A new (Old) Sewing Machine

I bought myself a new sewing machine over the weekend. A nearby yard sale advertised an industrial Singer for sale, so I had to go check it out.

I had read up a little on different industrial machines and knew that one good thing about them is that you can always find parts, even for the older models.

This is a Singer zig zag machine, although it also does a straight stitch. Its about 25-30 years old. The woman I bought it from used it mainly for home decorating projects... drapes, slipcovers, etc. She was also an avid quilter. It came with the manual, a bunch of bobbins, and several foot attachments including a ruffler, all purpose, zipper, and feet for making 2 different size rolled hems. There are a couple others too, but I forget what they're for.
This machine is FAST even through several layers of heavy fabric and maneuvers beautifully around corners (ha, sounds like a sports car). I haven't had a chance to play around with it much, yet as its been a pretty crazy week (more details on that later), but I'm excited to try out the satin stitch for applique.

I still have one blank wall in the bedroom I'd like to get filled, but then I'll be back with pictures of the finished room.

Have a great week everyone and happy sewing!

Vintage Alphabet P, Q, R ~ Quilts

Its time for another Vintage Alphabet Party! This month the letters are P, Q, and R.

P is for Pottery. And since I missed Last month's letters of N and O, lets call these Ohio Pottery and cover that letter as well. :-).

A Roseville wall pocket...

And a Rookwood vase. Both are from Gram's attic and have an Arts and Crafts feel to them.

Q is for Quilts. These first two are from my grandma's attic. They were made by her Aunt Mary. First a Double Wedding Ring with mostly 1940's fabrics.

Look at this cute bunny print!
And the other is a simple 9 Patch with a pretty pink border.

The next is a tied BowTie quilt. Soooo many gorgeous 1930's prints! I could spend all day just showing all the different fabrics in this one. Here's a few...

But there is a little surprise inside this one. It was filled with another quilt! From the few fabric squares I can see it looks to be from the 1880-1900's. I saw indigo and cadet blues, madder browns, and some novelty prints like this clover and horse head.

The last quilt is a little different. It is also a tied quilt, but is made out of what looks to be fabric sample squares... Several different colorways of the same design. One side is made with all vintage linen fabrics, which actully goes really well with my newly reworked bedroom (I'll show you in the next post).

The other side is equally pretty with colorful cotton floral bouquet fabrics. Its hard to pick a favorite .

And R is for Rhinestones. (and again, since I missed last month's N, this also doubles as my Necklace post :-) )

Some of these pieces were given to me by my mother and others were found at estate sales. I just love a little sparkle!

Be sure to stop by the Etsy Cottage Style Blog to see more Alphabet collections starting with the letters P Q and R, or add your own to the link party.

New Vintage Velvets for Fall

I was thrilled to be able to buy more of these wonderful vintage cut velvet or sculpted velvet upholstery fabrics a couple of weeks ago. They are from the same local estate that the others came from. A talented woman, who did freelance upholstery work for years, had acquired many, many lovely fabrics. Her daughter has been working to clear the house and fabrics and was so sweet to contact me again. Some are large pieces cut from bolts, and others are swatch size pieces, which are great for wristlets and pouches, and many have multiple colorways.

There are cut velvets ( or raised velvets, sculpted chenilles, not sure of the correct term)...

printed velvets...

And my favorite, the multi colored floral velvets! Here are just a few...


I have 2-3 large bins filled with these types velvets as well as other damasks, brocades, and

matelasse. Needless to say, I've been busy sorting and hand washing these beautiful textiles and creating new wristlet and bag designs for the fall and winter seasons.

Have a great week and happy sewing, everyone!

Vintage Chenille Patterns

This week's Daily Swatch theme over on the True Up blog is Vintage Chenille. It prompted me to pull out my stash of pretty chenille pieces.

I love the patterns of the old bedspreads, and have purchased and used several on my bed over the years. I've also bought some that were cutters to use for projects.

Vintage Fashion ~ Dresses

Today I'm showing the dresses in my personal vintage fashion collection. I've mentioned before that I've been wearing vintage pieces since I was in high school. I have always loved the dress styles of the fifties with the full skirts and tiny waists. And the lovely little details like covered buttons, matching belts, beautiful pleats, and of course the wonderful FABRICS!

This cheery blue floral is my favorite. I'm in love with the print and it has a cute fabric belt. So sweet!

The tag reads "Gay Gibson".

This next one isn't a dress, but rather a vintage sequined sweater. It makes such a pretty outfit when paired with my white full skirt.

Its a gorgeous sky blue and has white floral beading around the neck and bottom.
It zips up the back to a drop V.

The next is a pretty pink dress sporting an asymetrical look with a cute bow over one shoulder.

This last one is a vintage "remake". About 20+ years ago, I was going to a formal dinner with a friend of mine and I needed a dress. Even back then, I was in love with vintage, so my mom and I searched all the thrifts in the area to find a pretty dress. Well, what we found was a dress with a pretty skirt, but the top was a discolored mauve pink velvet. So my talented mother deconstructed the dress and made a new top for it. We picked a simple cream satin and changed the style a bit to a drop waist so the skirt sits right at the hip. It looked beautiful on. (I can't believe my waist was ever that small!)

The skirt is such a pretty floral tapestry, and it has enough weight to hold its shape without a lot of crinoline.

The back is cut in a similar style as the sequin sweater. Mom really out did herself with this one!

Well, that's about it for my collection of vintage dresses...hopefully, one day soon I'll be able to fit into them again. ;-)

Oh, and I'm sorry for the unexpected blogging break. Hubby and I were both down sick for over a week and then, just as we were feeling better, the puppy got sick. :-(

She tries to eats just about everthing she comes in contact with out in the yard... tomatoes, peaches, locusts, ants, sticks, etc...We usually catch her before she has a chance to swallow said object, but appearantly something got past us.

She couldn't keep food down and was wimpering under the dresser all morning yesterday. Fortunately the vet was able to see her right away and took xrays and blood work and gave her something to calm her stomach. Happy to report, she's feeling much better today!

Vintage Fabric Mini Wristlets

These are the newest little wristlets to come out of the sewing room. I used vintage 60's fabrics featuring poppies and daisies for these two, and made the handle with a lobster claw clasp for versatility. I was also able to use the rivots that I like so much. :-)Measuring just 7.5 inches by 4 inches, they are a handy size for a cell phone, keys, and a couple other essentials.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Pretty Dog Bowl Mat

I made Hunny a new mat for her food and water bowls. I used the Amy Butler Laminated fabric, a different print for each side.
I found the fabric very easy to work with. Although you can't press directly on the laminated side, I was able to iron the seams somewhat flat using a pressing cloth. I laid the two pieces right sides together, sewed, then turned right side out and topstitched. After topsitching, I applied seam sealant to the stitch holes, because I read that water could get in through the holes.

Hunny likes her new mat, but wishes there was food in that bowl. LOL