Wrap Shirt on the New Home 656A

The New Home 656A came to me in a suitcase.  I'm sure it was not the original packaging but the machine, foot controller, and the instruction manual really do nestle in there well. There is no jostling when you're carrying things around.  I had cleaned and lubricated this machine a few weeks ago, now it was time to see how well it sewed.

It has a handle on the top that folds up for easy carrying outside the suitcase.

To pick a sewing project for this machine I wandered around Joann's on Friday after work. I had a gift card to use so I was inspired to buy both a pattern and some fabric. I found the fabric first.  It was a soft knit that had a great geometric print. I picked up the bolt and carried it around as I looked for suitable shirt pattern.

A McCall's envelope caught my eye in the sale drawer. Wait a minute, that looked like the fabric I was holding in my arms. It was. That sealed the deal, now I could be sure that I would exactly like the model on the pattern envelope.

She's basically my twin, right?

 After cutting out the pattern pieces, I set up the New Home at the dining room table. There was some fussing with the bobbin winder. When I first tried it, the thread would only wind on the bottom half of the bobbin. I adjusted the height of the thread guide and then the winder loaded evenly.  This machine had consistent straight and zig-zag stitches and it switched between stitch types and lengths smoothly. The only drawback to this machine, for me, was the the noise level.  On Saturday morning I was up early to finish the project and I was hesitant to start sewing before T got up.  It's not obnoxiously loud, but it could wake someone sleeping down the hall.

The light switch is hidden behind the swing out face plate.  

 The shirt went together quickly.  The New Home handled the knit fabric easily.  When adding the collar and sleeves I took off the plastic extension table and did some free-arm sewing. The only time I had to rip a seam and resew was when I realized I had sewed the shoulder seam closed without putting in the front wrap piece.

Neckline has been stay-stitched

 Before I finished the sleeves, I tried on the shirt to see how it fit.  As it turned out, the front pieces did not overlap on me quite as much as they did on the model.  Probably should have gone with a larger size and lengthened the torso.  While you cannot see the waistband of the model's jeans on the pattern, my belly button was nicely framed by the shirt and my jeans waistband.  Not really the look I was going for.  Clearly, I'd have to wear a tank top under this shirt.  That's ok, the fabric was so very soft and I liked how the shoulders fit so I decided to finish the project. The sleeves went on quickly and their finished length was pretty good.
Beautiful fall day here so I decided to do finished project photos at the lake.  My skills with the timer, camera angle, and shadows are still a work in progress, but the background in these shots is beautiful.

Not quite the same as the model on the pattern envelope.  

Is that person in the background modeling too?

Still could be a little longer, but it does hug nicely

A larger size would make it a little less tight across the chest

That collar looks pretty good

 With a few adjustments to this pattern, I'd be happy to sew it up again.  The New Home 656A sewing machine is ready to go though, no changes needed.