Baby Lock Alliance Review

With the growing interest in machine embroidery at home, it is a natural conclusion that eventually, there would be a larger, faster embroidery machine for home use.

The Baby Lock Alliance is one such machine. I had an opportunity to review this user friendly stand-alone single needle, four thread embroidery only machine at Cynthia’s Fine Fabrics in Tamarac, Florida.

At A Glance

Baby Lock Alliance

Anyone who sees the Baby Lock Alliance for the very first time would immediately believe that it was just one more multi-needle embroidery machine designed and built for industrial use only.

Closer inspection, however, reveals that there is only one needle, a clearly marked easy to follow thread path and a side mounted bobbin winder with a separate motor.

At a Glance

As with all other sewing and embroidery machines, the bobbin housing is beneath the needle and hoop area. There are arms and clamps on either side of the needle which snugly hold the embroidery hoops in place.

There is also a brightly lit work area and a full color touch screen located on the right side of the Baby Lock Alliance. This touch screen is used to control all of the embroidery functions of this machine while it is in use.

On the left side of the machine is a USB port and to enhance the user friendliness, the Baby Lock Alliance has an advanced needle threading system.

Features

• 125 On board embroidery designs plus:
  • 25 Fonts, including large floral alphabet, Baby Lock exclusive script, Greek letters and large applique alphabet
  • 140 Frame combinations
• Ability to combine embroidery designs on screen
• Character/text array function
• Multi-line text designing
• Character spacing
• Ability to change embroidery position using arrow keys
• Rotate pattern by 1°, 10° and 90°
• Design size change (10% reduction and 20% enlargement) on most designs
• Needle forward and reverse position placement (1, 10, 100 or 500 stitch increments) and by color
• Design duplication
• Color sorting non-overlapping designs
• Automatic basting
• 4 Way mirror imaging
• Ability to increase the size of the design thumbnail for easy viewing
• Ability to change color selections within designs
• Continuous border and color sorting on border designs
• Monochrome option for all embroidery designs
• Instant needle edge placement (9 starting and ending positions)
• Custom color displays in 3 options (Original Palette, Custom Palette 1, Custom Palette 2)
• Hoop sensor
• On-screen stitch count and running time display
• 1 MB built-in memory
• Quick-Set, built-in bobbin winder with independent motor
• Ability to use pre-wound Class “L” bobbins
• Push button, automatic needle threader
• 2 LED lights
• Upper thread breakage sensors
• Manual tension adjustment
• Automatic upper and lower thread trimmer
• Start/Stop button with lock feature
• On-screen speed control
• Ability to change screen and thumbnail back-ground color
• 4-Thread positions
• On board stylus holder
• 7” diagonal TruView LCD Color Touch Screen
  • Shows 260,000 colors
  • Adjustable screen brightness
  • Programmable date and time settings
  • Design placement using drag and drop capabilities
  • Estimated embroidery time display and stitch count
  • Needle advancement (1, 10, 100 or 500 stitch increments)
  • Measurements displayed in inches or millimeters
  • Color separation
  • Thread color indicator
  • On-screen hoop size indicator
  • 300 Color names
• Needle Beam for precise alignment
• On board operation guide
• On board tutorial
• Auto save feature

bobbin

Working on the Janome Memory Craft 500E

Nearly every other stand up embroidery machine that I have reviewed was so intimidating that I opted to invite a sales associate who had been trained by a factory representative to give me a demonstration as though I were a prospective client.

In fact, this is what Hank, the service manager began doing. However, the Baby Lock Alliance is so user-friendly that I asked him to just stand by in case I had any questions.

Threading the Baby Lock Alliance is as easy as threading a machine of this type could possibly be. The easy to follow threading and bobbin winding guides are so uncomplicated that threading this machine was as easy as threading a regular home sewing machine.

Choosing one of the on board stitch designs is equally as easy. All that is required is to go into the menu and scroll through until the desired embroidery design is identified.

Selected design on touch screen

With the Baby Lock Alliance, it is possible to program multi-colored embroidery stitch designs to be produced with a single thread color.

When Hank loaded the embroidery hoop with stabilizer only, I pointed out that we needed to add fabric to the hoop before closing and loading it onto the machine.

At that point, he invited me to watch him demonstrate a new feature of this machine. I’m always willing and ready to learn something new, so I stepped aside and watched as he merely laid a strip of sample fabric that he uses for testing machines across the hoop.

