Less than 24 hours after reviewing the brand new Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro, I had the unexpected pleasure of sitting in on a demonstration of this machine at Cynthia’ Fine Fabrics in Tamarac, Florida. SVP Educator, Deb North, dropped by to show off all the new features on the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro.
Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro
At A Glance
There are plenty of white sewing machines out there, but the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro is a brilliant, bright, snow white.
Brilliant, bright, snow white
When you turn it on, the bright LED lights are accented with cool lime green and lavender flowers on the large full color LCD touch screen. Even the stylus mount has a green glow.
There are very few buttons. Almost everything is sensor touch instead. As you select various functions: presser foot up or down; start/stop; needle up/down; stop, a green light comes on to illumine the function in use.
The large LCD touch screen is bright and almost beacons to you to try it out and the on board stitch selection guide beneath the lid is easy to see – even without a pair of reading glasses.
Features
- 693 decorative and utility stitches
- 363 embroidery designs
- 30 Stacking stitches
- 16 Ribbon stitches
- 8 alphanumeric fonts
- Shape and stitch creators
- Increased embroidery speed
- Thread metering system works well with specialty threads
- Hi definition screen
- Screen saver
- Easily switch between embroidery and sewing modes
- Sew with embroidery unit in place
- Precise position embroidery
- Maximum stitch length 12mm
- Maximum stitch width 9mm
- Straight stitch plate sensor
- Color block merge
- Auto save
- Undo-redo embroidery stitch
- Mirror/rotate stitches
- Stitch grouping
- Embroidery design resize
- Baste in the hoop
- Color editing
- Electronic knee lift
- 37 needle positions
- Stitch tapering
- 2 USB ports
- Capability to sew all stitches in the embroidery hoop
Ribbon stitches
Working on the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro
Metered threading system
Winding the bobbin and threading the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro is very user friendly. The interesting thing is the way it is constructed inside.
The tension discs and threading mechanism is designed specifically for handling any type of specialty thread you want to use.
It’s called a metered threading system, and the secret lies in the way the inside threading mechanism on the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro is constructed.
It was indeed a real treat to have been able to play around with the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro a little bit before returning the next day for the demonstration by Deb North, the SVP Educator who visited Cynthia’s Fine Fabrics to show off all the machine’s new features.
SVP Educator, Deb North
In a one-on-one with Cynthia, I learned that the Creative Sensation Pro could be programmed so you could touch the start/stop icon to lower the presser foot, tie off the beginning of the seam and sew, then touch the reverse icon to stop sewing, tie off the end of the seam and cut the threads.
The stitch selection process is also quite user friendly.
The decorative and utility stitches on the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro, including the ribbon stitches, are divided into six clusters.
The first cluster consists of utility stitches and buttonholes.
Clusters two through five are decorative stitches and the alphanumeric fonts.
Cluster six primarily consists of the stacking stitches along with ribbon and framing stitches.
Six clusters decorative and utility stitches
Touch screen for selecting stitches
To identify the stitch you want, start with the quick reference guide beneath the lid of the Creative Sensation Pro.
Then touch the menu icon on the touch screen and select the menu cluster where your stitch is located. Next, toggle through the designs until you find the precise design you want.
The stitch will appear on the left side of the screen along with the default settings for length and width.
If the preset settings are not to your liking, use the icons on the screen to adjust your stitch length and width to suit your needs.
During the actual review, I didn’t sample the ribbon stitches, but I did sample several of the utility and decorative stitch options.
Perfectly sampled stitches
I am happy to report that each and every stitch I sampled came out perfectly. I did notice, however, that when sewing at top speed, there was a little more vibration than I am comfortable with.
During the demonstration, Deb showed us how to create ribbon stitches. The process is a little tricky, but once you get the hang of it, it’s really a lot of fun.
