Talk to me about sergers…

[Hopeful]

Do you find it’s worth while having one?

I’m debating whether or not to get one.

I love sewing crafts, cloth pads, daipers etc…I’m not into dressmaking though.

Any thoughts gratefully appreciated!

[cannuke]

Only that I want one, too, but can't justify having 2 machines for the little sewing that I'm doing these days. I have a friend whose serger I borrow, as it does a great job of hemming diaper inserts, etc. and QUICK! No turning and pressing and turning and sewing. :tu

I'm not into making clothes, either. Just stuff for DS's backside. :giggle

Interested to see what others have to say. :popcorn

[Gretchen]

A serger would be great for the kinds of things you're interested in doing. I guess the "worth it" factor depends on how much you'd use it.

I have one that I bought pre-kids. I couldn't justify it based on the amount of sewing I do right now but I do use it, and every time I'm glad I have it.

I don't think that helped much, LOL.

Gretchen

[UltraMother]

If your sewing machine can zigzag over seam edges, you don't really need one. But they're just so cool! Even just for those few jobs that they would be perfect for! I don't have one, but I reall, really like them. I just have lots of other things that need replacing before I could justify spending that $. :shrug

[inesperada]

I have one and I love it. It's so much easier and more efficient imo than using a zigzag stitch. :tu

[Julia R]

It holds the edges more securely too, with less thread covering the edges. In order to have the edges bound as effectively with a zig zag, you'd be using a shorter stitch length. The shorter the stitch length, the stiffer the seam will be and it can get so that it's not very soft and comfortable for mama cloth and diapers. However, they are spendy. I use my serger more than my regualr machine and use it almost every day, so it's definitely justified. I can't imagine not having it now for everything, seam finishing, dipes, etc.... So, I agree, it depends on how much you'll use it.

[Hopeful]

I've tried using the zigzag method on my dipes but they are coming apart already!

Would a serger do more secure stitching?

[cannuke]

I've tried using the zigzag method on my dipes but they are coming apart already!

Would a serger do more secure stitching?

Depends how you're making dipes. I've stitched, turned and topstitched mine (pocket dipes) and I'm not having any problems so far. :shrug Yes, a serger would probably do more secure stitching if you're using another method.

[Julia R]

I agree, turning and topstitching is more secure if you are doing it without a serger. If they're coming apart already, I'd go over them with the zigzag again if you still have enough seam to hold together. Do it as soon as you notice a problem, while you still have something to stitch to. You may have already run into that problem though.

You can also use a binding on the edges. You can turn and topstitch pretty much any diaper pattern that has at least 2 layers. There is an online tutorial talking about turning and topstitching at:http://www.geocities.com/mytafadhali/FittedDiapers.htmscroll down the page.