One of the most common questions we get asked is “What sewing machine do you use?”
We own two sewing machines:
- A Bernina 930 Record from the 1980s
- A Singer 201K from the 1940s
For the most part, we use the Bernina. It’s a very good domestic sewing machine and we really love it for bag making. Would it be easier to make bags on an industrial sewing machine? We’re sure it would be, and you could use thicker fabrics with ease. But these are the machines we currenlty have and we love to design our bags on a domestic machine so we can confidently tell our customers that our patterns are domestic machine friendly. If you’re a serious bag maker wanting to use heavy duty materials and have the circumstances to own an industrial machine then that’s awesome. We don’t know any bag makers who regret upgrading to an industrial machine.
If, like us, you’re sewing on a domestic, you need to consider carefully what materials you’re using. Using materials that are unsuitable for your machine can end in a failed project, or even worse, it could damage your machine. It’s also important to use the correct needles, threads and tools to assist you. We created a short YouTube video covering our top tips for sewing bags on a domestic machine. Watch it here.
