Does this happen at the end/beginning of a seam or in the middle of a seam? I know sometimes it will do this at the start if you don't have enough fabric covering the feed dogs.
Susan

Where on the material does this happen? Are you close to the edge of the fabric? If you're too close to the edge the presser foot will not have good enough contact with the fabric on one side.

The presser foot can be adjusted - you may have changed that setting.

If you're doing a straight stitch you can change the throat plate to one with a single round hole. Zig-zag used an wide hole.

usually happens right at the beginning

also how would i adjust the feed dogs?

You wouldn't adjust the feed dogs, you could do like glass said and change your throat plate to the one with the one tiny hole that the needle goes in instead of the zig zag plate. The other thing alot of people do is put a scrap or piece of paper at the edge where you are starting your seam. Or you can start buy turning the handwheel with you hand for 2 or 3 stitches. This is something that happens to all of us at some point and time. Usually happens to me when I'm trying to rush.
Susan

Be sure your bobbin thread and the spool thread have about 6 inches of 'tail' before you begin. Hold these tails back when you start sewing.

Start your stitching IN from the edge of the fabric about a half inch. Hold the thread tails and sew BACKWARD a couple of stiches, then go ahead and sew your seam (forward).

Also try a new needle. Change your needles often so they stay sharp.
Judy

This happens to me if I am using the wrong needle for the type of fabric or the needle is dull. Check the manual for your machine to see what size needle you should use for the type of fabric you are sewing

Good luck!

Mary

What brand machine and model do you have? Do you have the instruction manual that came with the machine and have you practiced every page by painful page to familiarize yourself with your machine and learn to sew at the same time? Look and study the charts they have in the book for the type of needle and stitch length to use for the fabric you are using...those charts haven't lied yet in 45 years.

I would also recommend finding a sewing buddy or taking some lessons so that you don't develop bad sewing habits not knowing any difference at this point in time.

Your troubles sound as though you don't have your thread ends all the way to the back of the machine and then don't have enough fabric under the presser foot to start the seam. You could also be using too small a stitch, something a beginner will do, mostest is not bestest, so check your machine manual charts.

My method is a few stitches foward, backstitch, and then forward again, particularly at intersections where seams always like to come apart later, and then all the way to the end of the seam, backstitch, and forward again.

It happened! It never happens to me! I post on the above and it happened! I was sewing darts in lining at the beginning of the dart and my machine tried to eat my fabric. Apparently there was something in the bobbin area trying to cause favoc because the machine started to grind and quickly remedied. The whole time I'm checking stuff out, I'm thinking about the posting and muttering "I can't believe this".

Old stuff? You know it's getting bad when you still have machine needles and screwdrivers that came with your newly purchased in 1963 Lady Kenmore.

(QUOTE)What brand machine and model do you have? Do you have the instruction manual that came with the machine

Your troubles sound as though you don't have your thread ends all the way to the back of the machine and then don't have enough fabric under the presser foot to start the seam.
(ENDQUOTE)

I have a brother XL2600 that i got for christmas 2005. its only a couple weeks old so yes i have the manual and all the little accessories that it came with. i have at least 6 inch thread tails when i start on a piece........i did try the earlier suggestion about a piece of paper and it worked.....