With a Little Help From Our Friends

 I'm back. I didn't go anywhere, I just needed a break from my usual fair and, unfortunately, I left my readers behind. It was a long, tough winter and spring seems so have eluded us in Minnesota, but let's proceed with springtime in our souls.

Sewing machine sales and repairs have been busy as well as sewing, sewing, sewing on all the different sewing machines. Lovely women have come to sew at my house, making zippered pouches, then fleece mittens, followed by fleece slippers. Okay, so maybe that was the wrong order and they should have accomplished the easier slippers before tackling the more difficult mittens (left, right or right left?), a good time was had by all.

Then there was Wendy, bless her heart, who had a vision of what she wanted to make after tackling the above projects. On her way to making a rag quilt with some of her mother's clothing, she paused to make machine embroidered pillowcases for the boys in her life. What started out as sports themed motifs for three boys on Easter turned into a total of five:

Four of the final five pillowcases

We used the Singer Futura XL 400 to download and stitch out the designs and I made Wendy stitch up the rest of the pillowcase on another machine. After she handed them out, the oldest nephew, at 16, pulled her aside and said "Aunt Wendy, I got the best one!", a Nike shoe she did pick out just for him.

Here's the blessing in doing this kind of work with others: while we were getting this all sewn over a couple weeks in March and April, Wendy's youngest sister is getting sicker and sicker, finally going to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Surgery was scheduled, testing was done, but before she could have the surgery she died, leaving behind that 16 year old son mentioned above and a six year old who got the spider man pillowcase. No one knew this was going to happen so fast and are scrambling to place the boys into another aunt's home in their hometown. Working on these pillowcases gave Wendy a reason to come to our house and talk about her sister and what she was going through, talking with my husband who was in the medical field before early retirement, who has also been a chaplain. We didn't know this was a respite in her life, a chance to get out of the house and direct her energy into something creative. But, Wendy didn't have a sewing machine at home and that's why she was using mine.

In steps Warren, a recent widow, whose wife had been giving me fabric and sewing "stuff" (that's an official sewing term, look it up) over the years after she became legally blind. Jenny told Warren that when she died she wanted her sewing stuff to go to Karen because she would know what to do with it. Oh, you betcha! First came two sewing machines, then a tackle box of supplies, and I hear there are more bobbins coming, too. Now who should those sewing machines go to? I usually have no clue but this time I thought about Wendy and asked her if she would like the refurbished Signature model to use, for free, to see if she would like to eventually purchase it or just return it. She's going to give it a go, hoping to return it later when she has more skills and could use a better sewing machine. I don't think she's going to need a better machine because this one is really nice, just purring along with a great stitch. When I told Warren about the new home for one of the sewing machines, he was taken aback at first, then remembered who Wendy was, and a big smile came across his face. That was going to be a good home for one of Jenny's sewing machines; I agree.

Wendy holding up flaming baseball pillowcase

 

Jelly Roll Rugs without the Jelly

 It has been another busy week with sewing machines and sewing projects. You never know which sewing machines are going to be sought after until you run an ad and the phone rings off the hook. Actually, the phone never rang at all but I did have six people who got in touch with me via text and email who wanted a pink and dark gray Brother Select-O-Matic I advertised for sale. I've had eight of this model over the years and even kept one for myself but never have they been this popular. Due to the poor condition of the paint on the bed of the machine, I repainted it in November but then let it "cure" so there would be a nice hard finish when I was ready to sell it. First contact was from Susan, a repeat customer, so I was willing to hold it for her. Then came the other inquiries and I even managed to sell the same model in teal that was in even better condition but there was just something about the pink and gray finish that is irresistible. Here's hoping Susan is loving her Brother Select-O-Matic as much as I love mine.

