Didn’t Need It/Couldn’t Leave It

By now, no doubt, you think I’m a sewing blog sluggard. It is partly true but I’m still blaming the weather.

I love to go to restaurants at lunchtime, but I’m avoiding them as a little mid-day walking gets me through the afternoon better than a heavy lunch. Occasionally I will go - I’m not a recluse after all.

Last week, as part of my move/don’t sit lunch, I took myself to a “new to me” thrift store. On the way out, I spotted a yellowed plastic box that promised to be a sewing machine cover. My attention was focused, and I admit I was entertained, with the large number of curled price stickers all over it. The corners couldn’t stick due to the cobwebs and the dust…To me, the little red and yellow stickers looked like birds in flight.  I studied them, looking for a pattern. I decided there wasn’t one – someone had just had fun with a pricing gun.

Curiousity got me when my eyes made it to the top of the cover and read “Bernina.” I had to lift it.  Underneath, the machine was white – not yellowed like the stickered cover. I plugged it in, the screen lit up and when I pressed the foot pedal, the needle started moving up and down. I took that as a good sign.

Now, you know that I really do not need another machine. And, you have to agree that just because it powered up doesn’t guarantee that it won’t need expensive repairs. Yet I couldn’t walk away. A quick check to see if the bobbin case was there (it was) and a glance at the accessories: only a zipper foot, an appliqué foot (?), and a few other bits. Nope, no manual and no little table but still I grabbed it up and made a beeline for the register.

My sewing time this week has been spent on getting acquainted with this machine, a Bernina Activa 140. I downloaded and printed a manual. Sewing on scraps has been trouble free. I haven’t been able to find much information about it, other than it is (was?) on Bernina’s low end of quilting machines. The machine and accessories were fairly dirt free, but I gave them a thorough cleaning anyhow. It appears to have been cared for and I found only a small amount of purple fuzz around the feed dogs. The cover? Well, after vacuuming inside and out, it ended up in the tub. Looks so much better, but I don’t know what can be done about the yellowed plastic and scuff marks. Any clues?

Ok, ready to take it for a test drive…

A Clue?

In preparing the cabinet for its new home, I took the vacuum cleaner to it, wiped it down with a soft towel and then again with furniture polish.

I removed the thread/accessories tray from the drawer and washed it with warm, soapy water. I found this hiding in the corner of the tray. Do I assume then that this is a Horn cabinet? Or, did the previous owner purchase a Horn tray that just happened to fit in the drawer?

A quick Google search found a few photos of older Horn cabinets with keyholes similar to the ones on this cabinet. It lacks an airlift that the new Horn cabinets have. However, of my machines, the Singer 403A is the only one that fits into the cabinet hinges and the cut out. So, is it safe to say that the cabinet is intended for a standard vintage, pre-electronic machine and therefore pre-dated the need for an airlift - late 1950s/1960s?

If it isn't a Horn, what is it?

Thrift Store Happiness

For the past few weeks, my visits to a local thrift store have involved pacing and contemplation in front of this sewing cabinet. Each time, I think about how it is in good shape and how handy it would be, but I know that I have no space for it. Eventually, reason wins and I walk away, sulking and muttering to myself all the way home.

Today, however, was different. This time, I took the key out of the paper envelope that was taped to the top and unlocked the cabinet. I opened the top-drawer; saw the plastic insert and I turned to mush.

Two helpful volunteers quickly loaded it onto a dolly and pushed it out to my car. Try as they might, it would not fit in the trunk or the back seat. Plan B involved a call to DD#1 and she came to the rescue! We were able to poke it into her car. So, here it is. I haven't a clue what brand or model of sewing machine it was designed for.  There are no labels, stamps or other identifying marks on it. The thrift store ladies told me that the person who donated it had said that it was German made and from the 1950s. It looks 1960s/70s Scandinavian to me. Please feel free to comment if you know.

The hinges on this cabinet do not look the same as the Singer cabinet hinges. I hope that one of my machines will fit into it.

If nothing else, it will serve as a giant sewing box!  Now, where am I going to put it?