Wednesday, February 23, 2011

PLEASE DON'T BE LIKE ME!!! THIS PICTURE IS VERY OFFENSIVE!

Those who read my post yesterday know that I was having trouble with my tension.

Well..the Horizon has a different bobbin for quilting, I have just never used it because the regular sewing bobbin worked just fine until yesterday.....

So...thought I would use this quilting bobbin.....and this is what I found.............

get ready.....

Hold your breath.....

Don't judge me to harshly.....





Oh my goodness.....look what crawled into my machine....

How did that get there?????

It has only been two months since I have been sewing ......(I have more excuses)

You should have seen what was under the bobbin.....shameful shameful......

My head is hanging down.....all I can say is

"Do you know what is under, around, within your bobbin casing?


61 comments:

Terry said...

Mine usually looks just as bad by the time I get around to cleaning it out! LOL

Anonymous said...

LOL, welcome to the club. Your picture is a reminder for me: how long has it been since I cleaned it? emmmm, too long, again?? :-))

JustCindy said...

It happens very quickly too. Did your tension work better after you cleaned it?

Gene Black said...

That area is like the lint filter on the dryer. It needs to be cleaned regularly for everything to work right.

Sarcastic Quilter said...

LOL, I do because I've had those same sneaks visit me one time and cause all sorts of havoc. So now, I check religiously and never let the miscreants return. I let them visit outside the machine, on the table, the floor, the chair, and my clothes, but they are not allowed "in the house" of the machine any longer. :D

Mistea said...

Seems the nap didn't cure the problem after all.
Very common problem that one - and usually the last one I look for. Thanks for the reminder.

Lynette said...

I think most of us get stuffed-up "basements"! ;D
I'm going to go clean mine out. . .

Jocelyn said...

My machine starts talking to me when I have lint build up. After I clean it out, it starts humming again :-)

Crispy said...

I think the nap helped clear your head so that you thought of checking out the bobbin casing LOL. My machine is the cleanest around since I haven't used it in ages :0)

Crispy

Carolyn said...

Boy that looks familiar! When I saw what was in mine the other day, I thought I could probably stuff a small toy with it. Pitiful!

BTW, I do so enjoy your blog. You are such an inspiration to me to keep on trying things, even though I don't know how to do them well. I'm a frustrated perfectionist and have to realize that it's not going to be perfect the first time. Practice, practice practice. Thank you for your inspiration!

Kaye said...

That is one part of my machine that I do clean regularly. Like a lot of us, the floor and sometimes the surrounding areas are a mess but not in that part of my Janome. LOL

Rhonda the Rambler said...

OMG I recently opened my machine and seen the same thing. I could have spun what I found into yarn and crocheted a scarf!

Kim Brackett said...

I think you made it mad! :-)

Jan said...

I'm guilty of the same thing--must do better at that, so I hang my head with you!!!!! Sure seems to fill up fast!!!

Susan said...

Hmmm...I should probably clean and oil my machines as well.

Average Quilter said...

Amazing isn't it. That's one of the things I showed Toni when I was there - - -

quiltingnana said...

it doesn't take long for the fuzz to appear. I clean mine after every big project or several little ones. Do you like the extra bobbin? I use a 6600 and found that the "blue bobbin" really helped

Susan In Texas said...

Some thread is VERY dust producing, so don't blame yourself. Just get out the can of air and make those dust bunnies hop all over your sewing room like I do, instead of letting sleeping dust bunnies lie all cozy in your bobbin area. 8)

Happy scampering,
Susan in Texas

Deanna said...

It happens. Fortunately there is repentance. Just clean it up and move on.

Michelle said...

It looks like a lot of us have had the same experience! I blogged about mine too! http://afwife85.blogspot.com/2010/02/lintmaggedon.html

Joanne Lendaro said...

hahaha!! this made me laugh!! But then!! OH NO!! YOUR NEW MACHINE!! not lookin' too good there girlie!!

West Michigan Quilter said...

Don't feel guilty. It happens. When I got my Pfaff it warned to CLEAN my machine with every bobbin change. I found out quickly why. You'll remember this learning experience.

Danielle said...

It happens to all of us! I agree, some thread is worse than others, I've been lloving aurifil, it seems to be less dusty!

Rumi said...

I just cleaned mine and it looked alot like your photo. Amazing how fast lint accumulates!

Erzebat said...

wow, those arnt dust bunnies, those are dust BODIES! welcome to our world! when ya use all cottons, it dont take long for the nest to build! (mauh) Liz

onlymehere said...

Your too funny! When I bought my machine the owner told me to take it apart after every two bobbins and clean and oil it! It's worked for me but it's still amazing how much I find in there from just that short amount of time. I enjoy your posts and your honesty about clutter and machine bunnies, lol!

Scrappy quilter said...

A number of years ago I had problems like you did and found the exact same thing. Now everytime I fill my bobbin, I clean the area out. I can't oil my machine because it's not suppose to be oiled, however I'm a stickler for cleaning it. My C on the other hand is a different story. I keep reminding her to clean it. Hugs and thanks for putting my giveaway on your blog. That is deeply appreciated.

Yvette said...

I cannot throw a stone at you, my bobbin looks like that every time I go to clean it.

Needled Mom said...

Isn't it amazing how quickly that stuff collects? It seems like there is something that we could do with all of those dust bunnies!!!!!

Sherry said...

Your not the first or the last one to do this. We have all been there and will again. Hoppfully not LOL.Have a better day today.

Unknown said...

Happens to the best of us!!! I also heard you should change your needle every 8 hours too! Yikes!

ShirleyC said...

