Monday, June 30, 2014

Kenmore Blue Mini Ultra rides again...

Isn't that little Blue Mini Ultra cute? Well, I had been using it for a bobbin winder for a year or so now, and I decided to give it a good cleaning and oiling and so on. While doing that I did notice it sews better than I remembered! Maybe it's doing the proper oiling? Ya think?

I decided to buy it a snap on shank so I can use some of the other Janome feet I have, and so I ordered the one I knew to be correct from SewVacDirect. Very minimal price. And that gives the Mini Ultra the wherewithal to use snap on feet. I played with the 1/4" foot a bit, and also the buttonhole foot that snaps, on and the applique foot as well. It is really nice that you can swap shanks. I am pretty sure you can do this on the Janome Sew Mini as well, and that machine, although completely different than this blue one, can then use a few more feet. This Mini Ultra (Kenmore 385.11206) uses vertical feet as it is a vertical bobbin machine. It makes some nice stitches. This is a light machine for taking to a class or just sewing out on the deck or a like place in the Summer breezes. ;) I thought I might use it for some piecing.
Well I'm at it, here is the photo of the jammie pants I made on the Babylock Audrey which features in my last post! :)

4 comments:

becki-c said...

You can't go wrong cleaning and oiling a TNT machine. It really is adorable. I wonder if I could get away with it decorating my work office?

So great to have a newish machine to help sewing!

catspec said...

:) You should decorate with sewing machines for sure! ;) What a nice ambiance for an office space. HHhmmm...so far I don't have a machine at work....

Jamie said...

Hi! This might seem like out of the blue, but do you remember the model of the shank adapter for the mini ultra? Does the Mini Ultra need a special size, or does a "universal" size work? I picked up my machine off Craigslist on a whim, and I'm diving deep in learning how to use it! I'd like to try some different feet; your blog is the most straight-forward information I've found about it (I'm also a total newbie in machine terms). Hope you're having a lovely day!

catspec said...

Jamie, I think this is what I bought! Thanks for the comment! Good luck with you machine. :)

https://www.sewvacdirect.com/janome-snap-on-shank-fits-low-shank-5mm-machines/