Singer Starlet 353 Sewing Machine Manual

by our lovely friend EmilyKate, who's made another amazing sewing machine purchase

Love it, hate it, or something in between?LOVE it. It is not only a versatile little machine with nearly all the stitches you need for garment-making, but it's also SO CUTE!  Who could sit down in front of that sunny yellow-and-orange flowered control panel and not smile? I think if Marcia Brady had had a sewing machine, it would have been this one.

When did you buy this sewing machine? Five days ago.

When was it manufactured? Around 1973 in France. There are two Genie models -- the first was the 353, and then the 354 came out very soon after. It's the same machine with an additional special stretch stitch. The 354 is the one I got.

Where did you buy it? eBay. I don't as a rule buy machines on eBay but this was a local pickup and the price was right. I would never risk shipping because machines can be so easily damaged by it.

How much did you pay for it? $20.50. I wanted a portable sewing machine with a good range of garment sewing stitches that I could take for sewalongs at my sister's place or down to our holiday house. I was thinking about getting an Elna Lotus, but they are pretty pricey these days, and something about the fold-down sides put me off a little, too. I saw the Genie mentioned on a few blogs and sewing websites and decided to keep an eye out for one at a good price. People spoke of finding them in thrift stores for around $20; online bidders in the US, Canada, and the UK have paid up to $135 but they've also gone for as little as $15. Genies are slowly becoming more collectible -- retro enthusiasts love the styling. If you want a cute portable but don't have a head for the dizzy heights of a Featherweight or Lotus auction, snag a Genie while they are still reasonable .

How many projects have you done on this machine? I have made a shirt muslin and really like the stitch quality. I wouldn't do the buttonholes on this machine, though.

Describe the kind of work you've done with it. I expect to do mainly wovens, the heaviest being decorator-weight cotton. I probably would not do multiple layers of denim. I'm pretty sure Genie could handle it but I know that the interior gears are plastic, and are getting onto being 35 years old if they are the original set. There are new replacement gears available but I've no wish to actually have to go ahead and buy them and pay for labor, so I'm going to treat Genie fairly gently.

What do you like and what do you hate about it? Genie has a straight stitch; zigzag in varying widths; a three-point zigzag; a blind hem that can also be used for overcasting seams; a special stretch stitch; and center, left, and right needle positions. She has a buttonhole too, but, sadly, not a very pretty one. Now, I could use one of my vintage buttonholer attachments, but the problem is that this machine cannot drop its feed dogs -- it originally came with a little lifter or shim that is put under the needle plate to shift it upward a few fractions of an inch so the feed dogs won't reach the fabric, and that little shim is long-gone. I haven't been able to find one to purchase online. I will do a little more investigating to see if some sort of feed cover plate could be used instead. Needle bar pressure is not adjustable.

I love love LOVE the cute styling of this machine -- great personality. It's not noisy, and it weighs just 18 pounds. Given that it was designed to be portable, I had expected it to be more plasticky but the bed and much of the interior is metal; the outer plastic is nice and tough -- shockproof. The hinges and clasp of the cover are sturdy and hold securely.

I'm, uh, a bit of a machine collector but I'm not even in trouble for buying this machine because she fits neatly away into one of the cubbyholes of my Ikea Expedit. Her case is very cute and clever, allowing you to store the foot-pedal easily and safely. Threading is simple, though there's no place to store any feet or bobbins, which I feel is a pity. The original machine had a little wallet-pouch for accessories so I can just make another one.

Singer Starlet 353 Sewing Machine Manual

Source: https://zigzaggers.typepad.com/zigzaggers/2010/02/singer-genie-354.html

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