So I gave in and bought a new toy:

I feel terribly self indulgent but I love it! I’ve switched my Janome back over to “normal” mode (with Paul’s help) with the feed dogs advancing the fabric (paper) and switched it back over to the standard foot. It seems much happier now.

I used it to zigzag sew the squares of the quilt together and it didn’t complain a bit:

For this quilt I just have to add the border and I’ll be done.

I had so much fun trying out the new machine! It’s a Heavy Duty Singer 4452 and it’s set up for easy use for free motion quilting. There is a lovely little switch on the back that flips the feed dogs up and down easily – switching between normal and free motion quilting mode (no taking apart the bobbin casing or getting out screwdrivers and allen wrenches!). And it works like a dream! I did a bunch of practicing on it and started on a secret project that I’ll share at a later date.

So going forward the Singer will be my free motion machine and the Janome will be my everything else machine.