Secret Life of the Sewing Machine

Brilliant video of history and the workings of the sewing machine.  This 25 minute video is so well done and love the way he shows and explains how the sewing machine developed and the changes it went through to get to the machines we purchase today.  Love the way he shows how the threads interlock to make the stitches as well.

Until later,
Lynn

My Mother - Sewing and Sewing Machines

My mother learned to sew from her mother on a Singer treadle sewing machine.  When visiting with her recently I asked her if she remembered the first thing she sewed.  She told me a story about sewing through her finger when she was 4 or 5.  Her mother had gone outside to do some work in the garden and my mother said she wanted to run the sewing machine even though she knew she was not supposed to play with it – guess she was a typical child.  She ran the needle in and out of her finger and remembered that it hurt but she doesn’t remember what her mother said but did remember she didn’t play with it again without my grandma in attendance.

She told me one time when her grandmother came to visit she and her sister a year older got to sew quilt blocks.  Mom thinks she was 6 or 7 at the time as she knew it was before she was in 4-H and she started in 4-H at the age of 8.   Mom said she remembered making pink and white quilt blocks but knew she didn’t get enough made for a quilt but later her mother finished the blocks and put them together for a quilt that she machine quilted on her treadle machine – see machine quilting has been around for a long time as that was 1927 or 1928.

My mother was in 4-H for many years and took many sewing projects during that time so she did a lot of sewing as she grew up.  My grandmother was an excellent seamstress and taught all 4 of her daughters to love to sew.  Mom went to college after high school, graduating with a bachelors of Science - Home Economics Education degree in 1944 as did her older sister the same year.  There were 3 sisters close together in age and they took turns working as a teachers to help the other two with their college expenses (in those days you could teach right after graduating from high school.)

My mother was hired after graduation as a Home Extension Agent in the Nebraska county where I grew up.  She wanted a sewing machine of her own but at that time they were not available as the Singer sewing machine manufacturing plants had been converted to make items needed for the war effort.  The plants were closed from 1942 until 1945.  When my mother got her job and moved to the community she drove an hour west to another town to put her name on a list get a sewing machine then went home and waited and waited.  Can you imagine not being able to buy a sewing machine when you wanted one?

She said she originally thought she would get a featherweight as she wasn’t sure she would always live where her first job was and the featherweight would be easier to move.  She needed a sewing machine to demonstrate for the women’s extension clubs and 4-Hers for her job in those years she waited for her own machine and told me there was a woman in town that would lend her a machine to take to those meetings.  What a nice gesture and so trusting to allow her machine to be transported all over the county for my mother to demonstrate sewing techniques to 4-Hers and Extension Club members.  

Singer 15-90 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

When her name finally came up on the list it was the spring of 1947 and she decided to get a full sized machine in a wooden cabinet instead of the Featherweight.  She was engaged to my father by that time and knew she would be staying in one place and a larger machine would be a better choice for her.  She sewed her wedding dress on it for their wedding in September of 1947.  I can’t imagine how happy that made her to finally get her new Singer 15-91 in a nice wooden cabinet.  My aunt also found a job as a Home Extension Agent in western Nebraska and she too had to put her name on a list to get a sewing machine.  I don’t know if she got her machine about the same time as my mother but she did get married about two weeks before my parents to a fellow she met near where she worked.

Mom sewed on that machine for years and years…I learned to sew on that machine as did my two sisters and it always sewed a perfect stitch.  My sisters and I sewed a lot of garments on that machine for 4-H projects and just for the occasional new outfit.  Mom always sewed our clothes and I don’t ever remember her not sewing.  

