Weekend Review: You and Your Sewing Machine

 

You and Your Sewing Machine / Bernie Tobisch
Lafayette, CA: C&T Publishing, c2018.
144 p.

This month my local Garment Guild was fortunate enough to have author Bernie Tobisch speak to us via Zoom all about working with our machines to our best ability. His humour and knowledge (and great props!) are all found in his excellent book on building a better relationship with your sewing machine. 

This book is comprehensive, based in his nearly 50 years of maintaining and servicing sewing machines of every brand. It's well laid out, easy for the reader to follow and to find what you're looking for. It's broken up into three sections; Getting to Know Your Sewing Machine (features, all the various parts and how they work and why), Maintaining Your Good Relationship (using the right foot, cleaning, lubricating, updates and other little bits), and Problems and How to Fix Them (tension, needles, threads, specific common issues). It ends with a quick reference Troubleshooting Guide that's 5 pages long and gives quick possible solutions to various common issues - and where to find more info in the book.

Laid out this way, there's a logical progression, and one thing I especially liked is that in the beginning he describes the different kinds of bobbin cases found in various machines so that you can be sure you're looking at the one that is in your machine when you're looking up the problem solving bits. I found the section of getting the tension right in your machine to start with really useful; then it's just little adjustments for the particular project as you need it, and very little bobbin adjustments are ever required. While we often think first of tension as the root of most problems, he notes "it's hardly ever the tension".

There are tons of large clear photos for everything, which include his oversize props that make needle threaders or tension disks, for example, extremely understandable. There's a lightness in the writing which makes it both informative and entertaining. He's very straightforward and is clear about what you can do yourself, and what kind of things require you to take your machine in to a technician. I learned a lot from his presentation to our Guild, and this book is a super addition to that knowledge. I feel like it's the class handouts from a very informative discussion! I think that I'll be more inclined to fiddle with a few of the issues I might encounter before deciding that it's up to the shop to fix it. Also, I feel more informed about why problems might be occurring, so I can avoid easy errors such as buying cheap needles or bobbins that aren't made for my machine. 

Definitely recommended if you are interested in keeping your machine running smoothly and getting the most out of it for as long as you can. 

Weekend Review: Encyclopedia of Sewing Machine Techniques

 

Encyclopedia of Sewing Machine Techniques /
Nancy Bednar & Jo-Ann Pugh-Gannon 
NY: Sterling, c2007.
336 p.

Another book off my shelf that I sourced at a thrift store, and another looking at the potential of your sewing machine. This one is aimed at experienced sewists, who know the basics - those aren't covered here. 

It's a collection of tips on how to use your sewing machine for all sorts of unusual or advanced techniques, arranged alphabetically and with lots of clear photos to accompany each technique. It covers applique (a variety of approaches) and quilting related ideas fairly extensively, but also has interesting ideas for dressmaking. There are tips on counted cross-stitch and drawn thread style stitching, using machines. And it covers some of the more expected things like bias binding, hem and seam finishes, buttonholes, top-stitching, zippers, eyelets, tucks, etc. 

Each one gives the required machine set up, and recommends the best fabrics, needles, threads, and the necessary presser foot to accomplish the project or technique. There are some lovely effects available with these techniques -- once again my attention was drawn to the fringe foot, and how it can be used in combination with other feet & stitches to create a very heirloom looking insertion. 

There is a newer edition of this book out there, from 2011 I think, and I'm sure it would be more up to date with newer presser feet and options available. If I ever see it I'll take a look, but for now, this one is sufficient to start me off of some more experimentation with my lower-end machine to see what I can do with it. 

I'm having fun looking at these books with their examination of sewing feet and the potential of simple stitches. And of course, adding to my sewing room wish list!

Weekend Review: The Sewing Machine

 

The Sewing Machine / Natalie Fergie;
read by Ruth Urquhart and Angus King
Rearsby, UK: WF Howes, c2017
audiobook

I listened to this delightful book, which added to my enjoyment -- the book is set in Scotland and the primary reader, Ruth Urquhart, is wonderful! She reads with a regular Scottish accent, which isn't hard to understand, and gives each character their own personality so it's easy to tell who's who. The Scottish accent would not have been in my head if I'd read this myself, and it's so integral to the story that it was a real pleasure to listen to this one, especially while sewing. 

It's one of those stories that moves back and forth from present to past; this time with three storylines. We start with Jean, who works at the Singer plant in 1911 Clydebank, right as a strike is fomenting. She marries one of the strike leaders so afterward they have to move to Edinburgh to make a new life. 

Then there's Connie, whose mother keeps a record of everything she sews on her Featherweight, by stitching a line and a fabric scrap onto a page of a notebook, with information on what she's made. Connie finds these and continues the tradition. After a family tragedy, Connie gets a job as a seamstress at the local hospital, where she meets her husband, and a young nurse in need of assistance who becomes integral to the story.  

