Monday, July 1, 2013

Do As I Say, Not As I Do

I'm almost too embarrassed to show this, but...


...I finally took some time this past weekend to clean out my travel machine, the Janome Jem Platinum 720. I mostly use it when I go somewhere away from home to sew, so it usually spends most of its time in the travel case. I never seem to get around to giving it a good cleaning.

The photo shows what happens when you wait too long to clean. My machine had been a bit noisy lately (but was sewing just fine), so I opened it up for some surgery. I removed a lot of lint buildup (and I mean a lot), added a few drops of oil, and closed it back up. Now the machine is a lot quieter. Oh, yes, I changed the needle, too.

See that big hunk of lint in the left center of the picture? That was in the bobbin case! I'm amazed the machine sewed at all.

I resolve to do better and not wait so long to clean my machine!

9 comments:

Brenda said...

good on you for setting an example for the rest of us -- showing us pix of your lint build-up and cleaning out your machine!

Jean said...

I am guilty of this too, we just keep sewing, not thinking of what is going on in there.

Ricky in Codman Square said...

I'm very guilty of this... and I just told Siri to remind me to clean my machines when I get home tonight. Thanks for the reminder.

Wacky Woman said...

I finally learned to do this more frequently. Saves me time in the long haul. Not that I didn't have to learn this the hard way.

Three Birds Inspired said...

I just cleaned my big Janome a couple of days ago and I was so annoyed with myself that I let it go that long. It was pretty gross inside that thing! Isn't it amazing how much quieter they run when they are cleaned and oiled?

Vivian said...

Don't be embarrassed at all. This was just a public service announcement :)
Our machines really put with lack of attention from us. Happy stitching.

Susan said...

Holy cow! No wonder your machine sounded different than mine!

Vicki W said...

My travel machine needs a good cleaning too.

Unknown said...

I must suffer from a form of OCD LOL I clean my bobbin area every time I change a bobbin ( I have a 1 inch soft bristle paintbrush from the hardware store that I use MUCH better then the tiny ones for general cleanup ) I just do a little dust around when I change the bobbin and then as soon as I am done with a project ( the project is DONE ) I do a full out clean and oil.