Around 1968 my mother purchased a newer Singer but kept the old Singer in the basement as a back up.  The new Singer Futura had a drop in bobbin and was a big headache for her for many years.  (I don’t have a photo of this machine nor could I find one on the internet.)  Mom said the repair guy finally figured out the needle bar was bent from when she first bought it….no wonder it didn’t sew very well.  She had wanted a machine that could do a hemming stitch and a zig-zag as she was making all the curtains and drapes for the new house she and my father built.  She never loved  that machine but used it anyway for many years.  She sewed everything…she made clothes for herself and even tailored a suit for my “little” brother who at the time was so tall and skinny that they couldn’t find any ready made suit to fit him.  Mom tailored a lot of garments over the years for herself so this was not a lot different.  Mom was a beautiful seamstress and very particular….hmmm….I think that is where I got my perfectionist tendencies!  We would be amazed that when she would buy a garment she would then proceed to take the collar off to adjust the back a little or maybe take the sleeves out and re-set them to make them fit a little better, raise or lower the hemline just a bit, etc.

Around the early 80s my father surprised my mother by buying her a new Bernina for Christmas.  My Dad consulted my older sister who had a Bernina at that time on what model to get and so he purchased a Bernina Matic 910 Electronic machine.  I asked my mother the other day if she had any idea that Dad was getting her the Bernina that Christmas and she said it was a complete surprise.  I remember her being absolutely thrilled when she opened her gift from my dad during our family Christmas gathering.  She used that machine to sew lots clothing and did make a few quilted items before she had to give up quilting about 3 years ago.  This blog post on September 28, 2008 is about the sampler quilt she made.  She has a shake in one arm and it has gotten worse over the years so when she moved to an assisted living  apartment she gave her machine to one of our daughters.  Now my mother’s great granddaughters are learning to sew on her machine and that makes her very happy.

The old 15-90 still sews a good straight stitch and belongs to my youngest brother but the wooden cabinet was retrofitted by my father to hold Mom’s Bernina 910 and now resides at my daughters house too.

I found the following information on this webpage about my mother’s 15-91 Singer.  It was made in Elizabethport, New Jersey and was one of 35,000 allotted on December 20, 1946.  Here is another interesting webpage on identifying old Singers.
Further reading….as if this post isn’t long enough. 
Webpage about the Singer company during WWI
Webpage about Isaac Singer….he was quite the character
Webpage about Singer Sewing Machines 1880-1940

I know this is a long post but want to get my mother’s sewing machine story down in writing.  We have talked a lot about her machines and sewing the last few weeks when I call her and that has been very enjoyable.  My sisters have helped me fill in some of the details as she can’t remember some things I wanted to know.  She will be celebrating her 90th birthday this summer and sewed up until 3 or 4 years ago so if you consider when she sewed those pink and white quilt blocks until she had to give up sewing she probably sewed for over 80 years.  I can only hope I am able and still enjoy sewing for that many years.

Happy Quilting,
Lynn

My “Other” Sewing Machines

When I posted the other day about the sewing machines I used through the years I neglected to talk about my two antique machines.   I purchased the larger Singer on an auction because it reminded me of the one I learned to sew on, plus it sold really cheap.  It is the same model as my mother’s but it is a newer version.It is a straight stitch only machine that is gear driven not belt driven.

This larger machine is a 15-91 and was manufactured 1951 in a factory called Elizabethport in Elizabeth, New Jersey.  Isn’t it amazing I can pinpoint the year and the other information about my machines?  This website helped to id the machines and this one helped to find the manufacture date.   On this second web page I am not quite sure about the headings “Quantity Allotted, Date Allotted, and Year Allotted”  and what they mean.

		Singer 15-91 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

For my machine under Quantity Allotted it has 5000 – does that mean that 5000 were made?  On Date Allotted it has July 26, and Year Allotted it has 1951.  OK, I am wondering if 5000 machines were made on July 26, 1951 or were started then or finished then.  What do you think?  If anyone knows can they enlighten me please?

I purchased this machine in the wooden cabinet and that too looks similar to the one Mom had.  When I got the machine home I cleaned it up and oiled it then I sewed on it. It still has a very nice straight stitch.  I used it a little and then put it back down into the cabinet and have not run it again and have it setting as a table near my front door.  I am thinking I need to get it out and make a project on it.

