So it Begins- Sewing Machine Restoration

I've been dreaming of learning how to tear down and repair old sewing machines. Ever since I got Mighty Tiny, my featherweight, (who has yet to get a proper name) and learned that I have to do some basic service on her myself, I've wanted a machine that I can tear down and really see how it works. I understand the basic mechanisms of the lock stitch but the gears and parts and springs and screws were endlessly fascinating yet still a mystery to me. I also adore vintage machines over the new plastic wonders that can't be generally serviced at home.

 So, what's a girl to do? Craigslist! I found a Singer 128 in bad shape for $30 and, after asking Sweetie for an early Christmas present, made the call to the sellers. I made an appointment to go see it on a Friday night. I more or less knew it would come home, the question was how fast and how much would I pay for it. The ad said that the machine worked when the balance wheel was turned but either the motor or cords were non-functioning. No biggie, I want to turn it into a hand-crank machine anyway so I thought this would be perfect!

 A word of advice. When you ask Karma for something, in my case a beater machine to refurb, be careful. You might get exactly that. When I got to the house of the seller I was shown the machine. The needle bar did not move and there was no light attached when there should have been. Because the cords were frayed I didn't get to plug it in to check the motor. Again, not huge since I didn't want a motorized machine anyway but it would have been nice to check. So the needle bar and feed dogs don't move, yet the balance wheel does. Hmmm. Not ideal because that means a gear is not engaging somewhere. I offer $25 and it's accepted and I carry the new girl out to the car.

 I lovingly set her in the backseat and I'm driving down I-35 when someone makes a quick lane change. Mary Jane (her new name, I've decided) goes ass over tit into the floorboard. At this point the impact has happened to the case and I figure there's not much more I can do so I drive her home, haul her out of the car and proceed to whack the case with a small rubber mallet until it comes off. That's as far as I got since I had to do some day-job work. Today Sweetie took her down to the basement work table where she'll get deconstructed, cleaned, oiled and reassembled but not before I snapped some "before" pics. I'm hoping the case can go to my dad's workshop for some TLC after Christmas. So, here's Mary Jane, the newest member of the family and I'm hoping she'll be right as rain very soon.

Front

Head Plate

Motor with the cord cut off

Back

A little dark but you can clearly see the
needlebar is completely down.

Entry Table from a Stereo Cabinet

Holy cow! It's been a month and projects are getting finished. We've recently created a cabinet for the cat litter box (which you can see here), Sweetheart made patio chairs out of cedar fence lumber and I created an entry table of sorts. We needed something after we rearranged the living room and this old stereo cabinet from the basement fit the bill nicely. I was going to use it originally for a litter box cabinet but that didn't pan out.

The deconstruction kept me well acquainted with a my Phillips screwdriver (holy cow it had a lot of screws!) to get all the extra parts out including the front panel and I added thin plywood for a new bottom and behind the tiled center piece. Otherwise I just shined it up, slapped on some stain where the wood was exposed and off we went! This works well to catch stuff, hold our board games and keep Max's toys up off the floor, plus sweetheart likes the retro.

Parties, Projects and Plants 2- Funky, Cheap Curtain Tie-Backs

I am a cheapskate at heart, in case you haven't gleaned that little pearl of wisdom by now. I'm also always looking for ways to spruce up the ranch. We have a double window in the dining room and some basic curtains. Since the window is so wide we needed 4 panels to cover it completely without looking cheap. A few weeks ago I shortened the curtains but at that length I couldn't knot them anymore to hold them back. As I'm staring into the silverware drawer for the millionth time I spy the meat fork. Don't ask me what utensil I was actively looking for, that issue was gone in my flash of brilliance and new project idea. I decided I could bend a serving spoon and fork and use those for curtain tie backs!

Sweetheart wasn't keen on this idea until I told her I would not be using the serving pieces out of the silverware set she bought me for Christmas a few years ago. If this sounds crazy, stick with me.