Ribbon stitches is a lot of fun
Fabrics
- Natural fibers/cotton-linen-wool
- Fine fabrics/silk-satin-taffeta/velvet
- Knits(Medium to heavyweight only)
- Synthetic fabrics/blends-rayon-polyester
- Upholstery
- Leather/suede
- Fur
- Reptile skin
- Canvas/Twill
- Plastic/Rubber
- Extra thick fabrics or multiple layers
Accessories
Accessories box
Standard accessories
- 11 snap on presser feet
- 11 snap on presser feet
- Fancy stitch foot
- Blind hem foot
- Zipper foot
- Sensormatic buttonhole foot
- Manual buttonhole foot
- Embroidery/Sensormatic free-motion foot
- Dynamic spring foot
- ¼” quilting foot
- Maxi-stitch foot
- 3 embroidery hoops
- 120mm x 120 square
- Master hoop – 240 x 150mm
- Creative Deluxe hoop – 360 x 200mm
- 2 needle plates
- Multi-purpose
- Straight stitch
- Embroidery software packages for PC or MAC
- Lint brush
- Seam ripper
- Extra bobbins
- Extra needles
- Set of 4 cutwork needles
- Screwdriver
- Embroidery collection notebook
- Owner’s manual
- Complimentary software downloads
- For Windows 7 and 8
- 6D Embroidery machine communication
- 6D QuickFont
- 6D Explorer Plug in
- For MACs
- TruEmbroidery software
- For Windows 7 and 8
Embroidery collection notebook
Optional accessories
- Metal embroidery hoop
- Grand endless embroidery hoop
- Quilters’ hoop [200 x 200mm]
- Grand dream hoop [360 x 350mm]
Owner’s manual
Maintenance
| After each use | Monthly* | Once Each Year** | As Needed | |
| Clean race hook and feed dogs | ||||
| Wipe head with soft dry cloth | ||||
| Wipe head with soft damp cloth | ||||
| Lubricate | ||||
| Service by sewing machine repair professional |
Tying Off The Loose Ends
The Creative Sensation Pro is the next generation in the Pfaff Creative line and has all the best features of all its predecessors.
The Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro is possibly one of the best in its class. It sews, embroiders, quilts and does it all with the user in mind.
Swarovski crystal bracelet, presser foot charm and stylus
The bright lights, the easy to use touch pad and function icons are among the most user friendly features I have seen on a sewing machine in quite a while.
An added bonus for those who purchase the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro before December 31, 2013 is a gift of a Swarovski crystal bracelet, presser foot charm and stylus valued at $800.
I had an opportunity to use the stylus and actually handle the bracelet and charm. The quality of workmanship that went into creating these gifts is excellent.
Back to the machine…. The Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro is user friendly, but I wouldn’t recommend it for anyone who is not at least at the intermediate level when it comes to sewing skill.
There is simply too much to remember and there are too many sensitive components to this machine for a beginner to manage.
The sensitive touch of the function area and the steps required to select the right stitch at the right time could very well convince a novice that sewing is too complicated and walk away from sewing altogether.
With that in mind, I recommend that anyone who purchases a Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro take advantage of the classes offered by local dealers to make sure they get the full benefit of learning all that this machine can do.
As I said… it sews, embroiders and quilts. As long as I’ve been sewing, I looked at some completed ribbon stitchwork and wasn’t absolutely certain how they managed to pull it off until sitting in on Deb North’s demonstration.
Completed ribbon stitchwork
After watching her explanation, it was easy to see how simple the process really is. In my opinion, anyone who is willing to spend as much on a sewing machine as they would on a used car, they should take advantage of all the classes and demonstrations available to them.
The added benefit of getting an $800 piece of jewelry that matches your sewing machine is a huge plus for some. If you are in the market for an up to date sewing, quilting and embroidery machine, you owe it to yourself to take a look at the Pfaff Creative Sensation Pro. Even if you don’t purchase one in time to get the gift of Swarovski crystal, I don’t think you will be disappointed with its performance.