Rolled hem foot?

[glassjaw]

So I was in our local fabric store the other day with my wife, and she brought to my attention that there is a rolled hem foot for Brother machines. My eyes got big and my wife laughed at me for getting excited about it. But I wanted to come here to ask if anyone has used it first, and see if it was worth the $20 some odd dollars they were wanting for it? Anyone?

[Junebugdawn]

I bought one, tried it, could never get it to be consistent, took it back and got a refund. The foot makes a very small hem and with ripstop, it would make a hem for a bit, but by the time I got to the edge, it wouldn't turn the material under correctly. I think many others have had similar experiences and end up doing their rolled hems by hand (with their machines.)

[Tijereyes]

I have one, I've never managed to make it work with 1.1 or 1.9 ripstop (or silnylon, for that matter).

I find that I get much better results doing rolled hems by hand. Here's how I do it:
First, pin the first inch or two, then stitch hem in place at the pins. Then, feed the fabric into the machine. As you do so, roll the next six inches or so, then sew it, then repeat. If you're careful you can figure the technique out pretty quickly. Using that technique, I sewed a 1/4" rolled hem on my DIY winter tarp that looks pretty good..

YMMV, though, if you want to buy & try it. Maybe you'll get it to work for you.

[Ramblinrev]

The jury is split on these. I see no point to them having never been able to get them to work. Other folks use them and really like them. Pays your money and takes your chances. FWIW my professional seamstress wife doesn't care for them either. But its your call.

[awilder]

Like Junebugdawn said, the rolled hem foot makes a very small hem (although I think you can get them in different sizes). I used it to finish the edges of 1.1 oz ripstop while I was making my top quilt. After cutting out my top and bottom pieces, I rolled the edges. This kept them from fraying while I sewed the baffles in place. But when it came to making the final hems on the top quilt, it was useless.

It does make a very nice finished edge, but it is usually used for finishing a single layer of fabric, such as silk scarves and handkerchiefs.

Also, it takes a bit to learn how to use it. You have to feed the material into the foot just right...

It's one of those things that when you need it, it's really nice to have, but frankly, I don't think I'll be needing it much.

[Boston]

Look at how big of a hem it makes. I wouldn't go smaller than 1/4". I had a 1/8" foot and it wouldn't feed the material correctly. I think it was too slippery to hold the roll shape, and didn't feed well.

[Michael]

you can tell how big of a hem it will make by looking at the channel on the bottom side of the foot. Saying this, I cannot get consistency with ripstop so I don't use mine.

[Caveman]

I spent several hours trying to get it figured out, but I never could quite get the hang of it. That's unusual for me, because I can usually figure out just about anything.....Not that thing though It could have been my fabric was too thin, or a multitude of other factors, but I just couldn't get it to work right for me.

Good luck.

[Boulderman]

Same here, couldn't get it to work consistently. Can get good, consistent results by hand.

[glassjaw]

Wow thanks guys! The input is excellent! I am glad I asked now. It seems like I should just buck up and work on my skills a little. No easy way out. If my wife ends up getting it (she is a budding seamstress) I may give it a go. But even she mentioned it as kind of a novelty. I will let you know how it goes. Again thank you all for the input.