KM Sewing

02/05/2024

I deeply regret that KM Sewing is now closed indefinitely. I truly hope that I will be able to return to work sometime within the next few months, but that is uncertain at this time. Many of you know that I took a short break while my husband recovered from a knee replacement. Unfortunately, the extra work of maintaining our home and yard on my own, in addition to caring for him, has aggravated some hip pain that I have been dealing with for the past year to the point that I am not able to work at this time.

I have seen several doctors (including 2 chiropractors, an acupuncturist, and a physical therapist) for this pain, but so far, none of them have been able to identify the cause of it or offer an effective course of treatment. I will continue this battle until I find someone who can help me get to the bottom of this, but I have no idea how long that will take.

I sincerely apologize to everyone who has been waiting for months to have your machine serviced. I appreciate everyone's patience. I hope to return to work later this year. I will maintain the current waitlist, but I am not taking new service requests at this time. I completely understand if those of you on the wait list would prefer to bring your machines to someone else. Thank you all for your past business.

01/19/2024

KM Sewing is temporarily closed while a family member recovers from surgery. Please call or message after February 1st. I am not able to reply to messages at this time. Thank you.

12/01/2023

Thinking of giving a first sewing machine to someone special for a holiday gift this year? Make sure your money is well spent, and your gift is well received. There's a lot of poorly made machines on the market today that can create a frustrating experience for a beginner. Here's some tips to help with your holiday shopping:

Plan on spending at least $175 to get a machine that's any good. The budget machines under $175 act up a lot.

Avoid any new Singer machine, at any price. They are the worst made machines on the market today. Avoid Babylock, as well. They're only one step above Singer in quality. They market themselves as a higher end machine, but they use very flimsy materials and have poor design.

Avoid any kind of computerized machine for a beginner. The models under $800 tend to be buggy and finicky, and most brands do not make replacement circuit boards for lower-priced machines, so once the electronics start to act up (and they will, eventually), you'll be left with a very expensive paperweight.

Janome, Necchi, Bernette, Juki, and Eversewn make the best machines under $400. Most of these brands have some good starter models under $250. Juki and Eversewn mostly make computerized machines, but they do have one or two decent mechanical (non-computerized) models. Swiss premium brand Elna also makes a few affordable intro models.

These statements are based on my experience as a machine repair tech. I have been inside of these machines and have seen how they are made, and how they perform. I also see the same flaws over and over again in brands like Singer and Babylock. I am not a retailer, and stand nothing to gain by recommending one brand over another.

It's understandable that many people do not want to spend a lot on an intro machine for an absolute beginner. However, a bad experience struggling with a poorly made machine can put someone off of sewing from the start. I'll post links to some well-made, affordable starter machines in the comments below.

(Be sure to select "All Comments" to see all of the links. Facebook often defaults to "Most Relevant", which does not show all comments.)

10/03/2023

Customers in Greater Boston with industrial machines:
Infrastructure changes in many communities have removed a large number of on-street parking spaces. If I cannot park my vehicle at your location, this can substantially add to the cost of your on-site service call.

Your billable hours start *when I pull up in front of your location and load my equipment in*. The time required to find parking and return to your location on foot is part of the billable hours. If the only parking available near your location is in a paid lot, that cost will be added to your invoice.

I apologize for the extra expense that this may add to some customers' service charges. My only other option is to stop servicing some locations entirely.

Many contractors who provide in-home services have already increased their service call rates to locations with reduced parking, whether the customer is made aware of the reason for that increase or not. I do not believe in blanket charges. It penalizes some customers unnecessarily, and does not accurately reflect the true cost of service for each customer's specific situation.

By being transparent about my fees, it gives the customer an opportunity to work with me to help keep their costs down. If you are able to arrange for a place for me to park, there is no need for me to add a surcharge to your bill based solely on your address.

As more communities move towards similar changes that will impact parking, residents should consider the hidden costs that go along with those changes when deciding what is best for their community.

08/28/2023

Restoring a customer's Singer 66 Red Eye. It came in extremely dirty and neglected. (The customer rescued it from the side of the road.) The bobbin case and hook race were so encrusted with oil-soaked lint that had hardened over time, that I had to remove them and soak them in 90% isopropyl alcohol. I figured I'd strip the other metal parts that were thick with varnished old oil and let them soak, too. The faceplate and rear cover cleaned up nicely with some alcohol, a toothbrush, and a lot of elbow grease. I told the customer that she should name this machine W.C. Fields or Fay Dunaway, in tribute to the amount of alcohol required to get it to function.

07/20/2023

Thank you to Boston Furniture Design in Peabody for trusting KM Sewing to service your industrial sewing machines. Great place!

07/20/2023

This sturdy old Kenmore 158.14100 goes back to its owner today, all tuned up, and ready for many more decades of reliable sewing. I LOVE this generation of Kenmores. They offer a good selection of utility stitches, but are still strong enough to go through 6 layers of heavy denim like butter. The extra-high presser bar lifter (over 1/4" of clearance when it's raised) makes it easy to get thicker work under the foot.

07/17/2023

I am not a member of IATSE, but I service machines for many of its members. KM Sewing supports the writer's strike, and all of the other unions that stand in solidarity with them.

06/14/2023

03/02/2023

I recently tuned up this all-metal vintage beauty for a lovely customer. She has scheduled a lesson for her pick-up appointment, to help her learn how to properly use and maintain this machine, and get the most out of it.

If you're sick of fighting with your machine, or maybe you just look at half of the buttons, k***s, and dials, and wonder what they do, one 90 minute lesson can change your entire relationship with your machine, and help you make the most of all that is has to offer.

Check my "services" section on this page for available lesson times and rates. There is never any pressure to commit to an ongoing lesson plan unless you choose to.

02/12/2023

Hi, Sewing Folks -
Apologies for being closed for so long. As many of you know, I had knee surgery in early October. There were some unexpected complications from that surgery that kept me out of work until mid January. I am back to work part time now. I am busy trying to catch up with the huge backlog of machine repair requests from the past several months. I am not taking new repair requests at this time, which is why I am still listed as "Temporarily Closed". I AM still taking new sewing students.

If you contacted me for machine service anytime in the past year, and I contacted you to confirm that you are on the waitlist, you ARE still on the waitlist. Once I contact you to schedule your drop off or service call, if I do not hear back from you within 2 weeks, I will assume that you took your machine to someone else, and remove you from the waitlist.

It is difficult for me to keep up with multiple, redundant messages and emails while also trying to catch up with all of the machine repair. I check my messages daily, and reply within 1 - 2 business days, at the latest. If you contacted me recently, please check your voicemail and your spam folder before assuming that I did not reply and contacting me a second time.

Thanks for your patience as I slowly get back up to speed. I am very thorough with all of the machines that I service, and test them extensively before signing off on all repairs, which takes longer than shops that focus solely on volume and quick turn around time.