And then we have Fred, in modern day Scotland. He's just lost his job as a banking consultant in London, and his beloved grandfather Alf (Connie's husband) has just died, leaving Fred his flat. So Fred moves back to Scotland and tries to make a life while also trying to find a job. He starts to clear out the flat and finds the old sewing machine, and somehow he takes to it and begins sewing small things for the boys next door, discovering a liking for this hobby. He also meets an artist who deconstructs old sewing machines to make her art works. I really liked this reversal of expectations, that it's Fred who takes up sewing, and it's a young woman who is the mechanic/artist. Fred, however, feels a lot younger/more immature than his stated age of mid30s, I'd have placed him mid20s at the oldest. 

The story moves between these three situations, even back and forth in each storyline as well. As noted, I was listening to this so it had potential to become confusing -- however, I didn't find it was hard to follow. The only thing I had trouble with was trying to figure out how all three characters were connected; I thought one thing, then changed my mind as the story progressed, then saw it in the final chapters. 

I did listen to it in two long sessions though, which probably helped keep things straight! I don't think this is one of those books that you can pick up and put down over and over without losing the thread. 

I loved the setting and the historical content, and the narrator did a bang up job with it. I even looked her up afterward to see what else she's narrated! Fred is likeable though not as compelling to me as Jean and Connie -- their stories are so rich, and their connections to sewing are lovingly described. Anyone who has sewn anything at all will recognize some of their experiences and conversations, which added to the richness of the story for me. However, I think even if a reader didn't know anything much about sewing, the historical and family tree elements will grab them. The characters are interesting and many-sided, and their lives feel very situated in time; the details of everyday life are fascinating, and Scotland comes to life in the way this book is constructed. 

I really enjoyed this book, both the storyline and the way it interweaves before finally revealing family secrets, and the great narration. Small things like Fred's neighbours or Connie's father's friends are also memorable, not just the main characters. For me, everything hung together and made a satisfyingly complex story, with just a few obvious coincidences that I forgave for the sake of plot. The sewing content is fabulous and with no mistakes to distract -- Fergie clearly knows her way around a sewing machine. Recommended for those who love family stories with heart, and a bit of history on the side, too. 

Thrifting for Treasure

Well, I haven't been posting here too much -- it's been almost a month! But I have been busy.

My sewing space has been, well, inaccessible lately. We had to have a new furnace installed; it was time to move to a high efficiency option. But. Unfortunately for me, that meant I had to move my entire sewing corner into stacks all over the house to leave room for gas and electrics and workmen to do their thing. So, long story short, I haven't been able to sew much lately! I still don't have the space put back together, but I do have my table & machine up, so that's good.

I'm going through each box and basket as I'm putting it back, and deciding what to keep or give away, and how to reorganize a bit to make things more usable. I've been meaning to do this kind of clean-out for quite a while now, but this jumble gave me the chance to get right on it.

So far I've thrown out old bits of clothing and odds and ends I didn't know I still had, and I've also given 27 metres of perfectly good fabric to the Goodwill. It was all things I knew I would never use - upholstery weights, polyesters, polar fleece etc. Turn about, I guess, since I do shop at my local Goodwill and Salvation Army & various other thrift shops a lot.

This week, after I dropped off my bags of fabric, I stopped in to see what was new inside. My eagle eyed husband spotted this:

I first thought, hmmm, that's kind of a neat set-up; a travelling case & a light enough to lift machine. Since it was only $35, after a bit of hemming and hawing (and a reassurance from the clerk that it worked) I bought it. When I got home, I realized what I had!

  It's a Singer Featherweight, the 221K model that was made in white with a short folding bed, probably in the early 60s. They are quite sought after, and are a reliable straight stitch machine that are now popular with quilters especially, as they are easy to transport & they sew a nice 1/4" straight seam very easily. Mine is in good condition, and it does indeed work, though I'm going to wait to really get going until I get some maintenance done on it so I don't ruin the motor. That was an exciting thrifting day!

I also added to my stash recently via an early birthday present from my sister, another thrifting diva:

I now have enough Anchor embroidery thread for many projects-- 22 boxes and nearly all full! This timely article about bobbinwork in the most recent Threads magazine has got my brain going. There is also a great article on the same topic in their archives! Think I'm going to try out some new techniques on the machine as well as continuing on with my hand embroidery projects.

And today I found a great book at another thrift store nearby -- it's Thérèse de Dillmont's Encyclopedia of Needlework, a facsimile edition which includes all the colour plates. First published in 1884, this is a thorough look at many kinds of needlework - all kinds of embroidery, crochet, knitting, tatting, even macramé - it is good reading. Interesting to know that macrame (or knotted fringe) was undergoing a surge in popularity at about that time...it's the next big retro trend that will return, I think. Calling it here! ;)

Have you made any great thrift store or yard sale finds lately? Do share...