Easy to Use Janome Sewing Machine Arctic Crystal Review

I spent the first year of the pandemic challenging backwards in terms of self-improvement, learning a few new skills, and spending most of my free time refreshing Twitter and some valuable group chats. But by the dawn of 2021 I was exhausted from the talk and found myself after all on a late farm hobbyist kick. The baking of the bread was too basic, the woodwork was a safety hazard. Obviously, picking up a book was out of the question. So I went for sewing and started scrolling in search of the perfect entry-level machine.

With reduced attention spans and only sparse memories of home economics in high school, I knew I needed something designed for complete beginners with clearly decipherable instructions for tasks like bobbin winding, bobbin winding, bobbin winding, and spooling. threading the needle and adjusting the stitch length. Obviously, most pieces of mechanical equipment come with a manual, but what sold me about the aptly named Janome Easy-to-Use Sewing Machine was its apparently accompanying YouTube video series. for teens looking to hem their Depop jeans. (It was also available in no less than three colorways from Urban Outfitters – a nice contrast to other sewing machines, many of which have a distinct ‘midwestern quilter’ design sensibility from the ’90s, without infringement.)

With Janome’s soothingly paced videos as a guide, setting up the machine was effortless. I went through the playlist a few times before I felt confident enough to sew, but seeing the machine in action was much more beneficial than going through a series of vaguely detailed diagrams before giving up and texting to someone to meet at a bar. While there are a million free sewing learning videos out there, the machines tend to vary wildly between brands and models when it comes to crucial setup tasks (especially bobbin placement), such as the placement of the bobbin. So it’s a real benefit to watch a tutorial specific to the one you’re using.

After setup, I found that the easy-to-use machine isn’t overloaded or underloaded with features, which is great for beginners and people who are easily confused. You probably won’t quilt with heirlooms or sign up for FIT, but you can certainly do simple dresses and pillow covers and, in my case, a wonderfully wobbly bucket hat that my friends have been using. very polite. The machine has 15 different stitches and comes with a buttonhole gadget. Adjusting the sewing speed using the presser foot is quite easy – you won’t feel like you have complete control like you might with high-end sewing machines , but that’s half the fun.

Most important of all, and I can’t stress it enough, this thing is easy to turn on and easy to use. The problem with sewing, at least for me, is that I spend most of my time preparing to sew rather than slashing my way through a gorgeous piece of original Etsy fabric. There’s the constant winding and re-threading of the bobbin, the delicate cutting of the pattern pieces, the policy of grain alignment, the eyesight-destroying task of pinning small pieces of paper and fabric on top of each other. others. There is a lot more ironing than you might think. Even getting the heavy machine out of storage in the first place is a difficult problem to overcome after a long day’s work.

The payoff, of course, is that big revealing moment where you flip your build up on the safe side and find that you – yes, you – builds a whole whole seam. Take that, fast fashion! Janome’s beginner-friendly machine, while obviously whimsical and aimed at Zoomers younger and cooler than me, is a pleasure to own – and gave me a lot more of those moments than I could have hoped for. I will be returning personalized vintage finds to Depop any day now.

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