5 Tips For a Sewing Machine!

Did you know that every 18 hours of sewing, you need to check on your machine?

Sewing machines help you do amazing sewing clothes, and the best part of it is that you can take care of it yourself!

At Tools for Solidarity, the main steps of refurbishing sewing machines are cleaning and oiling. You can do the same at home following these few pieces of advice:

1. Clean the outside
2. Open the bottom
3. Clean under the stitch plate
4. Time to oil it!
5. Change your needle regularly!

Which tools are needed?

• Small screwdriver
• clean soft fabric
• q-tip
• small brush
• Regular crystal clear oil

Ready for step by step guide?! Let’s go!

Be careful!
Always turn the power off!
Remove the threads (with the foot up)

Step 1. Clean the outside

Clean with a piece of soft fabric and a small brush the outside of the machine.
Don’t forget to clean the space where your feet comes down and up and all the needle foot area.

Step 2. Open the bottom

Put the foot away and get your stitch plate off with the small screwdriver. Be careful to keep the screws safe. They are special ones that are difficult to replace!

Step 3. Clean under the stitch plate

Take your bobbin and bobbin case out and clean all the area with a q-tip and a small brush. Don’t forget to clean the feed dogs! Finish by cleaning the bobbin case.

Step 4. Time to oil it!

Put a drop of oil in the bobbin case area and put it on the bobbin case back in. If your sewing machine has small holes on the top, they are oiling holes: put a drop of oil in each hole! You can check your instruction manual under the oiling and maintenance part.

Step 5. Change your needle regularly!

Do not wait for them to break! That means change them regularly. The best is before each new project. At least try to change them every time you are cleaning

Hope this tutorial motivated you to take care of your lovely sewing machine!