Brother Select-O-Matic in recovered case

I have been intrigued by the jelly roll rugs, those easy to make rugs that use a set of strips 2.5" wide and 44" long that are rolled up and sold in a bundle called a jelly roll. As if that wasn't easy enough, they also have a roll of batting that is 2.5" wide, sold in rolls of 25 or 50 yards. I had been sitting on a 50 yard roll but didn't want to use one of the jelly rolls I had in my stash so I cut my own using the Simplicity cutter. Here it is with the strips I cut for my own rug:

Simplicity Rotary Cutting Machine

The dandy little machine was purchased last fall at one of the Textile Center's sales for less than $10. I found out that the widest setting is exactly 2.5", perfect for the jelly roll rugs. It takes practice to hold the fabric steady so my strips weren't as precise as when using a hand held rotary cutter on a mat, but it was fast and good enough. I sewed all of the strips together and sat down to sew then up on an industrial Singer 31-15. That didn't go very well with much puckering and struggling to keep it straight. I needed a walking foot but that doesn't really exist for industrials since they would simply use a walking foot machine, not a different presser foot. Here I was, all ready to sew, without a walking foot machine.

Strips sewing together but need to add the strip of batting

Then it dawned on me: use a Pfaff with the IDT, their version of a built in walking foot. I pull out my Pfaff 1222, set it up on the kitchen table, and get to sewing:

Here's 50 yards of tubing for a rug

Would the Pfaff 1222 also be able to sew the strips together with a zigzag? Let's hope so. I added a plexiglass table for a larger work surface and found that to be very helpful.

Pfaff 1222 with extension table

Other suggestions were to press after a few rows and that was good advice, too. In the end, it turned out to my satisfaction and now resides at the porch exterior door:

My version of a jelly roll rug

This worked out so well I found/dug out a braided rug I was working on but could no longer use the Bernina 217 industrial due to a cracked needle plate. The Pfaff 1222 can sew up those braids, too!

Waiting in the laundry room with 2 more rows to sew

I'm not sure if this is going to end up in the camper or in the garage, but it has been an experiment.

With all of the interest in the Brother sewing machine these past two weeks keeping me busy, I had one machine returned. That's not quite right: it wasn't returned but given back when it was no longer needed. I wrote about it in Maintaining Good Will back in 2018, this interesting Singer Quantum CXL. The alphabet stitches were used to write the name of a nursing home resident right on his clothes, not a tag, so they would not get mixed up with others in the laundry. Sadly, the resident died and the machine was just sitting around so it was given back to me. It's a fine machine with much life left in it but no long can stitch in a multi-directional mode: I think the step motor is dying. I hope I can find a buyer who doesn't care about those stitches since it is still working fine for all of the other stitches. It even has a cut thread feature and a needle threader. There is a sewing machine for everyone!

Next up: ready for winter mittens? I can sew up a pair for you!

Refashioning

 I've become frustrated with a few sewing machines, only stitching backwards, won't stitch in fabric but makes perfect patterning on cam settings, sticky dials and insides, so after a few days of that I turned to sewing for an ego boost.  While moving things around I found a bag of clothes I set aside because they were just too nice to toss and I hoped to bring them back to life as a different item. There were two men's shirts that I wanted to make into full aprons, not the half aprons I've made in the past, so I made up one as a sample

Man's Shirt now a full sized apron

and I liked it but that's as far as it went.

There were two skirts with border prints that just begged to be made into little girl dresses so that was a great project. Using the following patterns

I used a blue skirt with a border pattern to make

Simplicity 1673, size 3

but I didn't have enough for the neckline band. However, I did have some collars so when I combined them with a set for the front

and another set at the back

all I had to do was to sew them together at the shoulders. I did have to make up the neckband in white and laid the collar pieces on top but I think the collar shows off quite well. 

Next up was a skirt I never wore but I bought because of the border print. Using McCalls 336 (2010), I made up this model

adding the tie belt/sash because it seems quite wide! I also made the shoulder straps adjustable by using three buttonholes with fairly large buttons so they would look like decoration if they weren't all used due to the length needed. The straps seemed too thin for buttonholes so I added grosgrain ribbon on the back. As long as I had the ribbon out I added my granddaughter's name on it so now she can tell the front from the back

The final refashion was a bridesmaid dress from Evelyn's mom. I said I would donate it to a free prom dress cause but it was just too old and not at all prom-like

Bridesmaid circa 2004

I loved the dresses from Simplicity 5638 (2003), but the bridesmaid dress had a separate skirt, with gores, and a highly structured top, I wasn't sure this was going to work. But it did:

