A month or so ago, I heard about a worthwhile cause through a friend’s blog, and I volunteered to help. Today I made four pillowcases. (NO, they are not short pillowcases, they are folded in half!) Click HERE to read about it.
THIS is the pattern Carol recommended and that I used. It was a wonderful, easy pattern.
I hope your day was wonderful, and I pray your week brings only sunshine and happiness.
Be blessed,
Michelle
I couldn’t help myself. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it! (If you’ve stopped here before, you know that I changed the title, and added the word ‘Lady’, since ‘Lady’ is what I saw each time I looked at it, instead of Lavender.)
Yesterday, Amy from A Quilting Sheep and A Redeemed Sheep and I went junkin’ in the Quad Cities. We saw this machine in a cabinet, and I refrained from buying it. Mind you, I have only seen this model and color a few times in my ‘junkin’ career (many years!). Last night and this morning, that’s all I could think about, so Louie and I went back, were there when the store opened, and bought it, without the cabinet. I did the normal cleaning and oiling before I even plugged it in. The needle threads left to right, which is a bit odd, but some of my other machines thread that way too. It is a straight stitch and zigzag machine only, and I have not pinpointed her birth date yet, but I’ll get that figured out soon, I hope. The address in the manual, where the owner can contact the company with any questions is Chicago 7, Illinois. Louie says that was before the USPS started using zip codes, so that is a clue. (He is so knowledgeable…it scares me sometimes! He says Chicago 7 must have signified post office #7 in Chicago. (Click HERE to read about the inauguration of the ZIP code)
UPDATE!!! Sue sent me information of where I could find the information I needed for the birth date of this machine. I did not find a birth date for this EXACT piece of cast iron, but found out this particular model was manufactured from 1963-1965. That means I was about 6 years old when it was new. Did I tell you it weighs a TON?
I know the stitches are hard to see, but it sews a lovely straight stitch and a pretty good zigzag too. This machine will become a display piece somewhere in my house. Now I want to find a nice PINK machine!
When Amy arrived at my house yesterday, she came bearing gifts! Thanks Amy! What a sweetie.
We had such a fun time. We ate lunch at the Machine Shed, and hit all the Goodwills and Salvation Army stores in the Quad Cities. We did not go to the Illinois side, as there is usually always bridge work on Saturdays, and Louie was not with us to guide us back across from a different bridge. We got in enough buying trouble without crossing the river. The Salvation Army ‘AS IS’ store was having a half price sale, so between Amy and I, we filled the Edge. We had so much fun, and I hope we can do it again soon. We even got back in time for Amy to make it home before dark.
So that’s my weekend. Hope yours was wonderful. It is HOT HOT HOT and HUMID here in Iowa. Thank God for air conditioning at work!
Be blessed and have a great week!
Michelle
Simple Quilting Tip: Dry slivers of bar soap make great lines on dark fabric. (From Simple Tips For Quilters)
I did it again, but in my defense, I was ENABLED!!!! Friday night, I was at home, watching a movie, minding my own business (YES I WAS!!!!) when my friend Amy (such a sweetie) sent me a picture text. She was at a consignment store with her husband, spotted a treadle sewing machine, knows how I love sewing machines, and sent me a picture. I answered her by saying, ‘WHAT? WHERE? WHY?’
My phone rang, and she told me about it. She thought I might be interested in it. I told her, no…I really did not have room for another piece of furniture, but I was encouraging HER to buy it. When she and her husband got home, they did some research and found out a little bit about it, and I was blown away at how pretty the cabinet was. She also said her husband was seriously thinking about going back to get it on Saturday.
Louie and I had planned on going to Cedar Rapids on Saturday to ‘Play It Again Sports’, so Louie could do some trading of golf clubs. We went to our regular thrift store stops, and when we got near the consignment store, we went in to see if Amy had taken it home. I was surprised to still see it there…so what was I to do????? How could I walk away from a $40 machine?
Well, if I was afraid of cleaning, and dusting, it would have been easy, but I know how much difference a little furniture polish and a little elbow grease (and smearing sewing machine oil or baby oil around on the surface of an old black SM head) can make. Here are some before and after pictures of the cleaning up process. (Click to enlarge)
SEW, now my new treadle sewing machine sits in my kitchen for me to adore. The treadle mechanism works like soft butter. I might even consider trying to sew on this baby sometime.
I was delighted last night to find a FREE (no cost) pdf manual for my FREE No. 5 sewing machine HERE. I LOVE the internet! (Which is also why I don’t get much sewing done. With work, and my thrifting, sewing machine, and internet addictions, there just doesn’t seem to be much time for sewing!)
Thank you Amy for telling me about this machine. Amy is my enabler, (and so is Louie) but in her defense, I enabled her a few times too. One being HERE, the same day I got THIS.
A little bit of history of the FREE sewing machine company in Rockford, Illinois can be found HERE. Rockford, Illinois is only 2 hours from my home. I might have to see if the building is still there and take a road trip!
The following photos were found on the Ismacs site. (Click to enlarge)
FYI: Here is some information from the ISMACS site on how old sewing machines heads were ‘painted’. They actually were NOT painted, but Japanned.
