Flo goes to the hospital

My wonderful husband Fred took Flo to the shop and got her ready for sewing. The technician who worked on Flo was about 70 years old and a former Soviet. He has worked on these machines for many years. He told Fred that Flo was the nicest machine he has seen! He did change out the electrical cords since Flo still had the original fabric wrapped cords. They seemed OK and worked when he plugged her in, but for safety sake, he went ahead and changed the cords out.

He also replaced the rubber belt that connects the electric motor to the flywheel. The bobbin winder rubber was actually in the worst condition of all, so he also replaced the bobbin winder wheel.

Flo came to me intact with her beautiful bentwood case (with key), an original box of attachments, many of which I am going to try out, and a couple of original bobbins. The only thing she was missing was the knee control. The technician changed the machine to run with a foot control instead of the knee. I know that changes the machine, but I need to use the foot control because of my arthritis.

Finally, he cleaned and lubricated Flo and now she sews like a dream! I can't wait to get started!

Decision Time

I have been a devoted Baby Lock sewing machine user since about 1990. I bought a Baby Lock Quilter's Professional about 12 years ago because I wanted the extra room on the bed of the machine. That extra room really helps when quilting large quilts. I also love that machine because is has all metal parts and it can really sew!

About 2 years ago, my sweet hubby bought me another Baby Lock, in this case the Quilter's Choice. I wanted this machine because it has lots of pretty decorative stitches. I also wanted a smaller (and lighter) machine that I could use when traveling to classes. I really like this machine, and although you can tell the machine has plastic parts, it sews very nicely.

I have been working - and sometimes struggling - to sew the PERFECT 1/4 inch seam. I have used a variety of methods to achieve the perfect seam, but no matter what I do, I have to make some type of adjustment. For instance, many quilters suggest using a "scant" 1/4 inch seam, meaning that you need to sew 2-3 threads inside the seam line in order to make the block come out perfectly. I also notice that no matter what I do, my half quarter squares are not perfect. The tension of the seam pulls the fabric in ever so slightly, but that makes the square not square and I then have to adjust when seaming the not-so-square to the exactly square. It seams like I always have to make adjustments to get the block perfectly square.

I have used several different templates to cut the block after sewing so that it is perfect, but it just seems like the machine should be able to sew a perfect 1/4 inch seam.

What a Surprise!

What a shock I received when my sweet daughter phoned to tell me she had found an old Singer sewing machine in pretty good condition at a thrift store. She told me it was in good condition and so she bought it. Apparently another woman was in line to buy the machine, but Melissa got it first.

The machine is a 1928 Singer 99 built in Elizabethtown, New Jersey. I wish I knew the history of this machine, but as you can see in the pic, it is a beauty! I named her Florence after my hero "Florence Nightingale."