Silly serger seam question

[malyita]

I've sewn for years but am new to the serger. I tried getting some books out of the library but didn't get that far into them before I had to return them. I kept seeing things about making a hem that was folded over with two lines of stitching on the right side. If I just have a simple serger (Simplicity Frontier) I can't do that because it would cut the edge, right? Or do I just keep the fabric away from the blade? And they keep showing things like smocking, or joining pieces of fabric where it seems there is no cut edge. Does this sort of thing require a fancy machine?

[rebeccalizzie]

Sounds like what would be done with a coverstitch machine, and no your machine won't do it. You are correct that anything you do will have to be on the edge of the fabric, as the blade cuts off the overlap. If you disengage the blade, you will just have a mess, the regular serger can't do those kinds of seams.

You can, however, use a twin needle on a regular sewing machine and get similar results. It will look pretty much the same on the front, it just won't be a serged looking edge on the back.

[KariM]

I believe that only five thread machines can do the stitch you're describing.

With my 4-thread machine I can do a blind hem stitch by folding over the edge and using my blind hem pressure foot. In fact, I love the stitch so much I used it to both hem my skirts *and* sew up the casing for elastic.

Have you checked the manual that came with your serger?

Mine describes all of the stitch options for my serger as well as giving step-by-step instructions. I also received a CD that's great for visual learners!

[eepster]

I'm not familiar with your machine. However, on mine I can disengage the knife blade by flipping it up out of the way, if I don't want the fabric cut. Then I can use a special foot to roll up the hem (I bought the foot seperatly.)

How many rows of stitchin you get depends on how many treads your machine is willing to use. A 3 tread machine will only do the most basic single row. A 3/4 machine can do either the basic or two rows that run parallel on the top but if you look underneath you realize they are both using the same looper. 3/4 are the most common type of serger. Then thier are ones that go up to 5 threads they do a row of chain stiches independantly from the serged edge.