		Singer Featherweight 221 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Singer Featherweight machine I purchased is a 221 model made April 22, 1954 and 5000 allotted.  Thank goodness I bought it before the Featherweight prices went up, up, up.  I have used this machine many times but not so much in the last couple of years.  This is a lightweight machine that sews a beautiful straight stitch and as you can see from the photo at the beginning of the post it has a smaller harp area than the standard machine and came in a nice case with various attachments.  Being light weight makes it easier to carry to workshops and the case keeps everything together.  This is a belt driven machine and has smaller bobbins than a standard size machine.

I just need to get this one out and sew something on it too.   The problem is I love my 730 Bernina and want to use it all the time…what a dilemma!

I love the decals on both of these machines.  The Featherweight has almost no wear on it so don’t think it was stitched on much and the 15-91 has most of it’s decals too.  I think it is interesting that on the 15-91 machine the wear it does have is around the top of the harp and I wonder if the past owner had a pin cushion around it there.  I have seen photos of these old machines with a pin cushion in the very spot where the decal is wearing off.

Don’t you wonder about who the women were that owned these older machines?  Did they quilt or sew clothing?  Maybe they had the machine but didn’t like sewing so maybe that is why there is no or little wear on the decals.  It is just too bad the machines can’t talk to us and tell us their stories.  What will our newer machines say about us?  Will they be around years later like these machines are or will they be like all the computers we have and be junked out after a few years because the electronics and computer parts are not replaceable? 

Until Later,
Lynn

My Sewing Machine History

I happened onto a blog post a while ago where someone was writing about a couple of the sewing machines they have owned and that triggered an idea for this blog post.  Today you will learn what machines I sewed on from my learning to sew days as a child, up to the machine I sew on today.

I learned to sew on a black Singer sewing machine like this one.  This isn’t a photo of the actual one my mom owned but hope to get a photo of it before too long as my brother and his wife have it and will be taking a photo of it for me.  This machine always sewed a very nice stitch and I used it to sew many garments while I was growing up.  My mother was an avid seamstress and taught my two sisters and I to love sewing too... all using this machine.

I am not sure about the first thing I sewed but do remember making a pair of shorts for myself out of bright green fabric then cutting out a pair of shorts for my baby brother out of the left over fabric and making them too.  I know I had done some sewing before that time as I started 4-H when I was 8 and I sewed every year in 4-H.  I think when I made the shorts I might have been around 11 or 12  at the time and Don would have been around 2 or 3.  I remember it well as Mom was doing yard and garden work and was outside most of the time I was stitching them.  I cut my shorts out and would take the pieces out and find out what to sew next then go back into the house and stitch it then come back out.  I remember my shorts had a zipper in the side and a waistband too which were rather tricky.  I remember putting in the zipper as it was the first one I had done and had to stitch it in 3 times which also means I had to rip it out twice!  The first time I had put the zipper pull to the inside, the second time it was upside down and finally the third time I got it in correctly.  I might not remember those shorts if had not been the zipper problem.  I do remember I wanted to wear them so badly I kept working on them until I got them finished and do remember I loved them and wore them a lot that summer.

I sewed in 4-H for 10 years and made all kinds of clothing and a few home furnishings during those years.  I remember making drapes for my bedroom when I was in high school and going to my cousin’s home to use her machine to sew the side and bottom hems…the black Singer did not do the invisible hem stitch and my cousin’s new machine did.

My sisters and I sewed a lot of our clothes when we were in high school and college and Mom sewed most of our clothes when we were younger.  I made a tailored wool suit when I was 16 and a tailored wool coat and dress when I was 17.  I still have the wool suit since I didn’t wear it in college and Mom saved it for me but took the coat and dress to college and wore it some after I was married too, then put it in a box to go to charity when it didn’t fit or was out of style.  Sure wish I would have kept it now.

