Red Eye

 

Geez!  I am such a sucker!  Like I needed another sewing machine?  I just could not resist this beautiful Singer Red Eye.  Could you?  Look at all of that beautiful paint!  I know.  I can rationalize any purchase.  Would you like me to rationalize a purchase for you?  I can do it without a problem.

So, This was taken the day that I bought her.  Ten bucks!  Come on!  She looks very different now.  I took her to my trusty Singer repair shop and they had to giver her a new electrical system.  They also threw in an overhaul.  She is now in perfect working condition.

Fiber Show

This weekend I stopped in on a fiber arts show.  It was very crowded which meant I did not last very long.  I hate trying to maneuver my way around while trying to view a piece without an obstruction (clueless observer) in my way.

There were plenty of quilts on view.

I enjoyed the slight abstraction of this one.

I admire anyone that can work with color in such a complicated way.  I cannot work with color in any way, shape or form.  That is why I only work in black and white photography.  I just cannot see in that way.

 

OK, this is the only commentary I will give regarding technique.  I have only made a few quilts so I am no expert.  I just prefer that I see the hand of the creator in the piece.  I want to see some hand quilting.  I do not like quilts that are both pieced and quilted by machine.  Even worse when the machine work is done by another party.  There is nothing wrong with it, I just prefer that it not be done this way.  I will get off my soapbox now. 

Look at all of that beautiful handwork done by this person.

 

These were some of the pieces I found the most interesting in the exhibit.  These were made by a woman who spends half of her year in Hong Kong.  These apartment buildings represented her life there.  The fabric was custom printed.  There is hand quilting as well as some applique work.

 

I was also intrigued by this piece which was a weaving with a Japanese influence.

The things I could do...

 

I had never been into AllSaints before.  Honestly, I was lured in by the huge display of antique sewing machines they have on display.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that they also carry some pretty nice clothing.  Look at all of those machines!  This is not the only wall.  There is another wall behind you and then at the opposite end of the store (at the other side of the block) there is another window covered with them as well.

 

There were also many enormous industrial machines throughout the store used as display and racks.  I suppose I am glad that these machines were not thrown in the trash, but I do have to wonder what they could accomplish if put to good use. 

 

I was walking around swooning at the machines.  I am pretty sure the sales girl thought I was nuts.

A very roundabout way that a sewing machine chose me

This is the story about how I spotted one thing and ended up with something completely different...by accident.  About a week ago I was at a flea market and I spotted this nice workbench that had been made out of the bottom of a treadle sewing cabinet and a nice thick butcher-block top.  I was easily seduced by its sturdiness and look.  I looked at the price tag $200.  It really did not matter because it was already sold.  Somehow I got it in my brain that I could just make one on my own.  I already had the butcher block, so all I needed to do was find the base at another flea market  No problem.  Plus, it would only cost a portion of that asking price.  Now I had it filed away in my brain with the thousands of other things to look for.  Recently, I have begun to attend auctions.  This is completely new to me.  The first time I actually sat there for several hours before wimping out.    I ended up leaving with nothing because the prices were just too high for me.  I was much more successful the second time around.  I realized that I just needed to leave an absentee bid.  First, I did not have to sit around there for hours on end.  Second, it guaranteed that I would never be tempted to go above the price limit  I had set for myself.  It worked.  I ended up with a box full of unrelated stuff that was actually a goldmine for me.  I guess you just never know.  Fast forward to last week.  Another auction.  I spy an empty treadle sewing cabinet at the preview.  I make sure to try and lift it myself to test if I will be able to get the thing home.  I leave my very low bid and I find out the next day that I have won with that very low bid.  Really?!

 

When I pick it up I realize that I had not really paid any attention to the condition of the cabinet because I was set on cannibalizing it for my workbench.  Well, that all changed upon closer inspection.  The cabinet is in such beautiful condition that I could no longer take it apart. Look at that wood.   Now what?  I decided I had to hold out until I found a sewing had to fit that cabinet.  Really, I was in no hurry.

on Friday I decided to drop off some donations to the Goodwill drop-off center.  When I leave it, the guy gives me a coupon for 25% off of my next purchase.  OK.  I go to lunch at Misoya and then decide to make a quick stop at the Goodwill nearby to look for some specific jars I need.  No jars, but something even better.  Sitting on a shelf was this beautiful Singer 15-91 screaming for me to take it home and put it in my new cabinet.  Plus, I had that newly acquired coupon in my pocket turning this find into a real bargain.

