Good advice nothing to add except to reiterate that you must not blow into your machine and to give the two reasons that I know of why you mustn't ( If you're anything like me, you want REASONS before blindly obeying advice! LOL) Number one - your breath is moist and moisture is not good for the moving parts of your machine and number two, when you blow you are much more likely to blow the fluff further in where you can't get it anymore and where it will stay until you take it to be serviced. I have two different sizes of artist's paint brushes that I gently but thoroughly clean around the whole area everytime I change my bobbin. Rather than poking at the fluff, just put the brush near it and it stacks to the bristles then you can extract it. The bobbin race I wipe gently on a piece of scrap cotton. I stopped using the short handled brush that came with my machine when my friend dropped her's into the workings and couldn't get it out! Had to take it in to the shop!