Thursday, April 5, 2012

Somehow it's Thursday

The days have been very full.  When I'm not hanging out with family, I'm busy cutting up fabric and reassembling it into more quilts to finish.  I finished the Maxine quilt yesterday, and it's a real load off my list.  I have a new quilt on my new design board and I am going to begin to hand sew the binding on another baby quilt tonight.  I feel like I'm starting to gain some ground (two down, 5 or 6 to go).  When I started all this two years ago this spring, I promised myself I wouldn't be the woman with a gazillion unfinished quilt tops (oops), so it's time to fall back and regroup.  I love when I can get into a busy sewing mode...I feel like some wild little terrier, zooming around in my own little whirlwind and once in a while poof! something pops out of the whirlwind.  Very cool.  (If only housecleaning was so much fun.)

Last week I decided to take my sister's sewing machine in and have it cleaned and tuned up.  She brought it to me last November, the day she came to meet the new baby.  I knew, in my heart, that she knew she was dying and wanted me to have it before then.  It has been sitting here since, waiting for some of the sadness to clear before I could pay attention to it.  Now I can hardly wait to sew on it.

The sewing machine man just loved it.  It's a Singer 301 and was made sometime between 1950-1953, most likely.  It's the first slant needle machine made, to my understanding.  Like many of those old Singers, this machine, which sews only a straight stitch, is a real workhorse and can probably tackle as much as my new Juki (without the speed factor).  In other words, many of those old machines are pretty much equivalent to the newer home "industrial" machines.  Treasures if you have them or can find them.

13 comments:

Unknown said...

wonderful quilt martie - i love the seriousness of the borders and the sauciness of the interior squares.
and how wonderful to be feeling your sister's presence through her singer. xxx

michelle said...

We'll just call you Petey...

Taos Sunflower said...

Thanks, Shawn. I'm on a black and white fabric and polka dot kick right now.

Taos Sunflower said...

Ani: Yes, Petey! That's just what it's like!

Ter'e said...

Isn't that sweet......just think how many times her hands stroked the wheel of that machine. It's a beauty. I know you will have it humming and you'll be humming, yourself.
Hugs my friend,
Ter'e

Taos Sunflower said...

Ter'e: I doubt she ever used it much, so it's like new. As I was using it today, I imagined her smiling down on me.

Stitching Upstairs said...

If only Petey, COULD create such beauty...I would be putting her to work. I love the quilt.

Sara said...

I have an old singer as well...it used to be my mom's and I think she got it second hand. I had it cleaned many years ago and the man who worked on it told me never to get rid of it...that today's machines just wouldn't last the same. It doesn't do anything fancy, but I love it.
Your quilt is lovely!

Taos Sunflower said...

Monte: Thanks. I truly did feel like her for a while there. Hope she doesn't mind me using her for the analogy!

Liz said...

The bond of sisters is indescribable. Her machine is absolutely beautiful :)

RuthieJ said...

That's a pretty cool sewing machine Martie! I had a Singer that I bought in the early 80's and it died early last year -- they're made with plastic gears now. I bet your lovely machine has many good years left in it.

Unknown said...

I have the exact machine. Do you have problems with bobbin looping underneath fabric. I'm trying to darn a quilt project but my bobbin thread keeps bunching.

Taos Sunflower said...

Actually, Danita, I haven't had any problems with it at all. I wish I knew enough to be able to make a suggestion to help you, but I don't. If you can find a good repair person who loves this old machines, I bet it's something very simple. That's the beauty of those old machines, they are simple by comparison to what we buy today with all the computers and such. Best of luck!