I'd say that is every machine repair person's nightmare. LOL I have to keep mine clean because if one tiny thread get in there, it goes crazy. Plus my dealer stays on us when I go to Babylock club about cleaning our machines and changing the needles regularly.
I love the picture!

Wacky Woman said...

Boy did this ring a bell with a lot of folks. Mine can look like that sooooo fast. In fact, I cleaned mine out before I started the quilt I am cleaning and even changed the needle. But, it is talking to me. Maybe I should oil it today before I start again. Darn machines are so demanding.

QuiltNut Creations said...

I clean mine out with every bobbin change and do a full intense cleaning once/month. it really does make a difference with your sewing.

IHaveANotion ~ Kelly Jackson said...

Ignorance is bliss!!! What ever you do...don't look under the fridge or bed....very scary places too.

Smiles,
Kelly

Frog Quilter said...

They say "Every 3 to 4 hours" clean and oil. My machine tells me HEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!HELP ME!!!!!!!!!! So I do and hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Cyndi said...

I agree with everyone else...it does happen quickly. When I bought my machine one of the things they told me was to clean the bobbin area and change the needle after every project, so that is what I do. Sometimes I think I do it to excess, but I haven't had a problem (yet) with build up! Once you get into a habit of cleaning it after every project, you won't have to worry about that any more! :o)

XOXO,

Cyndi

Regina said...

Ugh don't you just hate that? When I was doing all of those flannel quilts it built up FAST. I swear I would clean it out every time I used my machine. Now I'm happily back to using my quilting cottons and the clean up isn't nearly as bad.

Unknown said...

it just means you are a quilting queen!!!! it would be really sad if you pulled it open and nothing was there!

Seams to Sew and Quilt said...

Oh my,,, thanks for the reminder.. I need to check and clean mine. It doesn't take long for it to get that way.

Patty said...

My mother,sister and I once gave lessons to several ladies. One lady used to sew like a bat of you know where. One day her machine was sluggish and sounded absolutely awful, my mother asked her when was the last time she cleaned her machine. She replied yesterday, so we open up her machine and found what amounted to a small felted rug! Yours looks squeaky clean compared to hers! Don't feel too bad. :^)

Jane's Fabrics and Quilts said...

One of my favorite things to do is clean around my bobbin. I know I am weird. I have a can of spry air and every time I put in a new bobbin, I try to clean. Yours would have been fun!!

swooze said...

Nothing! I just cleaned and oiled. Of course WHY did I do that? Maybe it was the chunking sound. And it did look like yours when I opened it up.

Lynn said...

Looks like you have been busy! It is just a sign of progress. I bet your tension troubles cleared up after cleaning that out though. LOL!

Elizabeth said...

Ewww! I dust out the lint every time I change the bobbin. I'm worried that if I don't, my machine will die.

Funny post today.

xo -El

Michelle May-The Raspberry Rabbits said...

Ahhh, I see Sugie and Harrington sent the lint bunnies to you.
xx, shell

SewCalGal said...

Looks like you've been abusive to Mr. Big. I think you need to be whipped with hundreds of threads. Have you seen the vacumm attachment for cleaning sewing machines that Kelly sells? Works great. Love it.

SewCalGal
www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com

Linda said...

Hey, this is pretty normal, don't feel too bad! I clean mine with every bobbin that I change and it's usually like this too. It just means you sew alot! Now, it it was clean, I would worry. Keep a can of air handy and a lint brush and keep on sewing like crazy!

Janice said...

Mine looked just like it when I cleaned it out the other day. Guess we are both awful?? Just kidding. I dont know how it happens, but alas I think my problem is the timing. I am sending mine to the shop. Even a good cleaning didnt help my problem.

Anonymous said...

It happens to us all. I got in a rhythm a few years ago. Wind 3 bobbins at a time. Each time you need to refill bobbins, clean the machine. Whenever I go to winding a bobbin at at time, my machine gets to looking like Gene said, the lint filter in the laundry dryer.

Hope the cleaning solves your tension problem! Try a new needle too!

Micki said...

It builds up fast...wow, there really was a lot!
Micki

Millie said...

Barb, mine can look just as bad. It is showing we are quilters and we do use our machines.

Melissa ;-) said...

LOL! At least you found it before the needle sucked a big old dirty clump of it out onto the back of your work which is what it usually takes to get my attention!

hetty said...

It's supposed to look like that! It just means that you have been using your machine. And that's a good thing. Right? When my machine starts to look like that it gets temperamental until I clean it out.

Jean said...

yes I do, during the retreat I thought something was wrong with my feed dogs, seemed like they were too low and weren't feeding.....oh dear....I found felt!

QuiltSue said...

Oops, make me think I must go and clean mine out too. I did try telling my DH once that it was meant to look like that, but I don't think he believed me!

Barb said...

so funny. this used to be me too. Now I check it out anytime I change needles or feet on the machine.

Kim D. said...

Mine looks like that quite often too, I try to keep it clean. Hey, they say use Aurifil thread and it doesn't shed like other threads. I have some now so I'm going to try it out to see if it's true.

Unknown said...

Wow! Yo are a very creative person not having meet you, but I can sense that In you...That is my kind of friend creative, spontaneous, ambitious, keep up the great work. Denise Fischer Tucson Az.

Fiber Babble said...

Oh. My. Goodness. I might start rocking and sucking my thumb. 8-O It's amazing how fast lint and threads can build up, sometimes it seems you don't even have to be using your machine all that much!

I always tell my students, "There are NO felt pads inside your machine."

Glad you found the problem and it was easy to solve!!

apple blossom said...

Oh, my goodness. Mine would never run. My machine will not take one speck of dust. It is very temperamental. I have to clean it every time I use it for it to work correct. Drives me nuts.