The Complete Handbook of Sewing Machine Feet

Chapter 1: Understanding Sewing Machine Feet

A sewing machine foot - commonly called a presser foot - is the metal or plastic component that rests on top of the fabric and presses it against the feed dogs of your machine's bed. It is, mechanically, a precision instrument that controls the single most important variable in stitch formation: the controlled movement of material under the needle. Any sewing machine, regardless of price or age, is essentially a device for synchronizing three actions: the down-and-up stroke of the needle, the lateral advance of the feed dogs, and the vertical pressure of the foot holding the material steady against that feed. The foot is what makes the fabric behave predictably during that process. Change the foot, and you change the entire behavior of the machine, often more than any other single adjustment you can make.

The foot is attached to the machine via a metal shaft called a shank. The shank comes in two main types: low shank (the most common, used on most home and many domestic machines), high shank (typically found on industrial machines and some older domestic models), and slant shank (a relic of certain 1960s-era machines, notably some models from Singer). The height of the shank determines the distance between the presser bar and the foot's mounting point, and it dictates which feet will fit your machine. Snap-on shanks have a built-in lever that allows you to pop feet on and off without a screwdriver, but they still connect