I was very sad last month when I took my beloved Juki in to be serviced. When the technician was working on resolving my issues with tension and thread breaking the plug in for the foot cord broke apart and created a power surge in the machine. The plug in had broken back in the spring of 2023, and I had forgotten to inform him of this issue. He proceeded to repair the plug in again, but some damage appears to have occurred in one of the circuit boards, and he was unable to determine where the fault was. I was advised that I could take it to an authorized dealer and they could diagnose and repair it, but it would probably cost nearly what a new machine would. It wasn't a hard decision for me. I quickly decided that my best and quickest option would be to order a new one.
Sad to say goodbye to a hard-working machine - I don't name my machines, but I still appreciate them.
I actually had bought this one used on eBay, and I am sure that I have made at least 200 quilts on it over the 10 years I have owned it! And lots of drapes, valances and duvet covers, too. It's hemmed and altered dozens of wedding gowns, and I'm sure over 100 prom dresses as well! Well worth the price for sure, as I am sure the new version will be.
Yes, I bought the same model brand new! Oh, I am so happy with it, and really wish that I had made the move earlier. I had been fighting the old machine with tension issues and problems free motion quilting for at least the last year. This new machine stitched like a dream right out of the box. I quilted my first quilt on it last week - a friend made this cute quilt for her grandson, but needed it quilted. I am happy to say that it never skipped a single stitch or broke the thread once, stitching through fusible applique, satin ribbon and sew on patches without missing a beat! Yahoo!
I also love that there is a new throat plate with marks in inches! The quarter inch line is perfectly accurate, which will be lovely for piecing. I was surprised at first that the throat plate was different, but it turns out that I really like it.
In other news, we've made good progress on our bathroom remodel and have a functional shower after two months! I tell you it's been a battle every step of the way, but I think the worst of it is over and done. I haven't blogged about it because it's been such a stressful project. It started out with the first shower that was delivered having a hole in the side of the seat! That set us back by three weeks, and we had already done the demo work, so no showering in our house for the duration (luckily, we have some good friends who let us shower at their house!)
When the new shower arrived, we got the bottom installed, and attached the drain, then discovered that the back panel was too large to go up our stairwell. We had to hire a contractor to come remove our bedroom window to get it in that way. After that it was a struggle with adjust the plumbing to the depth of the shower, which we resolved last week. This week we got all the panels in place and fastened down and were able to use it at long last. We installed the grab bars this afternoon. We have sliding doors to install, but opted to put up the shower curtain so we can use it in the meantime. I'm planning on painting on Monday, then we'll be ready to get those done. We still have to figure out how to trim it out to look good, but we are getting there! Unfortunately, old houses aren't level or plumb, so this has been quite a project! Oh, and there is new flooring to put in as well! This has been one of those never again projects for sure - but it's so much nicer than the old bathtub and I know we will be glad we did it in the end! The good news is that our plumbing is all in good shape, and there was no dry rot!
And as we have watched the devastation caused by Helene and Milton we appreciate the fact that this is just a small bump in the road for us and not a major catastrophe. But it sure is nice to be able to shower in our own bathroom again!
I am looking forward to October being a little less stressful, and to having more time for projects! I've been working on the project I started for National Sew a Jelly Roll day, using my
Reflections quilt pattern. Maybe I'll get that finished this week! I'm looking forward to doing the free motion quilting on it now - so many designs I've been wanting to try but haven't been able to do without issues!
I'm definitely feeling thankful today!