recoin
mends several books which can b|
helpful to the new overlock use<l
They are: “Sewing with Sergers, %
Complete handbook for Overlook
Sewing” by Gail Brown and Pati
Palmer; “Overlook Sewing” by J.
& P. Coats: and “The Successful
Serging Handbook” by Leonora
Johnson and Sharon Herschau.
Herman says she finds the.
classes she teaches helpful to her
because, “I always learn
something. It’s a giving time.” She
admits that the teaching part is fun
for her because, “I love people.” A
seamstress since she was five
years old, Herman says she
continues to “read everything I
can” and leam new techniques.
About the overlock machine she
concludes, “You can have a
garment that looks nice, it’s done
fast and it doesn’t look like its
thrown together.” What more can
anyone ask?