A while back I shared with you in a blog post how I had wanted to create a rolled hem and needed a little assistance from my local sewing centre. I finally had a chance to have a go today and was very excited with the results.
The hardest part to this stitch is setting up the machine to the correct settings. Hopefully this series of images and instructions will help you. Each brand of overlocker will obviously be different, but will still give you an idea. If you have your instruction manual it will help (my machine is a Janome)
Firstly remove the left needle. You only use one needle for a rolled hem.
Change your stitch dial control on the side of the machine to (R) with a tension of either 1-2.
You will need to play with the tensions but generally the lower loop thread tension is tighter (increase by 1-2)
Now there are two parts to this step (this is what took me the longest to figure out!). Open the side compartment on the left and there is a dial that when pushed in moves back the arm against the cutting blade. While this is pushed out - pull the lever from (S) to (R) and then release.
Some general tips.
- Change your thread to the colour you are wanting to use before changing any settings.
- You will get a more even stitch if you gently pull the fabric through while sewing.
- If you are wanting to use a decorative thread, add it to the Upper loop
- It is also recommended that a Woolly nylon thread be used on the Upper loop (but I just used a normal polycotton)
4 comments:
I just worked out how to do a rolled hem on my sewing machine this week and felt very proud - will try to master it on the overlocker soon!
Philippa
I am going to give it another go. I find setting and resetting the tension a complete p.i.a on my old machine.
This is a great tutorial, you may also need to move your lower blade to the right to cut a bit less fabric because you want it to roll under inside the seam. If it doesn't roll enough you'll get little fibres sticking through the seam sometimes, especially on fabric like organza. And you want the lower looper thread to not sew in the seam at all, it should be right up against the needle thread.
Thanks, this saved me hours of frustration. Finally, a nice rolled hem.
Post a Comment