Front

I actually laid the front pattern piece right onto the front of the beaded bodice and cut from there. When it came to the back I did the same thing, especially since it was a separating zipper so I wanted to keep it in place as well as the row of buttons

Back

Because we live in the land of cold, I thought a little jacket might work out well and there was just enough fabric left over for a bolero type shown in the pattern

From bridesmaid to little maid

I struggled with all those gathers on the skirt and came to the conclusion bridal satin is not made to be gathered. I ended up taking it out and making pleats but it still seems to stick out even after pressing. Lesson learned but it was all for free! I didn't dare line the skirt but the bodice is fully lined. All three dresses were approved by Evelyn's mom and I loved the whole process. I honestly don't even care if she doesn't have the opportunity to wear such a fancy dress, I now know I can do it.

Sewing machines are awaiting and maybe now I can face their problems again but wait, I hear the call of winter mittens out of fleece and old sweaters that also want to be refashioned. Will it ever end? Let's hope not!

More Vintage Linen

 Picking up on the last post about using tablecloths, I seem to be on a roll and can't stop sewing up those vintage linens. I went into a huge storage container at the bottom of the pile to see all of the linen I've collected. Some got washed, pressed, photographed, and made ready for my Etsy shop. Others had stains or even holes so I have earmarked them for porch pillows. I then worked on making summer tops out of two of them in better shape. Here's a very fancy top sheet that was probably never even used it was so pristine:

Bed sheet?

The embroidery was only along one edge so that was my conclusion. I went with a sleeveless shirt pattern and put the fancy work at the bottom

Decorative edge extends on the back also

I like it but it seemed like it was a long way from the top of the decoration to the neckline so I added a row of stitches

Embroidery stitches using light gray embroidery thread

What machine did I use for this nearly perfect stitch? My Bernina Record 730, of course. Now I'm happy with it. Next up was a cross stitch tablecloth that reminded me of a little shirt my daughter Kelly wore when she was only five years old. I didn't trust myself to make up a peasant blouse pattern although there are free ones online. Here's what I came up with using a commercial pattern:

I couldn't fit the long sleeves onto the tablecloth so I tried elbow length sleeves with the scalloped edge of the tablecloth at the bottom. It worked great so I went with that rolled hem edge for the hem of the shirt, too. As it turns out, not every serger can make a decent rolled hem (I tried three) and I finally had to pull out a Simplicity tiny three thread serger to get the best rolled hem. I leave that one set up for rolled hem only!

While looking for the sergers, I had to check out a shelf that had some old White treadle heads. I know I'm not going to be using them so I bit the bullet and listed all three for sale: I got two calls for buying all three! Dwayne came down yesterday and picked them up, telling me he refurbishes and sells them to the local Amish community. We then had a bit of discussion if I would have others without motors and I just might have to take him up on that. I would love to see some of these machines go to good homes and sometimes a motor is the only thing that holds them back. Dwayne might be my next best friend.

Everyone is sewing and buying sewing machines with cold weather and indoor activities at an all-time high. Some sell as soon as they get posted, other linger but are just as worthy. They are all my friends, but some just a little lower on the list. 

Keep calm and sew on.

Tablecloth Magic

 I would love to be able to pull a tablecloth out from under a full setting of dishes but I'm no magician. Instead, I've been busy with vintage tablecloths and finding new life for them as pillows. When I could no longer contain my personal collection of tablecloths, napkins, and placemats in the four large containers, I knew it was time for a clean out. Those I knew I was not going to use I sold in my Etsy shop but I had even more vintage linen in a huge Rubbermaid container. I dug down into that box and pulled out most of the tablecloths and then started to evaluate their worth. Only a few were worthy to sell and the rest were in various stages of disrepair. What can you do with stains that do not come out and holes worn through the fabric in others? I got busy and started to figure out which pieces were of usable size and what to make of them. First up was a rosy red tablecloth with four good corners so I pieced them together, added piping border

Four corners red and teal tablecloth into pillow

and pieced the rest of the salvageable tablecloth for the back.

It's even pretty on the backside!

I got fancy and added an invisible zipper so it can be removed for washing. This one got a new pillow insert with the very last of the poly filling I had, encasing it in a new white cotton case. Could I do this with each one? Probably not.

