October 30, 2010

Vintage Long-Arm Quilting Machine

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I sold this machine in 2017 and am unable to answer any questions about it.

The most common question is about the variable speed function.  This was added by a previous owner, and I know nothing about how to install it.

I am the oh-so-tickled owner of a Singer long-arm quilting machine and table!  The patent date on the machine says 1896 though she could have been made up until about 1930, though I can't find exact info on this.  A variable speed motor has been added to make her electric and to control how fast she sews, and this is a great feature.  She does not have a regulated stitch function, but she can make fairly even stitches even without it.

There is a stylus that points down to a printed pantograph on the table below, and up until now (2015), I have not used this feature and exclusively free motion quilt.

This machine gives me the capability of finishing quilts that I make, and when I get good enough (read...have enough courage), I can quilt other people's quilts as a side business.  Yeah!  I did some practicing the first week I had her and then said, forget this, I'd rather practice on a real quilt  and quilted a quilt for a baby shower.  Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of it to show you!

ETA:  2015  I use Mrs.Singer for all quilts larger than baby which I do on my home machine.  She is suited for an allover meandering stitch and an organic semi-wavy line stitch.  I learned the hard way that she stitches best right to left, as stitching left to right is like going backwards for her, and she gets dizzy and messes up big time.  

I bought Mrs.Singer off Craigslist in 2010 with the intention of building a quilting business with her.



You can see she is L O N G.  Too long for the house, so she occupies the old school room in the shop which is now the exercise room.  It's perfect with lots of natural light and space.  I still do the sewing part in the house because I can multi-task around the house easier and be available to my family when I am physically there.  Amazing how that works.





The two pictures below are for my own record of how to thread the machine and how the belts go.  The oiling diagram can be found here.





Linking to:

October 29, 2010

Christmas Log Cabin Quilt

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Update:  This item has sold! 

Just listed in our Etsy Store, Handmade Hearts at Home.  Stop by to see this and other items we have made!  Thank you for supporting our family economy - we are both unemployed as of the end of this month!


Perfect For Your Decor!

Just in time for your holiday decorations -  a finished quilt for you!  The center of each block is fussycut and then surrounded by coordinating fabrics which have been added in a log cabin / courthouse steps fashion.  The six center blocks include Santa Claus, peppermint sticks, a snowy house, a Christmas stocking, and two different types of bells.  The quilting that holds the quilt together is decorative stitching around the six center blocks in red and blue thread.  The quilt corners are square even though the picture doesn't look like they are.  Getting them to look square in a picture is the hardest thing. 

Little details that make this quilt special include:  All fabrics are Thimbleberries fabrics, a high-quality quilt-shop fabric that tends to fade less and last longer.   The fabrics have a holiday look to them, including pine boughs, holly and mistletoe.  The backing matches in a pine bough fabric rather than a solid white.  The binding was machine stitched on with perfectly mitered 45-degree corners and was hand-tacked to the backing; the binding was joined to itself using a 45-degree seam.  My quilt instructor would be proud!

Buy It Now!

Just In Time for the Holidays!

Gorgeous backing and binding!

October 28, 2010

Hydrangea and Roses Quilt

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Just listed in our Etsy Store, Handmade Hearts at Home.  Stop by to see this and other items we have made!  Thank you for supporting our family economy!



This quilt at 29" square is the perfect size for a person in a wheelchair.  It won't get in the way of the wheels and is a nice weight to keep them warm.