That outfit is stunning - well done - just shows that determination and hard work pays off.  Well done on coming joint first with the costume as well.

Helen M I am with you on tacking everything, okay some people may think this is a waste of time, but it isn't, and when you cut out your pattern pieces mostly they are on double fabric so they are exactly the same size, so when sewn together they should still be the same size, but sometimes the feed dog and the machine foot do not always marry up properly, so tacking solves this problem, and is essential when sewing plaids.

Lowena take a trip up to your nearest John Lewis and look for the Four Seasons duvets - these come in one box and are two separate duvets, one for summer use thus a lower tog, and the other for autumn use and a higher tog, then put the two together for the winter and you get the benefit of the much higher tog.  they should be light, fluffy and warm.  Flat duvets indicate that they are not trapping the warmth.

Like Bodgeitandscarper I have a hot water bottle all year round, thus every single night and this is on my lower back and believe me it does make such a difference to my back - I need this as I have a displaced pelvis and thus suffer a lot of pain in that area and even standing/walking can send my back into spasms and then I cannot move, so hot water bottle it is - marvellous invention.

You are a lucky lady Puzzler with that room, and what a super cutting out table you have - I see that it can be at any height and that is good.  Hope your ideas for this room materialise - now just enjoy, especially your new machine.

Oh Sew Chic I do understand where your elderly neighbour was coming from - my mother would also have been horrified with my changing needles so often.  She had a Frister Rossman that she bought in 1936 a hand crank, and when I started using this machine I was not allowed to change the stitch length cos 'it would mess up the tension'.  My mother also boasted that she had never ever changed a needle in that machine and yet she had stitched all manner of fabrics with this from curtaining to soft furnishing covers and that fabric was quite thick, to canvas awnings, clothes including muslin bridesmaids dresses for my elder sister and I and this was after she had made the covers to recover some armchairs.  When I bought my first sewing machine, again a straight stitch this was electric, and thus she was rather jealous of this and would use it without my knowing when I was at work, however when I got married my machine came with me much to her disgust so whilst she still wanted to sew she was not happy with a hand crank, so my father bought an electric motor and fitted this on for her.  It wasn't until they moved to Suffolk in the early 70's to retire and on finding that she could attend some sewing classes which she enjoyed she was persuaded to buy a Bernina 830 Record in 1975 with a small legacy that she had inherited - this is now my main go to machine and whilst she had used it no way had it been used as much as my own Elna SU which I bought in the same year.  Oh blunt and slightly bent needles can cause so much damage, and when I inherited the Bernina I did find all manner of different packets of needles in the accessory box - I presume she had bought these in a small local town - just an ordinary haberdashery - and no way was I going to use these they were disposed of very quickly.  I also found no oil with the machine, so I went to my nearest machine dealer and asked if they would order me a bottle of the Bernina oil, and in fact they gave me one from a new machine as I was so insistent that it was Bernina oil and not a large can of Singer oil.

I also cannot understand it when people buy these beautiful but expensive machines but then quibble about feet and other attachments for them.  So many times we hear that people have bought a job lot of x number feet at a silly cheap price and then find that they cause their machine problems in trying to use them.  Yes I know that Bernina feet are expensive, very expensive  for some, but there are ways around getting these if they really need/want them - I personally just asked my family for feet for Christmas and my birthday, I did the ordering so I knew exactly what I was getting, and thus I now have the most wonderful collection of feet/attachments/accessories  for all my machines and I really do use them.  Only this last week or so I have had three sewing machines in use plus an overlocker, I have the most wonderful triple straight stitch on my Elna - I use this for sewing in the sleeves and the nature of this stitch means that the seam cannot pop, I used the older Bernina for the main construction of my garments, and then the Artista for the buttonholes and the top stitching - yes I know I could have used either the Elna or the older Bernina for the buttonholes, but I do like them all exactly the same size and the Artista makes this so much easier to do and I had twenty buttonholes to do.

I am just so glad that the jammed thread was so easily removed and relatively painless, but I am annoyed that it happened in the first place, I shall be extra vigilant in future when threading this.

Only Gutermann and this thread catching nonsense has never ever happened to me on any machine, but I accept that this newer Bernina with its take up lever guard is totally new to me.  Oh I am so relieved, and so is my husband, he was not looking forward to driving across to Watford and back and now that we know it was so simple to sort out, I have no doubt words would have been said about wasting his time!!

Incidentally the overlocking thread that I use are my left over stocks of a Belgian brand which was lovely, but the company went bust, so then I have quite a lot of a thread called Saba by Amann, only that too is now so difficult to get hold of if it is still made.  The one I dislike is Moon threads that is too hairy for me, and I have perhaps two or three small spools of that - which I can always use for tacking purposes.   Whilst  I have other threads all assorted makes from years and years ago I believe in tacking and use these threads up for that.

My machines regardless of which one I use  only have decent Gutermann thread, Schmetz or Bernina needles, and on the old mechanicals they have either Elna or Bernina oil.  Incidentally when there was a sewing machine shop near me I would go in and buy several packets of needles at a time, and one day I was asked if I break needles, my answer is no I don't, but I change my needles regularly in the sewing machine after each garment, and on the overlockers after about 8 hours use - they were rather surprised at my answer and this was a shop specialising in selling sewing machines and overlockers - does make you wonder doesn't it.  Machines are an expensive piece of equipment and they deserve the best and need to be kept in tiptop condition, even winding a bobbin you can see a trail of thread dust, so heaven knows how much thread dust occurs with a needle going up an down all day.

My first coat was what they called a 'duster coat' which I made when I was 17, this was paired with a matching dress.  I don't think people wear duster coats these days, but back then was quite the thing to wear especially if travelling to and from London on the train.  I enjoyed making this, and yes it was unlined.  I then went on to do a tailoring course and thus suits, jackets and coats were made using the proper tailoring interfacings and stitches.  My wedding  'going away suit' was made before the tailoring course and I used hair canvas as the interfacing on this and also lining and I was then only 20.

Why not try a simple shaped coat pattern to start with and you might just be surprised at what you can achieve.  There are plenty of people on TSP who are willing to help you over the airwaves as it were.  Go and have a look at Sonatine's coat that she made last year it is stunning and she has made an excellent job with this.

Please do any of you have a Bernina Artista 200 - and if so have you ever had thread getting caught in the upper threading, particularly where it goes up the left hand side of the take up cover and before it goes into the hook of the take up  lever.

Mine is well and truly caught in something, I cannot get hold of my mechanic, and I am very wary of trying to take the cover off the end of the machine - also I do not have the appropriate sized allen key.

I have secured the loose ends of the thread with some magic tape so that they do not wander or get blown /sucked into the inner workings of the machine, but I am at a loss as to why this has happened and also what to do.  Any help gratefully received.