Top-Stitching with my Janome MC 6700P

Since getting my new Janome sewing machine back in June, I've been enjoying getting to know it. I use the HP2 foot I bought extra like 95% of the time, and have gotten used to the remote thread cutter switch. I've even free-motion quilted a time or two!

But I tried something new while making the Nightingale Zipper Case that I just have to share. It involves sewing an 1/8" seam / basting / top-stitching. On the zipper case, I used it A LOT for basting, but especially for  all the top-stitching.

I watched a YouTube video by Chatterbox Quilts on How to Top Stitch with the Janome M7. Now that's a model up from mine, but it works the same. Start at about the two-minute mark. Basically, I left the HP2 foot on the machine, but switched out the needle plate from the 'normal' HP plate, to the straight-stitch plate. In doing so, the machine moves the needle so it'll go down in that 1/8" hole.

Like magic, it stitched really beautiful - and straight! - top-stitching, nicer and easier than I've done before. It did mean a lot of switching out needle plates when I was sewing seams vs. top-stitching, but it was so worth it, and with the one-step needle plate feature, it was quick to switch back and forth. Anyway, I've already been using this feature on another project, and am appreciating it so much. Let me know if you have the same machine and have used this feature too - or not!