bits and bobbins

a massive photo dump from our recent trip to NYC for poppy’s spring break! had tons of fun seeing old friends (aaron, nicole, mike, yufei, nick and danielle), shopping some (marimekko, abc carpet and home purl, polarn o. pyret, uniqlo, etc.), walking lots, going to the MOMA and boating on the pond in central park, eating entirely too much good food at all our favorite haunts (la pain quotidian, velselka, cafe katja, les halles, two boots pizza, and more!). arrived home safely yesterday, after a perfectly lovely 6 day stay.

poppy’s favorite part of the trip? her multiple visits to the very cool updated playground at union square park!

i’m the new owner of a fabulous old dame of a sewing machine, a 1930s singer 15-91! i purchased it last weekend from a dear new friend i met through the chicago modern quilt guild, erika of miss sews it all! she’s a collector of old sewing machines and somehow i managed to get her to sell one of them to me. thanks again, a million times over, erika!

i sat down and spent some quality time with her tuesday and wednesday and got the hang of how to use her whilst making a simple peasant top from some navy wax printed voile i picked up at vogue fabrics here in chicago a couple weeks back. the pattern is from the 1970s, just your basic boxy long sleeved peasant style with voluminous long sleeves. see above, underneath the denim jumper.

after using it for a bit, i must say: i love the way old machines sew; their stitch quality is so amazing and regular. i love how simple vintage machines are in general; they have a singularity of purpose and if they are in good working order they do what they do very very well. and if something goes wrong it can be easier to fix them than modern machines, many of which are packed to the gills with computerized functions. don’t get me wrong; i LOVE my newer machines, especially my dear bernina, but when they go to pot it’s sometimes tough to service them yourself and repairs can be costly.

this isn’t my first vintage machine, but it is the first one I’ve had that actually works, and works fairly well. couldn’t be happier with my new sewing machine! this now brings my total of sewing machines up to 4, not including the serger. it’s a sickness! oy.

anyone else get bitten by the (vintage) sewing machine bug? do you actually use yours (or just keep it around so you can admire its beauty)?