I bit the bullet and made a date with a sewing instructor. The closest dealer for my Huskyvarna sewing machine was about 40 minutes away. I begged my mom to go with me since I know how much she hates visiting fabric stores, (said tongue in cheek), and off we went.

I received two full hours of instruction. How is it that most of what the lady told me is in the book? When I read the book, I didn’t see that information. Anyway, I feel more confident now and learned a few tricks. I also learned how not to hold the embroidery attachment. It is very fragile and can easily become uncalibrated if held incorrectly. I need to find the cover for the plugin spot. She explained how easy it is for dust to damage the receptacle and how I should keep it covered. I didn’t know I had a cover for the thing. I will need to dig through my stuff or improvise a cover for it. I need to remember to plug my machine into a surge protector. It has computer chips that can be damaged with power surges. I never thought about that. My machine is lucky to be alive.

I learned how to sew with twin needles. I am excited to try that. I learned reasons why I should use a different pressure foot for different types of sewing. I had been wondering why all those feet came with my machine.

My instructor was very nice and knowledgeable. She is also a great salesperson. I have a list of new attachments and hoops I would like to buy. Ok, I’ll admit it. I want to upgrade. I want a new machine with more bells and whistles. I am wacko!