Tuesday, April 3, 2012

W.I.P. Wednesday {and a tale of woe}

WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

Wednesday again! I have a little bit to show, a little bit on the way {I've shopped, read the end of this post if interested}, and a sad story to tell.

So you know how I've been working through my scraps?? I thought I had exhausted the majority of my supply, but believe it or not I've squeezed yet one more quilt top out of scraps! The white, I purchased - it is a sub-par, craft store cotton...kind of ugh to work with - but the prints are all from my scraps. Who knew that what I thought was a small amount of scraps could go so far!!!?? I certainly didn't!

I know that these look like traditional flying geese, but they're actually half square triangles sewn together to give the same look. My older son looked at this and said he thought it looked like a bunch of fast forward symbols, and he's definitely right!

Okay, so my sad story. I'll try to keep it brief. Ooooh, maybe point form will work....

~ few weeks ago I hit a pin with my (two month old) machine....we're talking badly. As in loud noise, pin disappeared, all that was left of it was the little plastic ball from the top of the pin.

~ talked to my saleslady who told me that if the pin truly did go into the machine, it is very unlikely that it wouldn't be found after taking the bobbin/bobbin case out and needle plate off, etc.

~ did that, looked and looked, vacuumed, etc., and never found it. So maybe I'll never know if it actually went in or if it flew out into the room somewhere.

~ machine has pretty much worked normally since then - not jammed, no tension problems, nice stitches - only problem is this annoying tick-tick-tick sound when running. Saleslady gave me the go-ahead to continue using it until I was able to go into town to have it checked.

~ fast forward to today - ticking sound annoying, decide to clean it out again, unscrewed the top panel cover where the thread tension mechanisms are just to make sure there wasn't a thread stuck somewhere or anything else obviously wrong. Took panel off, and THIS fell out:

~ can we say freak out???

~ email saleslady with picture, she shows it to their tech who says it's not a familiar piece

~ bottom line, I'll have to take my machine the 1.5hr drive in to get checked. I'm mad at myself that maybe I caused this, have no idea how soon it can be fixed or if it will be covered by warranty, etc. Grrrrr.

Okay, so that wasn't brief but I had to get it off my chest. Thankfully I still have my mom's machine as back-up, which I will most definitely be using in the meantime. Thanks Mom!!

27 comments:

felicity said...

First things first - I love your Fast Forward quilt! Those darn scraps have a way of stretching over multiple projects, don't they?

I'm sorry about your machine woes - what a total PITA it is to have to take it in for servicing. I used to sew over pins but I stopped a while go. Mom taught me I could - she said the needle would slide off to the side of the pin. But she was probably using universal needles with a duller tip. The Jeans needles are way sharper and more likely to, well, do what yours did to your pin. Hope it can be fixed quickly, cheaply and with as little hassle as realistically possible!

Susan said...

Oh I hope your machine is okay! I remember reading another similar blog story recently and apparently no one knew where the 'phantom' piece came from! Hopefully it will be the same for you! And your "Fast Forward" quilt looks great!

Kelli Fannin Quilts said...

I hope it's just some random piece that somehow accidentally fell in there during manufacturing! ?? And not part of your machine.. Your fast forward symbols, though, look amazing!! :o)

Debbie said...

WHAT?!?! oh my goodness! That is crazy!! So sorry that I ever told you to ignore the pin you couldn't find!! Oh do keep us posted - wish you the best!!

Teje Karjalainen said...

I love your quilt! It's so beautiful, happy and bright! Great simple pattern!
Oh - so sorry about your machinie! Even we try to be carefully still I think every one has passed the needle. I do hope that you get it fixed soon and that there is not a big problem! x Teje

DianeLoves2Quilt said...

Love the colors of your fast forward quilt. Maybe it is a sign that the repair shop it destined to fast forward you to the head of the line to get it fixed and that you can rewind to the start of better quilt days. Hang in there!

Jess @ Elven Garden Quilts said...

Love your quilt! Hope your machine is okay :o/

Kelly said...

I think I would have cried, I hope it gets fixed quickly! I love the fast forward quilt, I really must stop ignoring my mountain of scraps and do something with them!

