Well, if you knew me pretty well, you’d know that I’m pretty crafty. An’ I don’t mean sneaky or sly ; ) I mean creative and handy. I pretty well taught myself to sew. Oh I had a lesson or two in middle school, but when my mom gave me my first sewing machine when I was in highschool, well I made a patchwork skirt without any patterns and I was hooked!
It’s been awhile since that sewing machine and I parted ways, but the love of stitching fabric has not lessened over time. And a few weeks ago, I found a new machine! Well, “new” to me! It’s a Singer “Fashionmate” 237, and I would have missed it entirely if I didn’t have such a dream of owning a machine in a cabinet! That must have been the only reason I noticed the double top on that little desk, $15 and a little panting later, she was loaded up!!
This machine has done more already than just made it possible for me to sew a bit faster. I joined some online groups- one dedicated to vintage and antique Singer sewing machines, sharing information, help, supplies, and a simple love of and for their machines; the other, a group of sewing machine mechanics and tinkerers. I learned that Singer was one of the first international corporations, and built one of the first skyscrapers in New York City. I learned (this is kind of sad if you’re familiar with sewing) that sewing machine attachments can do so many time saving tasks for you!! – yeah sadly no sewing machine I ever had, had it’s attachments. I have unscrewed all the face plates to clean and oil my machine for the 1st time! I learned that there is a huge community of people who love their old machines, use them, collect them, restore them, and want to share their knowledge. There’s even a group called TreadleOn who hold gatherings to teach people about treadle sewing and even help them convert their machines!!
Sew. . .. : ) I have the machine but, as we prepare to travel, everday is a reminder that I will soon lose my workspace. But while we are on the road I plan to do a bit of studying up on fabrics, their care, proper needles and thread for different projects and of course doing lots of sketching!!
Stay tuned! I dream of designing a strong feminine fashion.
Peace, Rain.
Sweeet!