Jean Nolte, editor of Love and Quilting and the rest of the Fons & Porter magazines, and I had the honor of spending two days outside Chicago last week with 75 other national sewing and quilting teachers to learn about and sew on the new Bernina 830.
Here Jean and I are with Jennifer Gigas, who is in charge of all of us teachers–and we need oversight!
At first the machine seems daunting because it is HUGE, but we all noticed that after one morning it didn’t seem big at all. There’s good reason for the size. And we put it to good use with large embroidery hoops. In fact, “regular” sewing machines now look puny!
Of course, the #1 reason for all that space under the arm as far as we quilters go is for machine quilting. We’ve been asking for this for years. It turns out that while the machine was in development and still top secret Switzerland backtracked and made it even wider because of what they heard from us. I saw many suggestions we had made at previous retreats actualized in this machine. Bernina listened!
There are too many features to write about here. The super-large bobbin and automatic threading are simply ground breaking. The machine lets you know how much bobbin thread is left, and the automatic threader is like no other.
The dual feed addresses what was an argument for buying a competeing brand. It takes a second to engage and works flawlessly.
Not to worry: You can still use your BSR (Bernina Stitch Regulator) on the 830. When you attach it, the machine will upgrade the software in the foot automatically. COOL! Oh, and why does it need updating? Because the machine sew incredibly fast. This addresses an issue I had with the BSR–it couldn’t keep up with me. No more.
This machine isn’t just an improvement, it’s a whole new game. The 830’s younger siblings are based on the Windows OS. For this machine, Bernina build their own operating system. And yes, it boots quickly!
In case you think it was all seriousness during the retreat, we had a challenge to do something with a denim shirt. The rules were to transform it in one hour or less and spend less than $10. I didn’t get any pictures of my “creation” but I did get one of my bribe. You see, the judges invite being swayed in their voting:
It’s a bottle of my home brew with a label showing me in my brewery that says “Bernina Bribery Ale.” I’d better take up wine-making for the next event as the judges prefer beer.
It’s always great to head off, and wonderful to arrive home. I’m never happy until I walk in the door and see scenes like this one:
~Jodie