Prior to doing that, however, he showed me how simple it was to load the hoop onto the machine. The hoop literally slides and clicks into place on tiny metal pegs on either side of the machine. Next to the pins there are small metal tabs which are used to release the hoop when you are ready to take it off of the machine.

Now, back to my lesson of the day. After I scrolled through several design patterns until I settled on one that I wanted to use for this review, Hank laid the fabric strip across the hooped stabilizer.

He then demonstrated the basting feature, which I think may be the coolest of all the user friendly features on this machine. When I selected the design, it appeared on the touchscreen encased in a box, and a red laser dot illuminated the center of the design to be created.

After Hank engaged the basting feature, the machine automatically began by sewing a series of stitches framing the design area approximately one inch in length.

While watching this stage of the project, I realized that the pale pink thread loaded on the machine would probably not show up on the fabric well enough for me to show a true representation of the stitch quality, so he interrupted the stitching before the actual design began. I changed the thread without the slightest problem and we hit the start/stop button once again.

My design was executed in what seemed like record time. The Baby Lock Alliance is as fast as practically any industrial embroidery machine on the market. The stitch quality was flawless.

Flawless Stitch quality

I did notice a little bit of vibration, but not much at all. Hank pointed out that the wheels on the cart/table on which this particular machine was mounted were not locked and suggested that the vibration would be eliminated once the wheels were locked legs anchored to the floor.

Fabrics

• Natural fibers/cotton-linen-wool
• Fine fabrics/silk-satin-taffeta/velvet
• Knits
• Synthetic fabrics/blends-rayon-polyester
• Denim
• Upholstery
• Leather/suede
• Fur
• Reptile skin
• Canvas/Twill
• Plastic/Rubber
• Extra thick fabrics or multiple layers

Accessories

Standard accessories:

• Stylus
• Self-contained accessories case
• Pre-wound bobbins
• Empty metal bobbins
• USB cable
• Seam ripper
• Scissors
• Tweezers
• Screwdrivers
• Spool
• Oil Dispenser
• Tweezers
• Spool caps
• Lint brush
• 2 Embroidery frame holders (one large/one small)
• 6 Embroidery hoops:
  • 8” x 8” hoop (200mm x 200mm)
  • 4” x 4” hoop (100mm x 100mm)
  • 1-5/8” x 2-3/4” hoop (41mm x 70mm)
  • 2” x 2” hoop (50mm x 50mm)
  • 1-1/2” x 1-3/4” hoop (38mm x 44mm)
  • 1-15/16” x 2-15/16” hoop (33mm x 75mm)

Accessories

Maintenance

Tying Off The Loose Ends

I sincerely believe that anyone who is very serious about machine embroidery or an individual who is launching a home based embroidery business could be extremely satisfied with the Baby Lock Alliance. I love the way the machine was designed to be so user friendly.

The clearly labeled threading guides along with the on board advanced needle threader are advantages that are generally not available on machines that are designed for commercial or industrial use. The speed, however, and the superior stitch quality scream perfection and professionalism.

No doubt, the Baby Lock Alliance is an excellent choice for the intermediate to advanced home sewer who is ready to step up their machine embroidery game.

I can see how the easy threading guide and bobbin winding system might tempt someone with little or no sewing skills to invest in the Baby Lock Alliance. I must caution anyone without any prior sewing experience to avoid attempting to use this machine, however.

No machine of this type should be operated by an individual who does not have a full comprehensive understanding of how to operate and maintain a sewing machine.

Without this prior knowledge and understanding, a novice could easily be lulled into a false sense of security and make a mistake that could potentially cause irreparable damage to the machine because of lack of knowledge.

If your sewing room is large enough to accommodate an embroidery only machine, the Baby Lock Alliance might fill the bill. The actual footprint is about the same as a full size sewing machine.

In fact, the Alliance has a footprint considerably smaller than many of the fully loaded combination sewing and embroidery machines that have appeared on the market in the last couple of years.

If you are ready to make a commitment to taking your machine embroidery talents to the next level, I urge you to take a long hard look at the Baby Lock Alliance and all of its features and capabilities.

My suggestion is that you take an afternoon or morning to visit your local Baby Lock dealer and ask for a demonstration of the Alliance. It is not for everyone, but in my opinion, those for whom it is a good fit will be elated.

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