Planning to Sew.

I'm feeling quite chuffed after finding out one of my drawings has been featured on Odosketch! Unfortunately I can't claim the design as my own. It's based on an old matchbox cover I saw on Flickr.



Ah, the excitement! Honestly, anything would seem exciting to me after spending hours in a biochemistry prac. Although I am starting to find Gilson pipetting quite therapeutic :)

Anyway, I am in desperate need of a new Burda magazine. Especially seeing as the few I own are my mother's from the mid 80's. Here's a Burda skirt she made about 25 years ago, which I have stolen from the dress-ups.


I made the stripey shirt from a bundle of stretch cotton I picked up for $3 at Red Cross. Comfiest shirt in existence, but sadly needs to be worn with a singlet underneath (the photos don't show just how revealing it is...).

I would very much like to make this blouse:


But I should try and draft it myself for a challenge. Only another 2 months before I'm back home with a machine!

Second-hand Shopping & Nancy Drew Pants

Here are the latest additions to my wardrobe... Apologies for the dodgy pictures, my new college room has terrible lighting!

Granny pants from my grandmother. I think Nancy Drew would wear them. Initially, I was doubtful. Then I put them on, and was seduced by their comfortable-ness. They are now officially study pants. I may, in the near future, blog about clothes to study in. They make or break a study session for me (they must be insanely comfortable. And boring. If they are too interesting, I cannot concentrate on my study. So no glittery or tassel-ly things).


Thrifted pair of Wayne Cooper pants from a fancy Lifeline store on Adelaide St (Brisbane City). Never thought I would buy anything by Wayne Cooper, but they were cheap and quite comfortable (yes, they are study pants too. I am wearing them now. Because I am about to study. Maybe...).

To be continued!

Easter holidays are over. It's time for uni.

Easter holidays - 6 days with a sewing machine! I began a heap of projects, but didn't really finish anything significant. But I DID find some pretty great things in a local St Vinnies store.

Vinnies had a fill-a-tote-for-$5 special - my idea of heaven :) I managed to cram about 20 books into the bag! Three were sewing books: the first a hideous 80s book by Charmain Watkins (this one will probably get donated back); the second a 70s book on tailoring; the third was the most exciting find - a 1967 Japanese pattern book by Kamakura-Shobo Publishing called Pattern Drafting.

I had a quick look on eBay, and the last sold for about $68 so I must be pretty lucky to have found a cheap copy! I've never drafted a pattern before, and I was a little nervous about it, but so far it's been a lot of fun. So far I've drafted four patterns from the basic sloper:

They have worked very nicely so far. But I won't be able to finish them off until July when I head back home. Which sucks. I'm seriously considering hand-sewing something... Maybe...

These are the next patterns I'm going to draft:

They are very Nancy Drew-like too! Here's a old Vogue pattern I picked up from a bazaar a few months ago:


I wish modern patterns looked like this!

Treadle Machine Excitement.

Here are some dodgy pictures of the Singer treadle machine I picked up for $85 at a Bazaar (my favourite store in the world) a month ago. Both sets of grandparents gave me a bit of money for my 18th birthday almost a year and a half ago, so they're pretty happy I've finally spent it (the easel in the background is something else I bought with the money).


They dated it between 1908 - 1910, although I think it's about 20 years younger than that. I'm actually having tremendous trouble dating my machine, because old Singers are not stamped with their model number. The only thing to work from is the serial number and the manual. Unfortunately, it didn't come with a manual and the serial number only reveals the date of manufacture, not the model:


Here's a shortened version of the steps I've gone through during the uni holidays:
- Researched serial number. EA numbers aren't to be found anywhere. Excited that I may have a rare machine.
- Excited no more. Finally found a Singer site that said they were made in Clydebank, Scotland in 1935. Seems likely, as the cabinet has thistles all over it. Start to feel a little ill. The last highschool I went to was called Scots and it's emblem was a thistle.
- Checked out this site. Am thinking it is a 15-30 model. Have now forgotten the cabinet reminds me of highschool.
- Scanned a few (I mean a million) other sites. Yes, it looks very much like a 15-30.
- Looked at a 15-30 manual. The diagrams match the machine exactly. Feeling quite pleased with myself.
- Found manufacturing dates of the 15-30. They were not manufactured after 1933. *#&%!... Back to square one.
- Repeat these steps a gagillion times.
- Find an amazing site filled with old machine diagrams. One looks like mine!
- Move back to college. Forgot to write the amazing site's address down.
- So far spent 2.5hrs searching for amazing site. Cannot find amazing site. Starting to think I should study.
- Open chemistry book.
- Chemistry is boring. Close chemistry book, and resume searching for amazing site again.

