The Machines

Here are the machines!  :0)  I have more sewing machines that I actually need, but my husband is kind enough to let me keep them.  I really love old, all-metal sewing machines.  The're pretty basic, but generally have beautiful stitch quality and are very strong (and heavy!).

My first machine was this Bernina 801. My mom gave it to me when I was in college.  She bought it off of Ebay for $25, I think.  It didn't come with a foot pedal and the listing said they didn't know if it ran or not.  It is the sweetest little machine!  It's quiet and smooth and stitches beautifully.

This is my serger.  It's a Juki 654DE and I really love it.  My mom bought this one for me as a graduation gift when I finished college.  I love it for finishing seams and sewing knits.  It has a lot of extra feet (ruffler, piping, elastic, etc) that I haven't even learned how to use yet.  I definitely need to pull them out and learn how to use them.  Oh, that there were more hours in a day...  :)

This Bernina 830 was my third machine.  I bought this machine after I was married at the encouragement of my husband after I complained that I couldn't make buttonholes, except slowly and laboriously, on my other machine.  I bought it off Ebay for a decent price.  It's amazing how well these old Berninas hold their value.  My mother-in-law has the exact same machine and she bought it new over 30 years ago for about twice the price I paid for mine used for 30 years.  It has the same great Bernina quality, but with a few more features and a little more power.  I have sewed jeans for my husband on this machine and it does pretty well.

I accidentally bought this Singer 201 when I was looking at some online classified ads for a dresser.  I say accidentally, because I saw a picture of it and was interested in it, and after doing some research online, I was really interested!  This machine was made in 1951, and was called the Dressmaker's Machine.  Many people say it was the best machine Singer ever made.  It's a straight stitch only machine, but what a gorgeous straight stitch it does.  It is the quietest, smoothest little machine I've ever sewn on.  I also bought the buttonhole attachment, and it does beautiful, even buttonholes, too.  And, I just love the way it looks...so  classic-sewing-machine :)

This machine is lovingly called the "Pink Brother".  I bought this at our local thrift store, kind of on a whim.  I was drawn in by it's peachy-pink color and retro shape (and, of course, the all-metal construction).  I plugged it in and it ran, so I paid the $30 for it and lugged it home.  This is by far the heaviest of the machines.  It wasn't threaded when I tried it at the store, and when I got it home, it skipped stitches terribly. I was so disappointed.  My husband encouraged me to take it to the sewing machine repair shop, so I did.  They fixed it up and replaced some parts and it works fine now.  It is really, really tough.  Like, sews through 8 layers of denim like nuthin'.  The man at the repair shop told me it was as close to being industrial as it could be without being industrial, based on the amperage of the motor.  I don't keep it out most of the time, but I think it will be great for sewing jeans.

So, there they are...the machines.  Hopefully, I won't add to this page anytime soon, as I really don't have room for any more machines...but a beautiful old sewing machine is hard to pass up :)