26 September 2012

Elna eXcellence 720

I have recently been very spoiled with a brand new sewing machine.  Isn't it beautiful!



It has a wide throat area for quilting large quilts and a wide variety of embroidery stitches.  It has an ingenious attachment for sewing button holes.  The button is put into position in the special foot, select the buttonhole switch and the buttonhole is stitched according to the size of the button!  The magnetic pin thingy is my own and didn't come with the machine.  It comes from Day Style Designs in the USA.

 

It came with a flatbed table with a handy little drawer in which to keep the accessory box and spare bobbins.  Thank goodness for the knee lifter which I had got so used to on my Bernina.



There are canvass pockets on either side, inside and out, for storing manuals and other whatnots!
 




Here is a side view showing the pockets on the side.  I have placed the table up against my original long table which gives a bigger area when quilting large quilts.













Here is a view of my sewing room - rather untidy though!  My 45 year old Elna Automatic still sews beautifully and I use it for piecing when my new one is set up for free motion quilting.  The gate-legged table in the corner opens up to give me more surface area when quilting.

I am one spoiled girl and I hope to produce some stunning quilts in time for everyone to enjoy!



12 comments:

  1. Love your new machine and your work space! It's a great idea to have 2 machines, one for piecing and one for quilting. I'd love to do that someday. Best of luck with the new Elna!

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    1. Thank you Rosemary, I am really so thrilled with it and am still getting to know it. My old Elna my husband gave me when we got engaged and the first dress I made on it was my wedding dress so it's more sentimental than needing to have another machine!

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  2. I recently bought an Elna 720. I'm disappointed with the lettering. What thread do you use? I thought a heavier thread would help but it made a knotted mess. Yes, I used a stabilizer. Any suggestions? The instruction manuel is greatly lacking.
    Thanks
    Sharon

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    1. Hi Sharon, do you have the eXcellence as well or the plain 720? I have not really used the lettering but have certainly tried it and found that it was perfect. The thread I used was a local thread we have here in South Africa called Seralon and is what I always use. Unfortunately our threads in SA don't have weights written on the spool so I couldn't tell you exactly what it is but it is a universal thread used for all sewing. I have not tried the lettering with a shiny embroidery thread as yet. I hope this helps! I must say that I thought my instruction manual was pretty good but again, I'm not sure if we have the same machine! I love, love, love my machine; it sews and fmq's beautifully. I wonder if you shouldn't have yours checked over by a qualified sewing machine mechanic?

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  3. I am also looking to buy another machine and am considering the Elna 720 Excellence or a Pfaff. I had a chuckle at the photo of your sewing room, because the machine I am currently using is exactly what you have, an Elna automatic, and like you, I have had it for a long time (mine was bought second hand about 40 years ago.) A machine technician told me recently that not a lot of the automatics were produced, so we are special! It is still going strong, and does all I need at the moment, but I am beginning to get back into patchwork and quilting and would like a few more features. Whatever I do, I will be keeping my old faithful machine as well.

    It is good to see you writing positively about your new machine. Are there any drawbacks that you have found so far? And do you know if there are any online forums/tutorials for 720 Excellence users?
    Cheers
    Marian

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    1. Hi Marian, apologies for taking so long to reply. I really love my machine. The only thing I am a bit disappointed with is the fact that you can't move the needle a few notches to the left or right and I am not happy with the zipper foot that comes with the machine. You cannot get the needle to go right to the edge of the zipper foot if you know what I mean! However, it was not too much of a train smash as I then just hopped on over to my Bernina and used it to do what I had to. Actually it was not to sew in a zipper, but to make some piping which necessitates moving the needle over to one side which I couldn't do with my Elna. But I wouldn't let that put you off buying this beautiful machine - as long as you have another to do the job! Enjoy your decision making....

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    2. Hi Caroline, I did buy the Elna 720, and unpacked it from its box a few days ago. So far I am loving it! I haven't had the chance to explore more than a few basics, but what I have used I am impressed with. Now I just need the time to do more!

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    3. I'm so pleased you made the decision. I wish you many hours of happy quilting!

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  4. Just purchased an Elna 720 & am so happy! Great machine for an experienced sewist. I exhibit at art shows and need a precise stitch. Lost of controls to assure stitching perfection!!!

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  5. Hi Carolyn, due to the passage of time I am pretty sure you now know that you CAN move that needle by selecting straight stitch and using the width button to move the needle! I wanted to comment so that anyone looking at the Elna 720 would know that it has a very variable needle positioning method!! I bought my Elna 720 about a year and nine months ago and LOVE it!!! I know I looked at your blog entries before I made the purchase. I hope you are still enjoying your machine. :)

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    1. Thank you for that! I was wondering why such a versatile machine would have such a limit.

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  6. hello please tell me where did u get this all set

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