Christmas Came Early for Me!
Aine had her birthday yesterday, and I got an early Christmas on Sunday night! I told DH I'd love a treadle sewing machine, purely as decoration, but also one that I could try my hand at at some point too, maybe try to make a small wall hanging on one.We have an ad magazine called Buy and Sell here, which is great for getting secondhand stuff, so he typed in treadle sewing machine and found a working one not too far away. He said he better get it now, because if he let it sit, he'd forget it altogether, so he trekked out Sunday night and came home with this!
It needs a cleaning and some TLC but it works and looks well loved. I love the pincushion they fashioned around it! Any fellow treadle owners have some good tips on how to clean it up gently? I did a bit more scrap organization and STILL have a mountain of unsorted scraps for pillow stuffing. I'm also trying to figure out what boxes baskets or drawers I want to use. I've got big baskets of neutral, brown, green and blue, good sized piles of orange/autumnal, yellow, pink, red, and purple, then I've got the troube ones which I'm just going to call "lights" and "darks". I also have my "Barbara" fabrics, lol, a stack of shabby chic soft florals which have really grown on me as I have admired the quilts she makes, lol. Of course I have my civil war repros, but they have their own 3 drawer plastic bin already!! Oh...and I have a separate novelty and brights stash for kids quilts, and some hand dyes! So many!!
If you can believe it, most of my scraps have been given to me ( I begged on Stashbuster 2 years ago and was rewarded with so many amazing envelopes of gorgeous scraps to my parents house on a trip home to the states, I've been using them ever since). I seem to only buy a fat quarter or two, and always a bolt of natural muslin when I run out...something I use a lot. I am getting better at buying more, there is such a thing as being too frugal! My entire stash of repros grew over the time I was making my Dear Jane by trading fabric and Irish goodies with fellow DJers!! For my "Frugal Jane" I think I bought the muslin and maybe 3 FQs for the entire quilt, the rest was traded. I love swapping and if anyone ever wants to do one, just let me know!
posted by Cathi at 6:43 AM
16 Comments:
How lucky are you? I love the treadle machines, as you say just for decoration, but to have one that works as well - what a bonus. We have this little spot in our entry that would be just perfect. Ahhhh maybe one day.
Jodie
You are so lucky...and so is she, to have found a home with a quilter! Hope you have (environmentally friendly,lol)fun with her
What a lovely old Singer machine ! Enjoy!
The sewingmachine is a treasure. I was to inherit one like that some time ago, but another relative took it from me :( They did not know my grandmother had given it to me long time ago.
I have never joined a fabric swap but that would be interesting.
cleaning treadles, like anything else is a slow and patient process -- lots of elbow grease -- but hey looks like you've got a gem there :-)
What a gorgeous machine. Wonder how many quilts she has helped make? How many tales she could tell!
Don't know about the fabric swap, but will start filling a tin for you after Christmas. Can you email me your address?
BTW can't read your blog properly. Have tried in IE and Firefox and it is spread right across the window.
Congratulations! This is just beautiful. Hope you can find out more about it from the serial number.
What a lovely early Xmas gift!
Beautiful machine--- somebody loves you....
Fabulous machine - I was offered one (for free) a couple of years ago and couldn't take it because I didn't have anywhere to put it. Do I ever regret that now!
That is a model 66 with the lotus decals. I can't tell if its the 'red' lotus or the 'brown' from the photos. Search for 'Treadle On', it is a group of folks who restore and use people powered machines, you will find lots of info there, also a Yahoo group 'Vintage Singers'. Good luck, just be VERY careful with what you use, you can remove the decals, or turn the gold silver by using the wrong thing. Also, if you can read the serial number, you can find out when it was made/how old it is. Great find!
That is a beautiful machine! What fun to clean up & really use. And such fun with a "big" early surprise. Hope you all had a happy celebration for Aine! Happy Days! :o)
what a great sewingmachine
That machine is a wonderful find. I am so pleased it has gone to a loving home..........
Your Treadle Machine is lovely! You are extremely fortunate to find a working treadle in such beautiful condition. I have a treadle that belonged to my husband's Great-Aunt Sue. When I first began quilting I didn't own a machine so I started using the treadle. I sewed quilts on my treadle for 7 years before I bought my Pfaff. They are wonderful machines. I hope you'll give it a try.
What a great gift - can't wait to see the results of your first project once you get it cleaned up and in good working condition.
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