Know Your Overlocker

Know Your Overlocker aims to teach you how to get the best from your Overlocker.

Learn how to thread your overlocker, and find out how to use it to its full potential. This class will revolutionise your sewing.

Know Your Overlocker – Course description

Overlockers are amazing machines that can stitch, trim and neaten seams all in one operation as well as hem garments and add decorative finishes. Yet so few owners fully understand them or use them to their full potential. Most people who have overlockers only use them for neatening edges but they can do so much more.

Other functions include sewing in elastic and lace trims, creating decorative seams on sports and casualwear, rolled hems on evening wear, and making home furnishings. Not to mention being able to sew up jersey fabrics quicker and more neatly than your normal domestic sewing machine.
But overlockers are more complicated than normal sewing machines. They require a good understanding of how changing the tensions creates different stitch types. So I’ll teach you to understand how the tension settings affect the stitch type and quality, how to recognise and obtain correct tension. We’ll also look at different stitch functions and their applications. So you really do get to know your overlocker and discover just how versatile they are.

What will I learn?

-Know what all the parts do
-How to thread it and obtain the correct tension
-Sewing woven & knitted fabrics
-Basic edging and seaming operations using 2, 3 & 4 threads
-Flatlock and blind hemming
-rolled hems
-How to add decorative elements to your clothes

This course is for you if:

• you own an overlocker but are scared to take it out the box
• you struggle to thread your overlocker
• you’re not sure how to obtain the correct tension for a project
• you would like to use your overlocker for more than just neatening edges

Course arrangements

You must be able to bring your own 4-thread overlocker to this class. Remember your power cable/foot control, instruction manual, spare needles, and tools (long-nosed tweezers, small screwdriver or allen key to remover/change the needles.  You’ll also need: fabric shears, and a notebook & pen. Also, please bring samples of a variety of fabrics such as heavyweight (denim or furnishing fabric, jersey knit such as an old T-shirt, and silky polyester, organza or fine crepe such as an old scarf or evening blouse, cut into pieces approx 4-6″ x 12″.

Level 2: Improvers.

You should have experience of sewing machines, and basic dressmaking, and be able to bring your own overlocker.

Artisan Stitch holds a Certificate of Excellence for Best Sewing Classes in Edinburgh 2019, won a UK Enterprise award for Best sewing classes 2020 and Best Private Sewing Education & Tuition in 2021. Tutor, Jen Skedd is a lifelong sewist (over 45 years) including over 30 years using overlockers.

Useful links:

If you’re considering buying an overlocker, then I recommend the specialist retailer, Pembertons Sewing Machine Centre

Here’s my reviews of the Juki MO-644D Overlocker and the Singer Overlocker 14SH754.

Overlocker Tension