Can you restore colour into fabrics if it has faded

You can soak the fabric in vinegar and salt water... Gently swirl the fabric around in the solution, change the water with fresh water, and if the colour still comes out, drain and repeat as necessary until the colour stops coming out.

Begin by setting all 4 dials on "3" which is the default setting on this model (often "5" on other machines). If a beginner, it would be best to thread the machine with four different colour threads according to the colours indicated on the tension dials (yellow, red, blue &green) so that it is easier to see how each thread responds as you adjust the dials. The two lower dials are for the loopers & must be adjusted until the upper & lower loops meet on the cut edge of the fabric - if below the edge: tighten the left dial & loosen the right dial (& visa-versa) just a fraction at a time. The two upper tension dials are for the needles: if too loose, loops form underneath the fabric below each needle, & if too tight the lower threads will show through to the upper side of your fabric where it is pierced by the needle. Good luck!

Fist of all you should choose correct case size selected one bobbin. Then you should choose the fabric colour tone to tone or contrast colour cotton thread .And then finally you should Please see the link :
http://www.wikihow.com/Wind-a-Bobbin .

First chose the colour tone to tone or fabric colour thread new thread. Then take a bobbin left hand some 3 or 5 wring bobbin thread for right hand wring opposite side then turn the bobbin take on one big needle or screw driver near the wheel and fill the bobbin.

Hand Wash the item. Gently move the silk fabric around in the soapy water. Rub stains with your fingers or a sponge to clean them. Pour the water out when finished washing your garment.
Rinse the silk garment in a vinegar solution. White vinegar removes soap, restores shine and softens silk. Fill the basin with cold rinse water. Add 1/4 c. (50 ml) white vinegar. Gently move the garment around in the water to thoroughly rinse it. Empty the basin again.
Rinse the item in cold water. Add cold water to the basin. Rinse the silk item a second time in a basin of fresh, cold water. Turn the garment over and around to ensure it is completely rinsed and free of soap.

Can you wind the lower cutting blade to the right to cut less fabric and therefore fill out the stitching? On most sergers the lower blade position can be adjusted sometimes with a little knob or dial. You need to raise the top blade out of the way first, usually you put pressure onto it to release the spring holding it up against the lower blade, then swing it up to do this. Then wind the adjustment on the lower blade and move it to the right to cut less fabric then test serge. Your manual should give you more specific information on this and should be your first 'go to".

I would adjust my looper tensions to suit the fabric and width of the stitch I'm trying to achieve so yes, the settings you've been given are average tensions but its okay to vary these too. From left to right, I'd set 4, 4, 4, 4 and test serge again and see if this pulls the looper threads in against the fabric if moving the blade hasn't tightened up the stitching.

Sergers are more variable than a straight stitch sewing machine so its okay to move tension knobs a bit, just turn each a half number each time you adjust, then test serge and look at the stitch formation. Your needles tension should be fine at 4, leave them alone.

I'd suggest if you can find one, go to a "Getting to know your serger" type class as there is lots of techniques such as seaming on a curve, turning right angles, both inside and outside and making rolled hem edges that are very helpful serger skills to learn along with making adjustments and troubleshooting. Or go to you-tube and search some of these techniques for videos. Also www.sewing.about.com is a great sewing resource and Debbie has pages on sergers/overlockers here too.

When I'm starting a new dressmaking project I will spend 10 mins on the overlocker/serger, changing the thread colour to suit the garment, then test serging and adjusting the stitch tensions to suit the fabric. I have 4 cones of thread each in white, black, beige, grey, pink and pale blue and these threads will give a suitable finish on most fabric colours and prints. Then there is wooly overlocker thread, this is a fluffy thread that you can use for rolled hems as the thread relaxes once stitched and "fills" out the closely stitched edge covering the rolled fabric edge and is another whole area of fun to try out.

Often I'll just use a three thread to neaten the raw edges of a seam I will press open. Or I will assemble a whole knit garment using the four thread stitch, so much faster then stitching seams, then neatening. Jersey knits and sergers are made for each other.

As an aside the D on your machine model would denote "differential feed" too - briefly differential feed is adjusting the amount that the two feed dogs move under the foot and means you can "hold back" the fabric as it is stitched (0.5), or "stretch" it out (1.5 or 2 setting). Really handy for loose weave fabrics that stretch as you serge them, you can compensate using the differential feed setting. And in reverse, you can create a "lettuce" or wavy edge by turning the differential feed up.

