Accessory Spotlight: Brother Stitch Guide Foot

~Joanne Banko, Brother Sews Ambassador   In this tutorial we’ll explore the potential of the Brother SA160 Stitch Guide Foot
. This multi-purpose sewing foot has its own built-in ruler. The un-numbered set of deep, grooved lines are spaced in 2mm increments along the front and extended side of the foot.     Below are some of the top reasons I find this foot to be so helpful for many different sewing scenarios:  

1. It’s a genuine Brother Accessory, made from quality materials and designed specifically for Brother sewing and embroidery
2. The incrementally marked ruler includes evenly spaced lines with 2mm between each line.
3. Easy to snap on, it’s compatible with all Brother 7mm and most Brother 5mm machines.
4. Grooved guidelines are close to the front edge of the foot making it suitable for curved as well as straight edges.
5. The foot has a wide 7mm opening for use with stitches up to 7mm wide. This wide width also allows you to use the option of variable needle positions for the straight stitch, moving the needle from the far left, to the far right, and anywhere in between.
6. The sole of this foot is very flat, making excellent contact with the fabric for smooth feeding of fabric layers. Designed for straight, zigzag, and other stitches normally meant for use with foot J, the standard foot, the front area on the bottom of the foot has space for stitches like the zigzag stitch to flow underneath. Use this foot in place of the J foot if it’s appropriate for your technique. See a comparison of the bottom side in Figure #1, with the Stitch Guide foot on the left and the standard “J” foot on the right.

  [caption id="attachment_27114" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #1[/caption]   Tip: I’m using a Brother SA530
Centering Ruler in the photo shown below:   I reach for this flexible ruler on a regular basis. It’s essential for marking the position for machine embroidery and the see-through design makes it easy to measure and mark placement on all kinds of projects!   You’ll find the unmarked ruler on the foot helpful for stitching accurate seam allowances and for topstitching a wide variety of projects. Measure the distance you need by using a ruler to calculate space between the position of the needle and the point where you want to align your fabric on the foot. Then, line up the fabric with the marked line on the foot and follow that line as you stitch. To stitch consistently and accurately, be sure to keep your eye following the edge of the fabric and the marked line as you sew.

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Here are some examples for using the stitch guide foot for accurate stitching:   1. To sew an accurate 3/8-inch seam, use a ruler to measure the distance from the needle in the center position to the grooved line measuring 3/8-inch from the needle. Line up the raw edge with the grooved line to sew. See Figure #2a, Figure #2b, and Figure #2c.   [caption id="attachment_27115" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #2a[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_27116" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #2b[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_27117" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #2c[/caption]   2. To top stitch a 1-inch hem, clean finish the raw edge of the hemline, then turn and press a 1 1/8-inch hem to the wrong side. With the needle in the center position and the fold of the hem along the edge of the foot, you’ll see that it measures 1-inch. Line up the folded edge of the fabric with the outside edge of the foot to stitch the hem. See Figure #3a, Figure #3b, and Figure #3c.   [caption id="attachment_27118" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #3a[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_27119" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #3b[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_27120" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #3c[/caption]   3. This foot is ideal for topstitching the final row of a flat felled seam. See Figure #4.   [caption id="attachment_27121" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #4[/caption]

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Additional Resources for this foot:  

• Check current accessory catalog published by Brother for more information on compatibility. Here is a link to the catalog: https://download.brother.com/welcome/doch101817/acc_catalog_as_of_august_2020.pdf
  

 

• Click on the link below to view a short video demonstration of the foot and download the manual for SA160: https://support.brother.com/g/b/faqend.aspx c=us&lang=en&prod=hf_inov1200eus&faqid=faqh00000615_000
  

 

• I used this foot to create channel stitched cuffs for a blouse on the Brother sponsored It’s Sew Easy TV show #2002-1. Watch the video below on my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/VpkEPIlrm1I
  

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