My Newest Goodie

First of all, I'm sorry for such a long absence.  I've had a bad month+ of illness and have done little in the creativity department.  I'm feeling a bit better and hope to actually sew something soon. 

 

I do have something to show you today.  Thanks to the wonderful world of the internet, you can shop from your home and have things delivered to your door..... doesn't matter if you are sick or not!  (Did you know this?!) Admittedly, this can also be a very bad thing!

 

I've been looking for a Singer Featherweight for several years.  Many things have stopped me from getting one..... couldn't find the perfect machine for me..... too much money.... bad timing.... whatever.  I cruise EBay frequently, always looking for the machine that "has my name on it" and I finally found it! 

 

Here she is, my first Featherweight!  I lucked out finding her.  The person selling this must not have known what he could have charged for this particular machine.  It was a BIN (buy it now) auction and was only listed for a couple of minutes before I bought it.  I knew if I hesitated at all, it would be gone.  He had few pictures, a short description, and didn't even mention her best features.  I took a huge leap of faith ..........

 

She's a May 1938 model and has the wonderful scroll face plate that I wanted so badly.  Overall, her condition is very good.  All of these pictures are her "before" pictures, as I have done nothing to perk her up yet.  She needs a good cleaning, lube and oil job, and finally, a waxing to restore her full luster.  I've been watching YouTube videos that demonstrate just how to do this the proper way.

 

 

 

Backside...

 

This is the main damage that I found.... just a little deterioration of the front decal where someone has rested their wrist over the years.  This is certainly expected on a machine that is 77 years old and this wear and tear is actually very minor for her age.

Here's her beautiful front scroll face plate... it's perfect!

This is her original case, which has several condition issues, but again, it's to be expected for a machine case this old.  It's all intact and in working order.  The handle is still very functional, even though the leather handle is splitting.  Both hinges work perfectly.  Although the case has dings and scratches, much of this will be hidden after a little cleaning and TLC.

This is the original tray inside the case and the goodies that were included.  Not much to speak of except that it has an original key.  There is also an additional foot.....hiding in the upper left corner.... the adjustable hemming foot. 

 

She may not be perfect, but she is all mine!  I'll post some "after" pictures when I get her all cleaned up and running smoothly.  Which, by the way, she does run but I think she may be a little sluggish.  After her cleaning, oiling, and lubing, I'm expecting her to purr.

 

And here's a Kirby update.  He's doing quite well.... he's enjoying a tasty snap pea in this shot.  He's in the middle of a major molt..... his crest feathers are all gone and those are new ones growing in that you see in the photo.  He'll be one handsome dude in a few months!  In my last post I told you that he could say "Hi Kirby" and that I'd be happy if that is all that he ever learned to say.  Well..... he's a regular chatterbox now.  He learns new words easily and can now say "Kirby is a good boy" ..... "I'm a big bird"...... "I love you" ...... "Kirby dance" (bobs his head when he says this)..... sings "Kirby, Kirby, Kirby.... Takes me a few days of saying a particular phrase to him and then he begins to imitate me.  He talks "people" about half of the time and "bird" the rest of the time.  His "people" speaking is much easier on my ears!

Thanks for stopping by today.  At least this post was sewing related, even if there wasn't a completed project to show......soon, I hope!

Checking back in again..... My SIL left yesterday, and as I promised, my sewing machine was put to use and was humming along for much of her visit.

 

Patti found out the week before her visit that she was going to be a grandmother (again) and a great Aunt (again) and wanted to get a start on some baby quilts.  Here's Patti beginning to piece the baby quilt.  She found some cute monkey fabric and thought it would be pretty cute.  She's a beginning quilter and not very confident of her skills, but she truly does a great job.  We chose an easy pattern that will also be used for the other quilts she wants to make.

 

 

 

 

Here's her finished baby quilt.  Patti did everything herself with me just barking directions at her.  She takes her time and is very accurate with everything that she does.  Her quilt is completely finished except for the hand sewing on the back of the binding.  She'll be able to finish it easily at home.

 

 

 

She also brought along a jelly roll that she purchased on a previous visit.  I thought a jelly roll race quilt would be fast an easy..... it was.  She only finished the top but was pleased with the quick results.

 

We had to have a little retail therapy while she was here so we visited a few quilt shops.  This is the fabric that I picked up for myself.  It looks like a lot, but several of the pieces were half price remnants of only 6" or so.

 

 

And here is my treasure!  I found this child's sewing machine at a little antique store that is just down the street from me.  I saw it a few weeks ago and resisted it.  When Patti and I went back to browse around, it was reduced by $5 and had to be mine!  It was a really great deal.  The little machine was probably made in 1957 and is in super shape.  Even the little plastic instruction disc is still attached.  I gave it a few drops of oil, and she's cranking quietly and smoothly. 

 

We actually did quite a few things besides sewing while Patti was visiting.  I didn't want her to feel chained to the sewing machine, even with her deadline to get the baby quilt finished, so we went on some kind of adventure every day.

  (Miss you, Patti!)

 

Now I've got to get myself moving and get my See You in September blog hop under control, as well as the Sister Swap that I joined.  My blog hop day is September 4th, coming right up.  I've only got a few weeks to get everything done, but I think I can.... I think I can....

I have a few new links on my left side bar.  One is for an upcoming hop in September, See Me In September, where we will all make three items to show.  One of the projects must be made out of Riley Blake gingham.  I love having a blog hop where I can make anything that I want and I don't have to rush to meet the deadline.  Of course, that means that I have to get started sometime soon.  We all know how fast time flies and September will be here soon.