Next up was a lovely green scalloped edged tablecloth that had no flaws except for some of the stitching coming undone on the scalloping. Thinking I had good luck with the four corners idea, I did the same

Green scalloped edge with delicate flowers

for this pillow. Instead of the zipper insertion, I made an envelope pocket style of closing where one side of the back overlaps the other by at least six inches to allow the inserted pillow to be removed. I really liked this one but now I'm wondering where I'm going to put these two pillows.

The next two pillows just cried out for lace edging and did I ever have a stash of it to use up:

Faced roses and lullaby land pillows

The print was so delicate, maybe faded, on the teal and green tablecloth but there was enough to capture two sections for a pillow with a zipper for easy removal for washing. That little lavender gem was a tablecloth made out of what seems to be hankie linen so maybe it was not a tablecloth. Looking closely it appears to be a sailboat and looks like it belongs in the nursery. The front and back are the same on both of these lace trimmed pillows and by now I've exhausted my stash of pillow forms. What is left is a very large tablecloth and a couple bed pillows so that is what I made up:

Full sized bed pillow with new blue and white casing

For this one I found some thicker piping and there was enough fabric to make up my own matching piping. I used the envelope style of closing but added vintage buttons to keep it closed:

Last section of this tablecloth on the back, buttons on right side

I had already used a large piece of this tablecloth to cover my BIG iron board having read that tablecloths can make the best ironing board covers. I'll give it a try!

Now I have this great collection of vintage tablecloth pillows but where am I going to use them? Some would look nice in the porch for summer and others really wouldn't but I get another brainstorm. How about taking the dark quilt and pillows from the guest bedroom

and replacing them with the bright quilt my aunt made for me? Here's how it turned out:

It looks quite old fashioned with the metal trundle bed but I like the brighter look for the coming spring. The pillows look great with all of their colors, finding some of those shades in the quilt. My aunt hand quilted the whole thing! I've had it for 40 years so there's no sense in keeping it stored. although I did use it for several years as a bedspread when I first received it.

There are still more tablecloths left, some to be used for clothing, some for the remaining bed pillow in that bedroom, but I feel like I've made good use out of these worn out beauties. Their best parts are now on display and the rest is cut up for rags. I really hate to use paper towels so now I have a good stash of rags that might be used once, might be used and wash up but at least they are getting used.

Which sewing machine did I use? My Husqvarna Viking Designer 1, of course. I managed to repair the broken bobbin winder but in the process now the LCD display if a bit off so I'll have to investigate and see which part I jiggled lose but my bobbin winder is back! Sewing machine sales are still going on with another Bernina leaving midweek and a Viking Freesia 415 finding a new home yesterday. There are many happy sewers out there and I love to hear from them. How about you?

The Girl Next Door

 Winter is here in the frozen north, even if they think we might have a few 50 degree days ahead. The snow pack is very real and now we hunker down and get sewing! I need to get a few more sewing machines listed for sale so everyone has a greater choice of models but I've been sewing and quilting and even with retirement there are only 24 hours in a day.

Back when I had 3-4 cabinet sewing machines in the garage, I sold a Singer 15-125 and received a Singer 66 as part of the deal. Why was it going out the door? It just wasn't used anymore and the table had a few dings in it. I finally got around to checking it out when we had a whole week of warm weather

Singer 66 table top

only to find a large chip on the front and a nifty piece missing on the top surface.  Above you can see the general flaking of the finish so it was going to need a complete stripping of the finish. I rarely deal with veneer problems but this one begged to be fixed:

Chip

 

A close up shows the degree of damage. Using a piece of the veneer from the front I cut and pieced it in:

Veneer glued down

It doesn't look too great at this point but when wood filler and stain were added it ended up looking pretty normal

Finished top

With a chunk of the veneer missing from the front, I chipped it all off, sanded it down and left it lighter than the original finish for a completely new look:

Two tone finish

What about the machine inside? It's a beauty, a classic Singer 66 in excellent shape:

Classic Singer 66 in her refinished table

I love a Singer 66, so basic yet so reliable. I think of it as "the boy or girl next door" who is always there and smiling, underappreciated, until someone realizes the beauty within:

Singer 66: where's that chipped piece?

