Shortly before I had surgery I stopped at the thrift store. Â I was on my way to a doctor appointment and really had only minutes to stop. Â But, you know me…stop I did. Â I had calculated that I I had 10 minutes to be in and then out.
I circled the store stopping at the places in the store that I usually find things I like. Â Of course one of the places in the store included the craft section as I was looking for fabrics. Â I ended up seeing two sewing machines. Â One I don’t remember the brand..the other was this one. Â The price $5.
I was surprised. Â $5 sounded cheap. Â I didn’t really have time to check it out or think about the purchase for that matter. Â I didn’t really need the machine..I didn’t really have time to think about it but I just bought it.
I grabbed it and ran out the door. Â I was running late.
As I was hurrying about getting ready for surgery I mostly forgot about the machine. Â I didn’t try it out. Â I figured it could wait. Â I’d have plenty of laid up time to check it out.
Fast forward to last week…..
I had Hubby bring a fold up table into the living room. Â Then put the machine on it. Â I was hoping it might work and I could simply sew on it a few days while I am laid up. Â I put in a new needle and cleaned it up the best I could.
It ran!! Â I actually runs quite good. Â The table doesn’t stay tucked in the way it suppose to but other than that, no problem. Â It is a little louder than some machines but other than that…it works. Â I’ve been sewing with it lots.
Once I am feeling better I think this machine will move on and live with Kalissa. Â She doesn’t have a machine. Â I don’t see her sewing much and for the bit she does, this will be fine. Â I’ll keep watching out for a nicer machine but for now…this works.
For $5 it was a find. Â I was happy to have it close and be able to sew with it over the last week.
I say it all the time…I LOVE thrift stores.
Wow!! Great find!
Oh what a terrific find! I never see deals like that!
So happy about Kalissais doing well. That was a bit scary but all seems well and that’s the best part! God bless!
That was my very first sewing machine and what I learned to sew on. It was my mom’s. She “upgraded” when she inherited my grandmother’s Bernina in the early 1980s. I kept it until I got a replacement in the late 1990s. Besides it being loud, I remember that I was scared of adjusting the tension, perhaps because both my mom and my home ec teachers told me never to mess with the tension. I also remember that it only ran fast. No matter how little I touched the foot pedal, it never ran slowly, which was a challenge while I was learning. Now, I suspect I would love that machine.
I bought that machine in 1978. I used it exclusively until the early 90s when I bought my wonderful Bernina 1090. It was my backup machine until recently when it finally died – plastic components made it unrepaiirable. :( Is it a top level machine, absolutely not. Is it dependable (until it dies), yes, although I don’t know how it will do on knits.Hope she enjoys her new foray into sewing.
What a bargain! It should make a nice starter machine for Kalissa. Glad you got it set up in the living room so you can sew as you feel like it. Yes, keeps Jo from getting bored!
In a hurry, I’ve ironed small stuff on my table covered with a towel. Maybe you could press your quilt squares sitting there if you use an extension cord for your iron.
I have a friend who wants to learn to quilt/sew to fill time since her only son is starting college this year. She needs a machine, nothing fancy or expensive. I guess I need to look around a little be more. I did see one at a thrift store, but was trying to get apartment finds for my daughter so did not take the time to really look at it. Will have to go back and look again.
That is the exact machine that I bought when I became pregnant for my first child back in 1977. Before that I had a Singer that only went forward & backward. I was so excited about the zig zag stitches. Maybe it just needs some lubrication. As I recall, there were quite a few places to oil it. That’s the one thing I miss, my newer machines do not tell you where to oil it in the direction book! I hope you enjoy it and Kalissa finds some enjoyment with it as well. Glad all is well with her & baby. I have 5 Grandsons and 1 Granddaughter. Boys are fun!
What a great find!
Some well-placed, wide masking tape (or duct tape if you are willing to clean up the residue later) will help the table stay in place.
When you are up and about and ready to pass it along, more cleaning and more oil should help make it quieter.
Congratulations to you and Kalissa!
That was a really great find Jo! My first time sewing was on my mother’s Singer. The first machine I owned was a Singer as well. I own several vintage Singers now and love them!