Here's my gingham for my project.  I have several ideas floating around in my mind.  That brings me to the other link...the Save The Gingham link.  It appears that Riley Blake may discontinue their gingham line and there is hope that if we express enough interest their gingham, they will keep producing it.  Click on the sidebar link to find out more details.

 

 

The other new link is for another hop....It's a Sister Thing Swap.  We will have secret swap partners and we can make anything that we want, trying to base it on their likes and dislikes.  All participants have blogs, so we can browse their blog to find out about their tastes.  I'll get my partner's name tomorrow and can start thinking of what I'll make for my new blog "sister."

 

Last Christmas, I posted some pictures of a Yoda bag that I had made for a friend.  I wasn't happy with my zipper so I remade it last week.  (Better late than never)  I made it twice as thick and quilted it this time.  My friend carries his GPS in this and thought it would be better if it were thicker.  It is now 8 layers thick...4 of fabric.....4 of batting.  It was a little hard to turn but overall, I'm pleased.

 

 

 

 

And here's my latest treasure!  I was hopping around on Ebay and came across this cute little machine.  It was on the sidebar where they give suggestions for you, based on your searches.  Anyway, for less than $20....she was mine!  For those of you who bid a lot on Ebay, you know that the title of the auction is what you search for, the key words.  This particular auction only said "Diana"....no description....nothing else.  If you were searching for any kind of sewing machine, this auction would not come up.  Because of that, there were only three bidders and I managed to snipe in at the last second to grab her.  Another one is listed on Ebay right now....for $250.  I think I got a great deal!  After she arrived today, I gave her a drink of oil and she turns smooth and quietly.  She's in mint condition and such a beauty!

 

 

 

This is on the back.  She was produced in the 1950's.

 

 

I have several child/toy sewing machines, but for today, Diana is my favorite!

 

Happy Sewing!

Yesterday was a snow day and except for shoveling, I spent the day sewing.  We got pretty lucky with the snow, only about 5" and it was a bit powdery, making it lighter to shovel.  My back is grateful! 

 

My sewing machine needed a new cover and new mat for underneath the machine.  I have an extension table for my machine and my old table mat was too short for the extension table to sit on top of it.  Plus.... I just needed a change. 

 

 

 

 

 

There are eight pockets on the machine cover, six on the front and one on each end.  I like to have these little cubbies to store frequently used (and often lost) items, like my readers.

 

 

 

 

The table mat has six pockets.  Whenever I'm at a class or a friends home, besides using the pockets for sewing tools, I like to use one of the pockets as a thread catcher.  Sometimes a trash container can be hard to find or far away from where you are sewing.  This lets me be neat and not have to leave my seat.

 

This is a close up of the fabric.  It's that double sided, pre-quilted fabric.  I really loved this when I saw it and that's what inspired me to make the new cover and mat.  I found this fabric at Joann's and went back to get some more a few days after I bought it.  It was all gone!  The lady said the bolt sold out in less than a week.  They are expecting more, but you never know if that will happen or not.  I have a little bit left over and may see if I can eke out a bag to hold the extension table when it's not on the machine. 

 

And one last thing.... the binding on the cover and mat is a hot, bright pink.  These pictures (on my monitor) look really washed out.  It's nice and vibrant and really screams "happy" to me!

 

I saw this "simple" child's craft on Pinterest and thought it was kind of cute.  I picked up a few supplies.... cheap melting beads and a special surface to align the beads.... and set forth.  Placing the beads was quite easy, although tedious.  (They had a tendency to roll away or stick to my fingers.)  The sewing machine on Pinterest didn't have a base but I wanted my machine to stand on its own.  Once you arrange your beads, you iron the beads to melt them.... first one side.....cool.... turn it over and iron the other side.  The bottom of my iron must not be flat or heats unevenly, as I had a terrible time getting a consistent melt.  You can see that I really did a melt job on the right side.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'll give it another try some other day with another iron.  It was fun to make and would make a cute ornament or gift tag if you left the stand off.  Consider the possibilities.... :)

I stopped in one of our thrift shops the other day and found this little steal for only $3.00.  I love old sewing machine attachments and goodies.  This box was taped shut.... (unfortunately, with a scotch-type tape) ..... and I ended up removing a little bit of the box hide to get the tape off and open the box. 

 

 

This is what I found inside the box.  Lots of attachments and they are all in good shape.  The box did not include the foot that the attachments attach to..... make sense?  I may already have that foot in some of my other sewing machine implements.... I'll have to take a look. 

 

 

Also in the box..... I saved the best for last....... were these screwdrivers and awl.  These will be loved and used often.  What a great buy for $3.00!

 

 

I hope you find some unexpected treasures today!

My sewing machine got a new outfit today!  I had a gift card from Christmas and I finally decided to use it to buy a Sew Steady extension table for Sewphie (my machine).  It also came with a little swing out tray for underneath the table, but I'm not sure that I'll want to use it or not.  (No picture of the tray.)

 

 

 

 

Sorry about the poor picture..... between the lights and the reflection off of the acrylic, it was hard to get a good shot. 

 

It seems like I'm doing more and more free motion quilting and I thought a few more inches of work surface might help my technique a bit.  OK, anything to help my technique.... if you could even call it a technique..... would be a good thing. 

 

I'll be giving it a test drive soon, as I'll be finishing my next blog hop project shortly.  Meanwhile, I'll see how it functions for regular sewing too.  Whoopee!