Quilting has been taking up my time as I've been working on a quilt for a friend. It was an easy pattern and quick to put together:

Pieced blocks in one arrangement

Above is one version of the arrangement of blocks but I found I needed to even things out so instead of 42 blocks I ended up with 48 blocks. Right now I'm quilting it with various free motion patterns and writing. When it is all done I'll show you some of the features of this one but, for now, it needs to remain a bit hidden. A nifty surprise was finding 109" wide fabric for backing at Hobby Lobby. I only needed around 2 yards, it wasn't on sale so I could use my 40% off coupon for a real deal of only $15 for the backing. Saving my judgement until after washing, it came through the laundry just fine but did shrink. I'll need to buy a little extra next time. 

I better get those machines ready for sale because the weather calls for sewing, sewing, sewing!

Getting Ready and Making Do

It's been a great week of warm weather but we know it won't last so I've been getting the last of the cabinets finished up and posted for sale. The garage needs to be cleared out to get both cars in before snow arrives and in Minnesota that means November. Here's my latest adventure with cabinets and their machines. 

A few weeks ago I had refinished one of my favorite cabinets that I wrote about in Singer Restored Plus a Garage Sale and I no more than sold it and I bought another one. It's all refinished now but there is a problem with the cabinet when I switched sewing machines. It came with a Singer 500 that is very nice but not really the right machine for a cabinet of this era. Doesn't this table look like a treadle but without the treadle mechanism?

School Desk table

When refinished I wanted to put a Singer 15-91 into it but there was a problem: a gap between the machine and the edge of the cabinet. Usually there is a metal plate and spring mechanism installed but this one did not have that nifty addition. I even have one in my stash of parts but it didn't fit the opening correctly. What's a body to do about that? First we went to Walmart and, using measurements, combed the aisles looking for a storage compartment that would fit. You have to give my husband credit for helping me in the search but we didn't find a good container. Back home I search my own collection of boxes without finding anything. Then I thought about how I have made up paper boxes so I looked at my stash of mailing supplies and found a box that was close in size. I could cut it down and reshape it to fit

Box in the making

I covered it with wood grain Duck Tape and set it into place

Box to fill in the gap

It is held in place by the front lip which only holds it in place until the machine is folded down but there are 4 drawers for holding supplies and one can be for this box. This is not a perfect solution but seems like a viable alternative to a gaping hole. The new owner can either use it or toss it away.

Singer 15-91 with box in place

The Singer 15-91 in the table is in nearly mint condition with excellent decals and finish. Someone is going to get a real showpiece.

Singer 15-91 in school desk table

I love the classic look of the post-treadle cabinet/table with a traditional black Singer sewing machine. Who wouldn't want to sit down and sew with this beauty?

I've been busy sewing up clothes for my 8 year old granddaughter, Emma, who requested a jumpsuit. Using a vintage pattern from the '60's

Butterick 4919

I made up a short version in a nice knit that she loved but she requested one longer so I made up an orange version that she picked out!

Butterick 4919 in longer length

It was way too plain for me so we dressed it up with leaf buttons

 Jumpsuit with button trim and leaf zipper pull

and a zipper pull with one more red leaf. She loved the zipper pull on the last one, just a circle of the fabric stitched down, so this one also gets a cool zipper pull. Another shirt was finished up and now grandma is finished making clothes for Emma for a little while. It's fun that she still likes this effort of mine but she's a bit fussy so it might not last long. I'll take what I can get besides there are plenty of other grandchildren to sew and knit for; the joys of a big family!

Block Exchange Tote Bag

Every year I look forward to spending a day or more with sewing friends that I have made through the Treadleon group of treadle and hand crank sewing machine enthusiasts. In the past we have met in Lake City, home of Cindy Peters, one of the founders of Treadleon and a dynamite sewer.  Cindy died in the winter of 2019 but her dream didn't as we have continued to meet in Lake City every September for the River Rats TOGA, a gathering of treadle and hand crank owners/buyers/sellers and sewers. We have only had one TOGA without Cindy before COVID19 invaded our lives and this September we knew gathering in person was not going to be a good idea. What should we do? It turned out we could have a virtual conference with plenty of Zoom sessions for learning skills and just gathering to share our current projects. 