When I graduated from high school my parents gave me a new sewing machine for a graduation gift and I was thrilled!  It was a Sears Kenmore like the one in the picture below and was a good machine for many years.  I don’t remember the model number but this photo looks just like my machine. 

I used this machine a lot while I was in college and the first 14 years after I was married.  When I was in college I made a lot of clothes as fabric was cheap and I could whip up a new dress over a weekend. 

After sewing all those years in 4-H I could fit a pattern to my body and stitch something up in no time.  Now is a different story…I have not sewn clothes in a long time and the last time it was like digging through an old archive to remember how to do certain things and now fabric is not cheap and neither are patterns….plus my body shape has changed too and I would have to do some serious study and experimenting to get a pattern to fit me so now I am mostly sewing “quilty” things.

Back to the Kenmore….I used that machine for 18 years until I was taking it in to be repaired all the time and decided I needed to get a better machine.  I gave my Kenmore to our oldest daughter when she got married to use if she needed a machine but even though it had been repaired again the stitching was just a mess.  She didn’t sew much but did use it to repair clothing or make a few items for her home.  She gave it back to me after a few years and I sold it on a garage sale for $5.  I told the man that bought  it that it didn’t work well at all but he told me he had several machines and was taking the good parts from one to fix others and could use parts off of it.


When I started shopping for a new machine I looked at several brands.  I didn’t know anything about a Bernina but a store about 30 minutes from me sold them so went down for a demo and to try one out and instantly fell in love.  It was more expensive than other machines at the time but John and I decided it was worth it since I did so much sewing.  I couldn’t remember when I bought it but decided to look in my file of warranties and found the receipt and the date was Dec. 16, 1985 and I paid $750 for it.  The receipt says it was regularly priced at $900 but was December sale so that was a pretty good deal.  That was a happy Christmas for me that year! 

I felt like I was in heaven when I used that machine.  I remember how quiet it was when I sewed compared to the old Kenmore machine.  I sewed on that 930 until I purchased my next Bernina.  I wanted a machine that could do a regular buttonhole stitch and a few other things that the 930 couldn’t do. 

I purchased the Bernina Virtuosa 150 QE on March 29, 2001 for $1550.  The dealer I bought the 150 from really wanted me to trade in my 930 but I decided it keep it and give it to our second daughter.  He told me all he had to do was make a phone call and could have sold my 930 as he had people on a waiting list for any he could get in trade.  It is still a machine that sells well…I just checked Ebay and a Bernina 930 right now has a bid of $832 so it has kept it’s value over the years. 

I loved the 150 as much as I loved my 930 when I bought it.  I did a lot of stitching on it the 7 years I owned it.  The 150 was selling  between $600-$800 on Ebay at the time I bought my next Bernina, a 730 model. 

My younger sister bought my 150 as she was looking for a newer good machine and so far she has been happy with it.  I sold it for $600 which is what I could get in trade for my  new machine  – the Bernina 75th anniversary model of the 730. 

I hate to say what I paid for my 730 but since I am writing a diary of sorts about my machines I want to include it all.  I paid $5800 for my 730 on June 23, 2008.  I didn't get the embroidery module for it as I have no desire to embroidery. 

I have never regretted buying this machine and have enjoyed owing and using it since it was new.  It is a pleasure to sew on and I have never had any trouble or breakdowns either.  Actually none of my Bernina’s have been in for repair but only in for an annual check up and oiling or that sort of thing.

I feel very, very lucky to have owned all of these machines as feel that the quality of your tools reflect on the quality of your work to a large degree.  I have taught classes where someone has a machine that just doesn’t stitch well or is causing problems and it is very frustrating for the student plus the quality of her work suffers too.

I have visited with my mother some about her old Singer machine and the machines she had after it.  I will be posting a story about it when I get all the facts and stories gathered together so check back later. 

What machines have you owned?  Liked or Disliked?

Lynn