 

Look at how pretty she is with all of her gold accents.  The paint is in beautiful condition.

This was one of my best accidental and timely finds so far.  It seems to work fine, but I will eventually take it to the Singer place to have it checked out.  It was also converted to n electric motor, but I think I might have that taken off so I can use it with the treadle.  I will keep the motor for future use should I change my mind.

This is not a new theme

I swear this is not a new blog theme.  I will back off from the sewing machine posts soon.  The one thing that would be easier on an industrial type machine than on my 29-4 is straight line sewing. of larger flat pieces.  I could use a machine that would handle the thinner leather in larger pieces and leave the thick pieces requiring special maneuvering to the 29-4.  Then I remembered that my grandmother's old sewing machine was in my Mom's basement.  It was manufactured in 1942.  Such pretty design work.

From what I can tell, it will be able to handle the leather and some of the heavier materials I might want to sew.  I dropped it off at a Singer distributor today. The woman who waited on me was very excited to see this machine.  I am hoping that they can get it into good working order and I will pretty much be set for anything.  Don't you just love it when you can shop for free in the basement?

Karma

I do believe that sometimes things are just meant to be. I believe this to be true in life as well as shopping. A few weeks ago I was determined to try making one of those duct tape body double dress forms. I had tried this before a few years ago with an unsuccessful result. I should have used the method using an old t-shirt that you are then able to cut off of your body. I was also disappointed to find out that my body double did not resemble Marg Helgenberger one single bit. Anyway, I was ready to bite the bullet and try the improved method. One day over lunch I warned my mother because she would have to be the one doing the binding, taping and cutting. She was not thrilled. On the way home I stopped at a thrift store on a whim. I told her I was just running in to take a look and I would be right out. There she was. It was meant to be. A vintage Dritz My Double wire dress form...and she was half off. I grabbed her right up. As I headed out of the store and toward the car my mother said, "Oh good, then I don't have to tape you up."
I still need to name her.

Wishful thinking

This rainy weather makes me wish for a garden party.

The Weekend

Not only did I actually leave the dry warmth of my house in this weather, but I pulled myself away from the basketball tournament in order to spend the weekend here:

Yes, I took my virgin tour of Swap-o-rama-rama and it was well worth the sacrifice. It all began on Friday night with the Re:Make fashion show which was really good. Each of the designers created their collection from re-used and vintage fabric and recycled material. I will send a link once the pictures are posted.
The rest of the weekend was spent at the actual Swap-o-rama-rama event. I was there on Saturday from about 9 until 2. This is what it looked like when I arrived. Other than the volunteers there were only a handful of people in the morning. It was pretty quiet until around 1 p.m. I attribute this to the horrible weather and the fact that some people might not like to get out of bed on a Saturday morning.

Don't you love this old school gymnasium? These are the beginning stacks of clothing, accessories and fabric to dive into. I brought 2 garbage bags full of fabric and some clothing as well. There were more tables with notions of every kind. It was a dream come true. You could take as much as you wanted.

This is half of the auditorium. I am seated at a sewing machine. As you can see, there are stations for silkscreen and fabric dyeing. Behind me were stations for embroidery, legwarmers, pet toys, bags, jewelry and fabric necklaces. That balcony above is where the live bands played while you were sewing, crafting or digging. They also had a really good DJ in between band sets.

As I was getting acclimated I started small with these yoyos I made from a silk tie and some vintage buttons.