There is still hope, as I have had some success with the cabinet on the International Sewing Machine Collectors' Society site! Here it is - Cabinet Table No. 6 for 15-30s, 66-1s, 115-1s & 127-3s, complete with thistle embossing and 7 drawers! Maybe it is a 15-30 after all...or maybe it's been placed in a different cabinet.

My treadle stand is a bit prettier though :) The 7th drawer is a little tilting thing you can see here. Pretty cute!


Structurally, I believe the cabinet is in pretty good condition. A few little things to fix up - as you can probably see, the tilting draw has a join that needs mending. The silky oak veneer top is in pretty atrocious condition; it looks like it has spent some time in the weather! Some people have very shiny, varnished versions of this cabinet. Ultra-shiny furniture isn't really my thing - I like the simpleness of my cabinet. The machine itself is beautiful, thankfully. I haven't gotten it to sew properly yet (a few tensioning issues), but it does move the fabric through as I turn the wheel and it hasn't made any bad sounds since I oiled it. The decals are a little worn and the paint is chipped in a few places, but I think this gives it a bit of character.


Easter isn't too far away, so I can't wait to get back home and polish it up! I'll need to order a treadle belt, and a new bobbin winder ring (the perished black rubber ring that sits parallel to the wheel).


Have a look at these wonderfully bizarre attachments that came with the machine...


They've been much easier to date than the machine itself! There are two feet on the top right - not sure what they're for yet, because they aren't labeled. Now I can't quite remember which is which, but I know I have a tucker, an adjustable hemmer and a binder. The biggest gadget in the middle and the bracket-looking thing on the bottom left are unlabeled as well. I have a feeling the bracket is not actually for the machine...

Wow, long post. But I'm so excited! I'm pretty confident I can get it working, and it'll make a beautiful piece of furniture as well. If anyone knows anything about treadle machines, please let me know. I'd love to hear from you :)

On a completely unrelated note, I drew 3 pigs last night. A quick search revealed to me that several other people had called their pigs 'Beardy' like I had. Astonishingly, only one of these pigs actually has a beard.

A Day to Op-Shop

An orthodontist appointment brought me into town today, giving me a few hours to poke around the local shops. I live in a small, rural town during the holidays, so I usually save my money till I hit Brisbane for uni. Unexpectedly, I had such a productive day! My newsagent has suddenly started selling proper artist supplies, so I finally got my hands on a roll of gummed tape for my watercolour paintings (yay)! Next was a stop to Salvo's. So, so much fun. I managed to get one dress, two skirts, 1 blouse and heaps of stretchy striped fabric for $13. Not bad!

Here's the first find, a size 16 Crossroads dress. It's very cute and Audrey Hepburn-ish. Still, it'll need to undergo a major restructure if it is ever to be worn by me. A challenge awaits!

Next is a Harry Potter blouse (the label, not the poor wizard-boy). Too big, but easily fixed!

Here's a size 10 Sussan skirt. Missing a button. Some size 10, it's minute in all direction! This one will definitely only be worn with thick tights or leggings :D

Last one: another skirt (and I'm not even a skirt person!). This one looks handmade (the seams aren't overlocked and the zipper doesn't match - it's gray). It's very tiny again, but has a really nice shape to it.

(And yes, I was boiling taking these pictures! It is far too hot for tights).

Not a sleuthing bag.

This is my Traveller’s Bag, made from Merita’s pattern on Burdastyle.

I made it especially for uni, and it turned out to be quite fantastic! Not only does it look cute, but I can fit heaps of stuff in it for uni (plus a drink bottle, I can't believe I left it out of the picture. I love water):

I lined it with calico (I just wasn't in the mood to chase up a better fabric) and added inside pockets to fit keys, mobile, ipod, a notebook & tissues.

I also used herringbone strapping instead of fabric to make the straps. This stuff is just the greatest thing ever - it is so strong and doesn't require stitching, turning, pressing et cetera. I desperately wanted to use chunky metal zipper, but I live in a small town and the fabric store only sells metal zippers in short sizes for jeans. Instead I settled for a slightly-too-long chunky plastic zipper, and I think it looks pretty good. I just had to add a tag at the end, because it extends past the end of the bag.

I salvaged this cotton twill from Red Cross - $2 for about 3 metres. According the label, it had ‘2 small holes along its length’. This provided some amusement at home, because when unfolded there were actually about six rather large rectangles cut right out in the middle.

Weird, but funny! I think I’ll make a yoga bag out of the rest.