One Way Streets & a Field Trip to Sew Special-Uniontown, Pa.

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Antique Vintage Singer 128 Sewing Machine & Wood Case

 A year or so ago my quilting friend, Susan, bought a Vintage Singer Sewing machine, for $10.00. It has waited for its moment in the sun since then. It needs a good refurbishing, the wiring looks iffy, any rubber washers will need replaced, and the throat plate is missing. But it is a beauty. It looks like this one currently listed on Ebay. According to the Singer Web Site,  the serial numbers indicate that it is a 1949 Singer 128 made in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

‘Blackside’ Machines

During the period 1941 to 1953 Singer occasionally produced what are known as ‘Blackside’ models. Unlike the standard machines, many of the normally bright plated parts utilised a chemically blacked finish instead. This is thought to have been in response to shortages of nickel and chromium.
It is a characteristic of these machines that there seems to have been no hard and fast rule as to which ‘Blackside’ parts were fitted. Generally needle plates, bobbin covers and face plates etc. would all be Blackside, but various knobs, levers, screws etc could be either bright or black. At the same time Singer also produced a range of accessories, tools etc and even bobbins that were blackside. Generally blackside components had the same Simanco part numbers as their bright plated counterparts.
 *From http://www.singersewinginfo.co.uk/blackside/

  So we heard about a shop that did this kind of work and off we went on a beautiful summer day. We found the shop after discovering that all the towns in these little mountain and foot hill communities are loaded with one way streets. I know, how many one way streets can you put in a little town? The answer is....... half of them. Anyway, the machine fixer is on vacation, two months. Good for him, but now what should we do?  Find a quilt shop that's what! And we did!

The name of the shop is "Sew Special." At one time it was a just a tailor/alterations shop, then they started having classes and selling machines. The fabric quickly followed. Now they occupy two buildings with great quilting supplies.

located in a refurbished building in an part of this little town that has come back to life, this shop has a great and welcoming entrance and staff.

 We were oohing and aahing as soon as we walked in the door. What a great selection of fabrics, some designs that we had never seen before. Blank textiles offerings were in beautiful colors with great contrasts in the backgrounds. Elanor Burns Victory Garden was represented as well. So many others that I don't remember. Let's just say, we had fun, lots of fun. I will share that in another post. 

 This is a shot of their machine demonstration area and classroom. I believe the machines are all Husquvarna Vikings. Beautiful. The space is large, clean and well lighted. The fabrics are displayed nicely and within easy reach.

I will return, definitely. First, we have to go back to the repair shop in another town, and since this shop is on the way, why not?  In the fall the leaves will be changing and the display is always stunning. A good excuse for another visit.

After a nice lunch in a nearby bistro, we headed home, happily with the additions to our stash. A quilter never has enough fabric, right??

Gratuity Moment: a New Friend who likes a good quilt shop as much as I do!















Comments

Jeanne Marie said…
Sounds like a great adventure. I'm not a quilter, but I do love a well-stocked quilt shop. Such gorgeous prints!
August 3, 2011 at 1:52 AM
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