Singer Featherweight Concerns

 Last year, I bought  new Featherweight 221 here in Savannah. My sister spotted it and I credit her with being the enabler. I did not try it out before purchasing...a dangerous move.  I paid $295.

When I got home, I plugged it in and she hummed nicely and the needlebar moved, so I was happy. (They are all female, right?) I did not try sewing on it however.

The serial number indicated that is is a 1950 model made in Elizabeth, NJ.

Here is my source for serial numbers: https://ismacs.net/singer_sewing_machine_company/serial-numbers/singer-sewing-machine-serial-number-database.html

And here is my source for locations: http://www.oldsewingear.com/blog/where-was-my-singer-machine-made

Today I decided to take it for a spin. I oiled it up from directions from these nice folks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OyRXkSLcY8

After that I noticed that the bobbin case had a problem that could not be fixed, someone had snapped a minute metal part. But this guy was instrumental in helping me figure that out: 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLqIAIEiF0w&t=324s

Apparently it's good to check the bobbin case before buying and to threaten anyone doing service on your machine to not swipe it and replace with a cheap import...but I may try just that myself... (wish me luck). 

 But in the meantime, I have another Featherweight from 1940, also made in Elizabeth NJ,  that runs like a top, so I got that one out:

Rocky Mountain House Museum, Alberta

Not too many years ago, I had the chance to visit a friend in Alberta. We  stopped in Rocky Mountain House, I think on the way back from Olds College Fibre week. There's nothing that I like more than an old museum in a town, devoted to saving items from a town's and an area's history.   I look pretty excited on entering...

Rocky Mountain House started as a settlement, dating to the 18th century, as British and Canadian fur traders acquired furs from the First Nations peoples. Rocky Mountain House and Acton House functioned as fur trade posts from 1799 until 1876. Rocky Mountain House was owned by the North West Company; Acton House was established  the Hudson Bay Company.  The two companies merged in 1821. First nations peoples who traded included the Blackfeet, Piegans, and the Kootenays. I learned that pelts were transported east on the rivers. The Canadian reality show "Quest for the Bay" gave me an idea about the  difficulties in  transporting furs to the Hudson Bay in York boats.

Rocky Mountain House became a town after the trading post closed. Scandinavians were primary settlers to the area.   The museum contained wonderful items from the 200 plus years of the town's existence. The museum has a HUGE collection.

This is an old Scandinavian style spinning wheel, possibly Norwegian.

Drum Carder for sheep's wool.

This is an "Indian Head" for a spinning; these were usually attached to treadle sewing machine bases or a simple spinning wheel and were typically used to spin the thick wool yarns used in "Salish" and Cowichan" sweaters.  "Salish" and "Cowichan" refer to indigenous first peoples groups of the Pacific Northwest.  Here's an interesting article with more on this topic.

Oh my...

An old castle-style wheel

A double drive wheel, I'm guessing possibly Norwegian due to the slant...

Hudson Bay blankets were often made into coats. If it had a hood it would called a "capote." More information here. This may be new-ish.

 

The Danish in Alberta

I was lucky to visit my friend Barb in Edmonton in June. We did a driving trip south which included a visit to Dickson, Alberta, halfway between Edmonton and Calgary. We visited the Danish Canadian Museum, of which Barb is now a board member!

The Danish emigrated to Alberta in several waves.  Many emigrated from the western US, not just Denmark. Here is the main building 

There were beautiful mementos of fiber arts, including bobbin lace

and several impressive needlepoint chairs that were brought from Denmark (who had time to needlepoint once on this continent and needing to start a farm??)

this is a needlepointed and beaded midwife's bag

this handsome suit brings Hans Christian Anderson to mind...

When Grandma and Grandpa (Mormor og Bedstefar) were no longer, their Bibles were donated to the museum, which hasn a impressive library collection

We also visited the Dickson Store Museum. The Christiansen family who started the store were emigrants who arrived via Nebraska.  There was some delicious ice cream to be had here!

The Christiansens lived above the store

Of course I could not resist photos of the old Singer, which was made in 1899, according to this useful website. (After 1900 Singers had a letter prefix). I cannot locate where it was made, however. The letter prefixes after 1900 indicate location.

Greetings from Denmark!

Another Singer!

Yes, I am ready for the Zombie apocalypse...I am the proud owner of a handcrank Singer.  I did not get the manual but I believe that she is a Singer 99k, a 3/4 size model.  The friend who I bought her from bought her from a Canadian woman.  

She has a beautiful bentwood case

My new hobby is looking up numbers on the Singer sewing machines that I meet to learn where they were built. (Everything has a footprint. I am a romantic...I believe in the elusive footprint....).  Here is the number on my new Singer

According to this serial number, my machine was built or completed on July 12, 1932.   Apparently, she was built in Clydebank, Scotland. So perhaps...the original owner or her daughter was Scottish and moved to Canada? 

In the meantime, I have enthusiastically sewn this skirt

Fabric.com has a lovely selection of Singer sewing machine themed fabrics.

I have been cutting up tee shirts. I'm a wee big larger than I once was.  But my extremely small Frida Kahlo tee shirts need preserving.  A cutup with the rotary cutter and some slow stitching onto a slightly larger black tee shirt seemed to be the answer.  Of course, using Grandma Helen's thimble.

If you meet me on the street, I will be wearing a glittery Singer skirt with a Frida tee shirt

Happy Spring 2017! Bunny, Baby Chicks, and Knitted Easter Eggs

Busy week here. Yesterday I was picking up baby chicks for my sister...I would have chickens myself but my neighborhood is wrong for that...on the way home I stopped at an antique store in Hardeeville SC and look what I found:

 It is a 1952 Singer Featherweight Model 221. I have been desiring one for a while so I treated myself for my birthday.  She runs like a top.

The original owner, the guy from "Damn Yankees" Antiques (a Yankee himself I belief) thought it came from either Beaufort or Hilton Head.   It was serviced in Princeton NJ in 1978:

And here is the first output from her:  working on a Kaffe Fassett Squares quilt

I purchased the machine quickly as there were chicks in the car, 6 in all here are photos of a couple. I am just chicksitting overnight

Here is this year's egg tree. it looks unfocused but it isn't

Two new eggs this year,  the Koigu egg was loosely based on this pattern: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/elegant-easter-eggs. I love my koigu and will do more. I bought wooden eggs to insert inside

And this lace egg, here is a link to the pattern http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/1-osterei. After making Russian Pysanki at a class some years ago, I realized that eggs will just dry. So, inside is one of my sister's chicken's eggs...a beautiful orange speckly thing...

I found wisteria in the yard last week, I had been trying to grow it from seed but this just popped up in another location, looks like it's been there for a while, always good to leave some wild space in the yard. This is a lovely spring find

And of course here are some Easter bunny photos of Blanca and Rosa