Finally getting around to learning how to use my Serger

I got a serger, oh I don't know, back in 2000? and I've never really used it for anything other than making the insides of my clothing have finished seams. It took me years to learn how to thread the damn thing! I used to serge everything in off-white because that was the color thread that was in it. Change a needle? never! If a needle broke, or it became unthreaded, that meant a trip to the repair shop. 
The woman who worked there was so nice and patient, she would never charge me to re-thread my machine and kept trying to show me how to do it over and over but for some reason it never clicked.
Unfortunately that shop went out of business (maybe they should have been charging me!) and I was forced to learn how to thread the machine myself.
I finally got confident in the threading and began changing the thread color as needed for new projects. I thought I'd conquered it all!
Then, I found Craftsy. I jumped in and signed up for a class called Creative Serging, Beyond the Basics. It is an intermediate class (because you know... I'm beyond beginner because I can thread my own machine, right?). I'm only on lesson Seven but I had to write about it now anyway. I've learned so much!
I never realized that I would be good at learning sewing techniques from an online class. I was certain that I needed one-on-one in-real-life instruction but Crafty has done a wonderful job putting this class together in a workable way. I got so psyched up and signed up for several more classes but haven't had the time to start working on them yet because it's summertime and my free babysitting (aka: school) has ended. I'll report back to let you know if the rest of the classes are as good as this one, although I have confidence that they are. Many are FREE!
I started doing actual sewing with the serger and went nuts making wrap skirts out of tee shirts. I've made probably 20 so far!

 

I didn't really need a class in order to make these skirts, but this class, forcing me to start changing the settings and perfecting the stitches, gave me the confidence to use the serger for something other than just finishing a seam.

This class has also inspired me to step it up a notch on working with knits. I've always loved wearing knits but have been afraid to work with them often. I jumped in head first and bought a cover stitch machine so that I could finish seams easily. I'm so glad that Angela Wolf included a cover stitch machine in this class because honestly, I never knew it existed before! It is the coolest thing ever! I can whip up a hem on stretch fabrics in no time. I am usually a super cheap skate and about flipped out when I saw the prices of these machines on Amazon. I didn't give up and kept searching for a better deal and found the best deal on this site. Shipping was free and it arrived quickly. I am in love with this machine!

I'll report back when I've finished the class with all that I've learned. But for now.... I (heart) Craftsy!