After that I began to let go and just try experimenting with all of the stuff I had in front of me. Some worked out, others did not. It was a great opportunity to just sit and have a good time while making things. For me, that turned out to be 4 hours on day one of sitting and making. There were volunteers in every area to help you out if you needed anything. I was having a good old time with my Janome sewing machine which ran a lot smoother than my old workhorse at home. The picture above was an experiment with 2 t-shirts I found in the pile. I would have preferred to use t-shirts that were the the same color, but I worked with what I had in order to see how the fabric would work with the idea in my head. It was a good laboratory for my thoughts.

This was something I made toward the end of the day. I figured I should also be making gifts while I was there. They had a few of these new eco totes for us to use. I added the front of this t-shirt. I will give it to someone who likes yoga.

Day 2: Yes, I dragged myself away from the tournament and headed back for another day. As you can see above, the crowd was a little bigger and the clothing piles just kept growing. I ended up grabbing some more clothes from the swap (including several pairs of nice pants) and made this shirt out of two from the pile. It is a combination of a vintage polyester shirt and a black cotton long-sleeved t that I modified.

So, yes, it was worth missing all of that basketball for. If Swap-o-rama-rama is coming to your town I wholeheartedly encourage you to try it out. You will have a good time and walk away with a pretty good (and cheap) wardrobe update as well.

A Little Experiment

I recently saw this image over at The Sartorialist. I fell in love with the sleeveless trench vest that this woman is wearing. There were a lot of comments about this outfit. Some thought that a sleeveless coat was impractical. Others just did not like the look of anything sleeveless. I disagree.

Photo by The Sartorialist

So, I have decided to grab some scissors and my sewing machine for a little experiment. Fear not. It will only be a $6 experiment if it happens to go wrong.

De-lovely

Oh, each one of these ladies looks lovelier than the next. I do not know which I desire to be. Actually, I cannot be any of them since I am not thin and statuesque, but more importantly since I am not white. If only I did not have a pumpkin sized head so I could pull off the hairstyle of Bachelorette #1. I love the mod print and drop earrings on Bachelorette # 2. Although I fight my gray hairs every step of the way I really love the looke of the white bob on Bachelorette # 3. Bachelorette #4 has that je ne sais quoi with her stunning hat and gloves. Bachelorette #5 has that Ginger vibe going on and that damask (I am using my imagination) fabric is faboo. Bachelorette #6 is who I wish I could be at some swanky dinner party. The mile high coiffed upswept hairdo, the to-die-for earring and necklace set and the long, long gloves. All that bling with a simple chic shift. Sigh. I am off to my sewing room to make all of these dresses and assume the imaginary lives of all of these lovely ladies...after a few martinis.

Confessions, Resolutions, and things I must conquer

I have made a resolution that I will finally try and learn how to use this Singer Touch & Sew machine. I have had it for a few years now and it is currently sitting under my sewing table, untouched. I bought it for $5 at a rummage sale. I generally use my other Singer for my sewing needs, but I think it is finally time that I learn how to use this machine or get rid of it.

This type of machine has the ability to sew many, many stitches and designs.

It uses these cams which give the machine to sew whatever pattern is shown on that particular disk. When I purchased the machine there was a handful of disks that came with it. Over time, I acquired more disks. This was just pure luck. I later found a grocery bag full of these disks at another sale.

I now have loads of these disks. I also found an attachment that will do monogramming. I could personalize everything. I think I will monogram my underwear. :) I think that this should be enough incentive for me to learn how this machine works.

The disks are simply placed in this slot beneath the top of the machine. It sounds easy, but we shall see. Either I will soon be sewing patterns and letters on everything in sight, or I will be passing on this machine that I am unable to conquer. I will try and use at least one disk a week and share it here.

While I am on the subject of confessing to things I must conquer, I have to add another item to that list. I confess that just as some people are attracted to shiny new things, I seem to be attracted to older things that seem like they can make cool new things. Usually , I have no idea how to use these things. This is another example of my problem.

I found this Brother knitting machine a few years ago for $15. I was very excited at what I might be able to make with it. I swooped down on that baby like a predator bird on some unsuspecting small animal. Wings spread, talons out...and SWOOP. I didn't really take the time to consider the fact that I had no idea how to use a knitting machine.

That might have been something useful to consider. This will be machine number 2 on my list of things to conquer. Stay tuned.