The BRILLIANT new Janome M7Continental produces A York Pinafore for Christmas
Monday, December 23rd, 2019Sewing machine companies are always coming out with new models, most of which are incrementally different from before. But every 10-15 years, Janome re-thinks the machine from all angles and comes up with something that is a major leap–and worth considering adding to your studio. The Janome 6600 was such a machine (circa 2004/5), and the new M7 Continental may well go down as one of The Best Sewing Machines Ever (in any brand!), and given the quality of Janome’s machines that is a high standard.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4238-900x675.jpg)
I have been dying to share with you the things I’ve been making, but most of them are Christmas gifts, so I can’t yet. But I made myself the York Pinafore from Helen’s Closet Patterns, so now I can finally tell you about this wonder with the dress as my example.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4243-1-561x1024.jpeg)
When Janome comes out with a new machine, every single time I think “oh, I can’t give up the loaner I have” (I’m beyond fortunate to be a Janome Artisan so I get to try out their brilliant machines year after year), nothing can be better than this one. And then the new one is even better. Every single time they add new features that make me wonder “oh gosh why didn’t I realize that would be so wonderful.” The M7 is even MORE SO….read on!
The first thing I did, after cutting out the pattern, was to make a lining. I knew that using flannel that I intended to wear over leggings meant that the dress would stick like velcro. Fiddlehead Artisan Supply had a fabric I’ve not used before, Bemberg Rayon, for linings. The bolt end says dry clean, but we all know that can be ignored sometimes. I just bought an extra quarter yard to accommodate shrinkage and tossed it in a wash with hot water wash, cold water rinse, and hot dryer so it would do whatever shrinking it planned to do.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4142-scaled-e1577047892508-768x1024.jpg)
Then I cut, pinned, and started sewing. I probably should have used a thinner needle and the walking foot. I didn’t need to! The feed on this machine is so good that I had no issues going from thick flannel to silky thin rayon! Because rayon ravels, I used the quarter inch piecing foot to create a narrow seam that I turned into a French Seam.
A French seam is really a seam inside of another seam that completely encloses the raw edges. It is typically found in high end garments and used on fabrics that ravel.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4145-300x225.jpg)
Once you have sewn the first seam, you press it as stitched to set the seams. It helps the thread sink into the cloth. Then you press the seam *open* which facilitates turning.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4147-900x675.jpg)
Then you fold the seam right along the stitching to create a “knife edge.” The best way to get the line perfectly on the edge is by pressing open (photo above) and then pressing flat. You can see how crisp and clean the edge is.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4152-900x675.jpg)
I used the quarter-inch foot with the edge guide but moved the needle to the left to 3/8″ from the edge to achieve this perfect seam. In this photo you can see the quarter inch encased and perfect stitching. The rayon won’t ravel ever!
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4155-900x675.jpg)
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4154-1-900x675.jpg)
Getting the design lined up perfectly to cut a matching piece for the pocket.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4161-scaled-e1577049460455-225x300.jpg)
Here I’m stitching in the ditch for the opening of the pocket. I decided to outline the entire pocket with binding. I used the M foot and stitch 15 to overcast the edges as I did the gift bag in yesterday’s post. There are many ways to stitch in the ditch, including an edge-stitch foot that is included with most Janome machines, but personally I find I get my best results using the open-toe F-2 which offers the best visibility. I move the needle to the far right, set the right edge of the foot on the bias, and can get absolutely snug up next to the bias trim.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4163-scaled-e1577049885348-225x300.jpg)
Now THAT is “stitching in the ditch.”
Throughout the process the M7 handled flawlessly–I mean FLAWLESSLY!
I can’t wait to show you more of what it can do.
Janome’s new slogan is Reliability by Design….I stopped to think about it: I have been sewing on Janome machines since 2003 and not once–let me repeat that, NOT ONCE– have I had an issue that was due to the machine. Once or twice due to operator error, but really, the machines have been utterly, totally and completely reliable. And each one gets better.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4153-scaled-e1577050297473-225x300.jpg)
Lining done and waiting for the dress to be made.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4179-1-scaled-e1577050054526-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4251-900x675.jpg)
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4250-1-646x1024.jpeg)
This new M7 Continental Janome is really something else, and although I am a Janome Artisan and affiliated, I would say all this if I had bought this machine at full retail. I’ll take you through some of the other marvelous things it can do in January and February. In the meantime, another small but marvelous detail: the thread stand has a COLLAPSING antenna.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4238-300x225.jpg)
Here’s the machine again…it’s hard to see in the clutter of my room, but there is a thread antenna on the right rear of the machine.
![](https://www.sarahannsmith.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_4237-900x675.jpg)