Christmas Makes

Hello

I have been making some Xmas pressies and reckoned it would be safe to give a sneak preview.

First is a commission for some pot holders for my friend's daughter.

Then a couple of heart tree decorations for our new neighbours, put some homegrown lavender inside.  Jill likes all things heart shaped.

A bag for ?????

For my lovely customer Don, I baked some biscuits.

Finally, had a go at a tree decorations for our home.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful, peaceful Christmas.

Take care

Sharon x

Industrial Sewing Machine

Hello

Last winter I rode out for a local business woman, it was great riding such super horses and get paid for it.   Didn't have time this October to do it which was a shame but I got a call from her last week.  She runs a horse  rug repair and cleaning service, would it be possible for me to go up and repair rugs using a Seiko industrial sewing machine?  Her machinist was on holiday and they had a back log of repairs to do.

I once worked for an interior designer making very posh curtains for a while and used industrial machines but it was years ago.

So got on my push bike and went up to the farm.   Ann the owner, had tried using the machine set on its slowest setting and it had scared the daylights out of her.  Gosh they don't half shift, I had forgotten how fast they go.  Its a wonderful machine, complete with walking foot, it goes through many layers of very tough fabric and wadding.

There is more to repairing rugs than I thought but I got the hang of it.  The down side of using this machine is that my beloved Singer 201 seems extremely slow and very wimpy now!  On Ebay a lot of  domestic machines described as "industrial" or "semi industrial" they are not, no where near.

One of the last rug repair I did was sewing thick nylon webbing straps on to hold D rings.  The first one was on layers of (from the bottom of the rug) nylon lining, wadding, thick tough waterproof outer layer, 2 layers of strapping, the machine sailed through it.  Then it came to the second D ring strap, sewn directly on top of the first webbing so it was 4 layers of webbing on the rug.  I didn't believe it could go through that without snapping the needle so started on the top with the needle in the down position, it sewed straight away without a hitch so went off the webbing.  Then did the another row of stitching starting on the rug up and over the 4 layers of webbing and off the other side.

Unbelievable.  Sorry forgot to take my camera with me, if I get the call again, will take a photo.


Sharon x

Singer Sewing Machine Accessories

Hello

When I bought my Singer Featherweight I didn't realise that it would start a small collection of all things Singer!  Ebay has a lot to answer for!

I have posted about my Singer Oil Cans collection but there is a host of other things to collect as well.


Singer needle threaders, there are six different designs, I've got three of them.

Singer scissors, only got a couple of these, I am sure that there are more styles and sizes out there.

Singer Tape Measure, got this by accident, didn't even know they did tape measures

Then screw drivers, you only need a small and large one to assist with the maintenance of your machines but its surprising how many different styles there are.  Not sure it the little double ended black one is a Singer one, its not marked so probably not but its a great little thing, ideal for tightening the screws on my glasses.  There are a pair of tweezers with the Singer logo on but haven't been able to get my hands on them yet!

Lint brushes, these are essential if you want to keep your Singer in good condition, its amazing how much lint gathers in the feed dogs.  If you are storing your /Singer its a good idea to dip your brush into Singer Oil and brush over all the moving parts of the machine, this will stop any rust forming, it only needs a light covering don't have it dripping all over.

Then there are the boxes to keep the extra attachments in.

The ones below are the more modern ones.

Hope you have enjoyed the tour of part of my Singer world!  Think I need to get out more, its becoming an obsession!

Cheers

Sharon