Cille said...

Love your scrappy quilt that doesn't look scrappy at all. Too bad with your machine. Hope they'll be aboe to fix it super fast :)

tartankiwi said...

What a great use for all your scraps- love the fast forward quilt.
Gah! Hope you get your machine fixed quickly.

Rose Smith Quilts said...

Great quilt. What a lovely way to use up scraps. Don't you feel lost without a working sewing machine!

CityHouseStudio said...

Your quilt is just beautiful! A great use for HSTs!
How sad about your machine, there is nothing worse that a broken sewing machine. I sew over pins all the time . . . and have never had any problems! Good luck!

Katie B said...

Oh, groan! Sorry about the machine. Hope it's a quick/easy fix.

Love your FF quilt top. I'm impressed by what you're squeezing out of those scraps!

Patti said...

Your son is brilliant! Fast Forward is perfectly named.
Oh,oh...parts that don't belong? How the heck does that happen! Hope it's a quick fix Heather.

Katie said...

Fast forward quilt is awesome! Isn't it funny how kids relate everything to some kind of technology?

You machine piece almost looks like a little rubber foot or bumper type thing. Hopefully you get your machine up and running soon. I just sent mine in, which I'd been putting off because that means dropping it off in Vancouver :-(

Jennifer said...

oh no!! I hope it isn't anything serious and you'll have it back soon! Hearing all these stories with sewing machine problems worries me, I only have my machine, I don't know what i'd do if I didn't have it!

Mary said...

Love your Fast Forward quilt. What a great use of scraps.

I recently had a needle come out while sewing and get down in the machine. I immediately popped it apart and found said needle under the bobbin holder. Unfortunately it had damaged the bobbin holder.

I am still using it but it makes a whisking noise as I sew. The bobbin holder is plastic and though we tried to remove any burrs created it still makes this noise.

It could be that yours is the same issue and the part you found is totally unrelated. It looks like some kind of plug to me.

Good luck!

Andy said...

Oh, how frustrating! We just expect our machines (especially new ones) to always work! I hope it's a quick fix for you.

The quilt looks great...I love working with scraps!

Svetlana said...

This quilt top looks soooo wonderful! Love its scrappiness and all the triangles. sorry to hear about your machine. Hope you'll get it fixed soon.

Alli said...

Your fast forward quilt is great! I hope your poor machine comes back from the machine doctor quickly! >_<

marlene@ByTheSeam said...

OK so if that is not a familiar piece to be in the machine then what was it doing there? Maybe it is a good thing the pin happened. It may have happened because of your mysterious piece. I love all the HST's. I think they are fun to make. Hope your machine gets fixed quickly it is awful to be without one.

Chelsea said...

Oh, no! I hope they can fix her quickly. What a nuisance having to go all the way to... I'm guessing Victoria. Thank goodness you have a backup.

And I just realized I never got back to you about the swap. Eeeep! Things have been a little unsettle here, but really, bad Chelsea!

Teresa F. said...

Love your quilt. Sorry to ear about your sewing machine problems. I hope you can get it fixed real soon. One can not live without a sewing machine.

Scrap,Quilt, Preach said...

So glad you have a back up machine to turn too. Very strange that unknown part you came up with. It will be interesting to hear what it is, if the tech can figure it out!. I also really like what you did with the scraps. Lovely.

Lucy | Charm About You said...

Love the fast forwards!! Very cool :)
Just read your other post so very glad it all worked out :) I remember someone posting recently about a part falling out of their machine and not knowing what it was - seemingly they just have random bits in them that they can do without!!

Krista Schneider said...

Oh man!! That must be so traumatic. Thank goodness You have a back up to get you through. Although if you didn't, there's always hand piecing to do... I'm working on a big hexie project as we speak! I LOVE the quilt. Its awesome!

Heidi Grohs said...

It looks like a foot from a bottom of a machine?

I am sorry for such a dramatic time. NOTHING is worse for a quilter/sewer to have their machine not feeling well!

And Fast forward? Awesome!!!!!