The colour most-commonly associated with sewing machines is the black of japanning. As well as being an effective protection against rust, japanning was a cheap way of giving the largest parts of the machine a decorative finish. Each casting to receive this treatment was fettled and dipped in viscous black paint. The japanning was then dried in oven for some hours.
Coloured decoration could be applied to the black ground either as paint or printed transfer, though nearly all ms were decorated with gold leaf or gold paint. Hand painting was supplanted from about 1880 onwards by transfers. These demanded less skill to apply, gave a uniform finish and were cheaper. Another common way of decorating European sewing machines was by setting thin slivers of mother of pearl into the japanned surface. Once all the decoration had been applied, a final high gloss coat of varnish was sometimes given.
These painted finishes survived more or less intact, depending on the quality of materials used, the thoroughness with which they were applied, and the use and abuse the machines received in their working lives. Japanning can chip and scratch. A clumsily held screwdriver, sharp pins, buttons and zips, or even constant ordinary use, wear away varnish, transfers, gold and paint. The habit of wrapping a sheath of folded blanket or rag around the overhanging arm may have been a practical means of keeping pins handy but it is also an effective way of obliterating the decoration underneath.
Regular care and studied neglect both offer hazards to the chances of the paintwork surviving intact. Anything more than light dusting, over 60 or 70 years, will wear varnish and decoration away. Repeated applications of furniture polish can build up into a hard brownish translucent layer, difficult to remove. Neglect, on the other hand, may allow rust to take over so seriously that it attacks the castings, despite the thick layer of paint.
One problem which I have come across, and for which I have yet to find a satisfactory solution, is the crazing and lifting of varnish. Crazing is not serious while the varnish adheres but sometimes it becomes detached from the japanned surface, lifting with it the painted or transfer decoration. In this state it is fragile and if it is to remain in place, cleaning which involves friction has to be avoided.
Before attempting to clean any painted surfaces gently wipe away the dust and then look at it very carefully. These baked surfaces are often hard and durable and if there is a layer of congealed oil or polish, paraffin and rag may be all that is needed to remove it. Test a small area on the underside of the machine. See if it removes the film. See if it leaves a whitish surface or "bloom" when it dries and check that this bloom can be removed with a rag moistened with light mineral oil. Acetone or solvent are not safe. Nor is thinners. Spit sometimes works, but be sure it is not mixing with the dirt to form an abrasive paste. Above all make absolutely certain that nothing you do loosens or removes the remaining decoration. Sometimes dusting is all that can be safely done.
I have never yet seen a sewing machine repainted well enough to convince me that the gains outweigh the losses. A sewing machine in perfect condition can be impressively beautiful. We can see what it looked like when It left the factory and the freshness and vigour of the decorative finishes, which helped to sell it, are not dimmed by chips, scratches or grime. A "used" sewing machine, on the other hand, can tell us much about its working life; which parts were handled most often, what sort of work it did, even how it was usually picked up. Even if the skills are available, I do not think trying to make a used sewing machine look like new is a worthwhile exercise.
Thanks once again, for letting me share.
Be blessed and have a wonderful Sunday.
Michelle
A few years ago, while we were driving down the road littering up the inside of our van, (road trip!) I told Louie that I needed to make a litter bag, (like the sewing scrap bag/pin cushion bags I make) for our van so we didn’t have wrappers and junk all over the console. As soon as I said it, I imagined it, and my litter bags were born (without the pin cushions, of course!). I have made many since, and used them as gifts and gift bags, even! Some of my friends have copied my idea and are passing out litter bags to their family and friends too. If I take the litter bag out of the car to empty, and forget to put it back, we are lost without it!
My hair dresser’s husband is a big John Deere fan. I made him a JD rice bag a few months ago, since he was using Lori’s, given to her for Christmas. He loved it. I made Lori a litter bag awhile back, and decided I would make one (or two) for Jeff too.
This morning, I got out my JD fabric, but I wasn’t sure what to use for the lining. I saw 2 pair of jeans sitting on my table that Louie had worn out, and I decided denim would be perfect. (click all photos to enlarge)
I used the bottom of the pant leg so I wouldn’t have to make a hem, and I also thought it was so perfect, because people who drive John Deere tractors don’t wear fancy clothes, and I know that they don’t give up their denim easily. The fact that the hem is worn just makes it that much more perfect! I sew two buttons on the tab. One on the front, and one directly on the back behind it. To hang it in the car/truck/tractor, or drawer, just open the door, place the buttons inside, and close the door/drawer. Both buttons, back to back, inside the glove compartment/drawer, keep it from pulling out and falling on the floor. I sew the buttons on with 6 strands of floss leaving a tail to the front when I start, then I end with a tail on the front. I tie the threads, and clip them long, just for looks. They can be turned inside out for a completely new look AND they are machine washable!
Here is one of my litter bags I use in my office for trash. It doesn’t have buttons, and there is no door or drawer to hold it in place, so I used a BIG office clip to clip it to my table. I sewed a button to the front, just inside the bag body for embellishment. I wish I would have had some John Deere tractor buttons. I would have sewn them on on Jeff’s litter bags.
I’m going to go deliver the bags to Lori soon. I hope Jeff likes them! Maybe he can use one in his car, and one in his office desk drawer for trash. Update: Lori loved them!
Here’s my litter bag in our car.
Hope your Friday is wonderful and your weekend is even better!
Be blessed,
Michelle