I hope that this helps you out with your Brother 1034D and hasn't just confused you. Good luck.

Serger may have a threading diagram inside the front looper cover which should show the various thread eyelets that you need to pull the threads through and they may be numbered one to 4 also to indicate order of threading. The diagram is usually colour coded to match the tension dial colours and serger usually has colour dots on the different thread eyes to help you follow the thread path for each thread.

This video is great and hopefully will help you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zszJYQe2aws&feature=related, it has lay in tensions while yours has dials so just pull the thread around the dial right to left and then across to the next thread eye and this should pull the thread into tension. Dials are usually all set to 5 for normal stitch formation.

On my serger you thread up in the following order: top looper (second from right dial), bottom looper (right hand dial), then right needle, left needle; this video shows all threading going from right to left however, so if you have a numbered diagram inside your thread cover, then certainly use that order. But always loopers before needles.

Raise the thread aerial first before you start, put the cones onto the thread spools and if you have any cone holders (little plastic triangles) put them on the spools first to steady the cones. Now for each thread, take the thread tail from the cone, up through the aerial thread guide, then follow the coloured dots and take this down the front of the serger putting it into each coloured thread guide, through looper then up under the raised pressure foot. Repeat for next looper, then the needles.

Pull all 4 threads out under the foot to the left, lower foot, then chain off a little to start and test sew on fabric, adjusting the tensions if you need to.

Other adjustments are stitch length (usually a knob on right beside the flywheel numbered 1-4, blade position, a dial either left or right of the blade, press on the blade to release the tension on it before you try and move it. And differential feed, this is also a knob numbered 0.5 to 2 usually. If you can't see this on the right by flywheel then open up fabric plate (left cover) and look in there for these two adjustments.

I would suggest you start with tensions on 5, and stitch length of 2-3, and test sew on scraps of the fabric you wish to overlock. You can then either move the blade to cut wider or narrower to suit and adjust the two looper tensions if you need to close up the thread on the cut edge. There is no black and white settings as each fabric will behave a little differently, generally you adjust the looper tensions a bit until the stitch is encasing the cut edge and you have a seam width that suits the weight of the fabric.

Differential feed leave on zero unless you find you need it when a loose weave fabric goes wavy, then turn it down to close up the feeding. Sergers have two feed dogs, one before and after the foot and turning differential knob changes the ratio of feed between the two so either stretches the fabric, or pushes it together as it goes through the stitching sequence. So by turning differential feed up to 1.5 or 2 you are stretching the fabric and you can do a narrow rolled hem edge that is all fluted (lettuce edging).

I hope this helps you out a bit, if you are completely new to this machine and have never used a serger then I always suggest taking a class from a local dealer, it is really worth the money and time as they are quite different to sewing machines but once mastered, really change the dynamics of sewing and techniques are much more like commerical production with flat construction etc.

Hi My name is Karyn my email [email protected]
I can help you thread the Elna over locker. Write to me at my email. Once threaded with 4 dirfferent colours find a scrap of medium weight fabric and sew few inches/ 10 cm or so, it is then easy to see which threads appear loose and which appear tight. For the actual overlocked edge the two threads ought to weave together and meet eachother on the cut edge of the fabric.tighten on colour and loosed the other until they meet on the edge. with the outside needle and the (under) 'arm' below which make the 'chain' seem you will also see using diffrerent coloured threads, if the chain is loose tighten the tension for that thread - usually the 'arm' tension. For any further help email me as I may not find my way back to this site.
If you can help me I'm currently looking for a Blade for an Elna MO 104 over locker.

I do not know what machine make and model this is.

But I darn the following way.

Iron onto the back of the hole/rip a piece of iron on mender in a similar colour and weight to your garment, allow just a centimetre extra around the rip. Try to bring the edges as close together and neatly as possible before ironing to attach the patch behind.

Now set the machine to a three step zig zag stitch, stitch width to the maximum and turn stitch length down to about .8 or so. Now sew over the rip/tear area fillling in the damaged area reversing back and forwards to cover the damage and a good margin around it. I use a colour matched thread if I can to make the stitching less obvious.

Done!

What size needle are you using?