bee3

wow, thats so gorgeous ! and it helps to have such a beautiful model. Thank you for posting a picture of it. I love the color too! I am so in awe of people who can make clothing, especially costume clothing.

KenmoreRulesAll

I have over 80 machines, most working. My favorites are Kenmores from the 1960s and '70s. I have 3 industrials (Juki, Adler, Union Special) and a growing collection of overlocking machines. Pfaffs are also a favorite, especially the 30, 138, and 145. And Adlers (87, 187, 98, 167). Oh, and Ankers, Meisters, Gritzners, Neumanns, and pretty much any German machine prior to the 1960s. And a working studio wouldn't be complete w/out a Singer 201.

One of these days I'll learn to sew -- work and casual clothing, primarily. And I'm looking into taking an upholstery class for which I'll purchase an Adler heavy-duty straight industrial, probably a walking foot or some other type of compound feed.

Vridar

I have collected over 30 machines, but use four the most. My favorite is a 201-2 for normal sewing, a 15-91 for heavier stuff and my Barracuda 2000 for canvas. My most recent work in progress is a treadle Red-Eye 66. Oh, yes, I love fiddling with the 29-58 when warranted. My most recent project for it was a smartphone belt case of leather. Any excuse to use the 29 I jump at.

As to quilting, I've not officially quilted but have made two blankets with jean patches with my GDaughters college logo fabric as the underside. Also, have done a jelly roll which needs quilting - maybe some day when the collecting of machines and refurbishing itch is scratched.

tate_elliott

Hello, I'm not exactly a collector (that's my story and I'm sticking to it), but I've accumulated four Singer 500s, one Singer 503, a Singer 66, and a pink Atlas passed down from my mother.

I sew clothing and things like wallets and mittens. Between clothing projects I make baby quilts. I also do sewing repairs for a friend of mine who owns a costume shop.

The 66 and the Atlas are in storage, I use the Rocketeers for all my sewing.

Tate

miriam

My hubby wrote up one of those tutorials about the finish on the sewing machines when Glenn was here. He reads AB some times. And we jointly own a big bunch of old machines. He ends up with a lot of the dirty work. A lot of the time when I am wavering about getting something he says go get it and if I waver about getting rid of a machine he helps me. He goes along and hauls machines around. So I guess he counts. He has done a little sewing but not a whole lot. He does let me use his sledgehammer....

maviskw

Glen,
An aside here. I made two quilts this winter, and on the label I wrote which machine I used for them. One was on my Two Spool, and one my Columbus treadle.
Finding this information on the label will be fun for my children.

psychonurse

Beautiful gown Skip.. keep collecting. I too love your handcrank. it was sew much fun.

oldtnquiltinglady

Beautiful gown, Skip. When you said y'all make and participate in the reenactments, I did not picture so much precision. Let me know when you'all will be doing another show, and Bob and I will make every effort to come see y'all.

ThayerRags

I really can’t give details about my entire collection of sewing machines, because it could be considered as advertising. Let’s just say that I have several. In our small frame home, my wife and I have 54 machines, including 8 treadles, 5 electric cabinets, and 3 industrial power stands, with about 90% of them in working condition. I especially enjoy collecting or rigging up handcrank machines, and currently have 15 of them. I think that I’m drawn to handcrank machines because I don’t have any room left for treadle cabinets.

My quilting has been limited to handcranking small quilt blocks as a Vendor at shows, mainly to pass the time and create activity in the booth. I’ve used a variety of small handcrank machines for this, with my favorite one being my Singer 221 handcrank.

Most of my sewing is repairs and alterations using older people-powered machines. The ones that I use most often are Singer 66-3 handcrank, Singer 29K70 treadle, Singer 31-15 treadle, Singer 319W (zigzag) treadle, and an Adler 205-64 that I handcrank. I also repurpose old truck tarps and highway billboard vinyl into fitted outdoor covers, using a couple of Singer 111-series machines on industrial power stands. The tarp and billboard sewing is all done outdoors on a covered patio.

The bulk of my machine collection is Singer, because I like them and they’re the most prevalent brand in my area. I generally just collect what comes along, and rarely ever have a machine shipped to me. That’s not to say that I haven’t driven long distances to pick up a machine in person, but I have found plenty of machines locally in my nine years of collecting.

CD in Oklahoma

soman2

I have 20+ machines. I started collecting in 1968 with a 1917 singer treadle, refurbished and gifted to one of my granddaughters last year. Started sewing Jan. 2014 and have completed 1-warrior quilt, 1-quilt for the Murphy bed I built for another granddaughter, 4-lapquilts-1 to another of my granddaughters,1-to my oldest daughter,1-to Olivia(Rodney's daughter), and 1-to another granddaughter. A number of table runners given to relatives & friends also 1-to Carol(Rodney's wife). And also a couple of fabric soup bowl holders. Cutting and piecing done by me and a friend with a longarm does my quilting with me picking pattern/top & bottom threads. Last June I drove to Wenatchee, Wa.(5600mi.round trip) to pick up a 1896 Standard treadle in pristine condition, a gift to me from my 90 yr. young aunt. I have Singer, White, Domestics, Kenmores, Dressmakers, New Homes, Free & Standards in the stable. My favorites was my 1916 29-4 that I rescued. It was a beast and after removing layers of paint overspray, the original finish came through and all the decals were in beautiful condition. I reluctantly sold it to a friend in dire need of such a machine. I currently use an Ultrstitch 12 and 2 Dressmaker's. It took a little while to get use to the left needle while straight stitching and have no clue as to why a left needle only is an advantage over a centered needle. I have recently throttled back on sewing and with warmer weather am doing more woodworking.

Soman2
The other Rodney