It was a great success! Mea is our leader in this adventure but there were so many helpers in getting sessions together as well as the annual BLOCK EXCHANGE. I agonized over my blocks as I wrote about in the post Card Tricks. Imagine my surprise when I opened my package of quilt blocks that were resent via Denise, the organizer, to find someone else had also chosen the design called Card Tricks but in very different colorways. Each block was so unique and well done it was just fun to look at all of them. But what was I going to do with them? With only 15 it was going to be a pretty small quilt, I have no room for wall hangings, I could collect them and at a future date make up a larger sized quilt, or I could....make a tote bag. I had so much fun designing it and getting it done in a day that I wanted to show it off on out last free-for-all Zoom session. It was a big hit so thanks to all who gave such wonderful praise and affirmed I wasn't out of my mind to make a bag instead of a quilt. I was asked to share how I made it and I told them I would write up a blog post to show some of the steps. Here's the end result:

Quilt block tote bag: Virtual River Rats TOGA 2020

To begin with, I spread out all of the blocks and grouped by colors. Then I checked my fabric stash and grabbed what was right on top (why not?) to see if it would pull all of it together:

Side, front, lid

Back, other side

I got busy sewing the sashing onto the blocks and making a large tubular casing with them all sewn together, adding a rectangular bottom, sewing the lining, and then sitting back to determine what I needed to do to give it shaping. To start, I made an insert in the bottom that would give a nice "floor" to the bag that would also be washable. Plastic canvas that was popular a few decades ago can still be found in stores but I have a stash from my aunt just begging to be used. It wasn't long enough so I added a section on and fused it with a hot iron, protecting all of it with an old t-shirt. As it turned out, it fused onto the cotton shirt so I just cut it to size and used it as one of the layers. I made a pocket for the right sized plastic canvas out of the lining fabric, stuffed it into the pocket like a pillow in a pillow case, and sewed it up. Down into the bottom of the bag it went and even was sewn into place so there would be no shifting. The lining went in next and I pulled it up to the top, folded both the outside and lining edges in for a finished look but it just flopped there. Now I remembered a hint from another blog about making a wire rimmed top but I had never done something like that before and the materials that were used in the blog post were ones I didn't have on hand. Well, that wasn't going to stop me! Here's what I came up with:

Wire coat hangers

Using only 2 hangers, I cut off the hook on one and the hook and one arm on the other one so there was very little shape shifting needing to be done. I laid them down as in the photo above and wrapped the cut/loose edges with electrical tape and then electrical shrink wrap used in wiring. The heat shrink tubing was 1/4" - 1/8" size and I added it before assembly so I could slide it into place after wrapping the corners. Applying a bit of heat from a candle tightens up the plastic and creates a bond of sorts. Now I could insert this frame into the top of the bag:

Frame ready to be inserted

Frame stitched into top: note 2 rows of stitching

Installing it was quite the process, deciding to create a pocket for it by stitching down about 3/4" from the top folded edge, inserting the frame, using clips to hold in place, and the sewing the top edge to hold it all in. Using my Pfaff hand crank, it wasn't too difficult until the corners. All but one corner worked well but the final corner just could not fit under the arm of the machine: that will need some hand stitching.

Before I added the framework I did sew the top or lid onto the backside and it became a part of the top structure but was not in the way at all. I liked how it was turning out but realized I hadn't used one of my quilt blocks since there was only room for 14 and we were a group of 15. But I still needed handles. I check my project bin and there were five of my blocks that didn't get sent or used:

Card Trick blocks sewn together for straps

When sewn together, cut down the center, pressed, and filled with nylon webbing:

Straps ready for sewing

 I now had 2 straps to sew onto the top edge. This proved to be difficult for the Pfaff and some of the stitching has pulled out so I need to go back and hand sew into place. I'm considering adding a bit of embroidery on the outside of the bag where the straps are sewn to cover up the stitches but we shall see. Here are all of the sides of the finished tote bag:

Lid

Side

Side

Back

Front

Such a fun project that only took a day, or less, and that included the time to figure out how to engineer it all together. Next one will be much easier. Next one? We are talking about have a Mid-Winter TOGA and it just might have another quilt block exchange. Now you have another idea of what to make with your blocks!