 |
 |
| Me at that moment, making a beeline… Photo from Grungaloo, Wikimedia Commons |
Ooh, it was in gorgeous condition! Ooh, there was its case, with a drawer (!), and an international shipping line’s label (!) pasted outside, ooh, and an original manual, and goodies in that little drawer. The price being fair, at that moment I thought, home it comes. I’ll have to sell the Singer 27, but home it comes.
And here it is now, a member of one of the more storied models of Singer, known for its simplicity of design, its durability (obviously), its long reign (1880s to 1960s!) and its lovely stitching ways. If you look up “Singer 28” on YouTube, you will find a lot of loving views and stories.
But in this case, there’s much more.
 |
| Singer 28K serial number Y9309795 Made in May 1934 in Kilbowie, Clydebank, Scotland |
Here’s that label, hinting at overseas travel…
That’s American Export Lines, a major cargo shipping service in the Mediterranean, from New York, gaining that particular name in 1936. The stamp on top shows that this piece of cargo was inspected by the United States. The shipping line kept that name until 1964.
Does this whet your interest…a portable sewing machine that traveled? Come with me as my son Noah and I explore the machine and discover that it has quite a story, that it belonged to two women who taught at the American Girls College in Istanbul, that it was first in Canterbury, England, that it later went to Spain, and finally came to the U.S. in the 1960s, probably when that shipping label was applied and the stamp on top.
What a tale, occurring as it did in the turmoil of the Depression years, the darkening of the globe before World War II, the terrifying War years, and the rebuilding, realigning period afterwards. Because the machine was so beautifully cared for, and because the second owner, sensing that this little machine had a special history, left a letter explaining it, tells me that she and her predecessor probably would have been nifty to meet, what with their skills and experiences, including teaching abroad during such a swathe of the 20th century.
Here is a video all about it, including the moment I discovered the letter, along with other surprises. I hope you enjoy the trip!
Edit November 26th: yesterday I oiled the machine...no need to clean it as it had been lovingly cared for...and used it for a tiny project. It sews beautifully :)
Oh, the last installment of the 1901-1903 Edwardian summer gown, setting it into its milieu, is not far from being ready, but with the Season almost upon us, I am not sure when I’ll have it posted. Meantime, all safety, health, and cheer to you.
6 comments:
Hello natalie, good to see youre still uploading. Your content has been a big help for me and for many others within the historical costuming community. A question for you, you have mentioned in your blog that you used Frances' Grimbles books to size patterns. Can you point me to which book or offer any other resources for it? Much thanks
Good evening! I happened to be online and happened to see your new comment. Am so happy that the blog has been of use to people over the years. May it keep being so.
You had asked about Frances Grimble’s books and using them to size up patterns. Are you talking about the drafting rulers that appear in some of her books, such as The Edwardian Modiste? That book covers 1905 plus 1907-9. One of my blog posts from ages ago covers drafting a 1909 corset cover using the rulers, and I describe the process in detail. The draft produced is of idealized proportions of the era, of course, and assumes a corseted figure. When I made that draft, I hadn’t any corset, and there is so much in retrospect that I didn’t understand. Nevertheless, for unfitted garments you may find the results good without messing with them up, but anything really fitted? You’ll need to make a mockup/toile and definitely over the proper undergarments. I look at the little corset cover I made then and giggle. The sewing was good…the fitting, well.
I’ve since watched several videos about measurement systems like that one: they were legion. Mrs. Depew online has a great blog that reviews them and she has copies or more than one system for sale. So does Marna Jean Davis…see her website and Etsy site, and she has an FB group as well.
If you search for “Grimble” in the search box at the top of the blog, you will find the post easily, plus other posts that use her books. I love them, although use them mostly for reference.
Ooh, if you are looking for Edwardian and 19-teens books that covering relatively easy drafts, there are lots out there. I specially love Textbook on Domestic Art (1911), which is a school book and has really doable drafts! See https://archive.org/details/textbookondomest00ingarich. I made a favorite Edwardian flounced petticoat using one of the drafts as well as the sewing directions and the results are amazingly close to those among my petticoat collection. See https://zipzipinkspot.blogspot.com/search/label/Edwardian%20flounced%20petticoat%20dress%20diary.
Again, thanks kindly for writing, and I wish you the best with proportional measurement patterning systems. They’re rather ingenious.
Thanks for your response! I'll take a look at the links you sent. I was more wondering on how to size up corsets. I'm working with a Der Bazaar corset pattern of which are in german. Many of the corsets are for a waist size I can't hope to achieve in a timely manner lol. The patterns waist are a whopping 43cm and I'm more comfortable around the 60-70cm closed corset.
Again thank you! Do you happen to have instagram by the way? Something in which we can follow your content more readily
Ah, sizing up Der Bazar patterns. Well, I’ve done it, but probably not correctly. If you see the series of posts on the 1890s godet-cut petticoat, (https://zipzipinkspot.blogspot.com/search/label/1890s%20yoked%20silk%20godet%20petticoat), you’ll learn what I did, and how the helpful comments folks made may change things. That petticoat is still in the naughty pile, and confronts me every time I open my closet. I wish you happy seams and courage with that job: it’s doable, though as with the proportional rulers method, you’d still have to modify the pattern and make a mockup. I’ve only ever made one pair of stays I was ever happy with, and haven’t posted on that yet :}
As for Instagram, with apologies, but I keep a limited online footprint, only YouTube, here on the blog, and very rarely, on Ravelry. I do look at a very few groups on Facebook on rare occasions, but do not have a personal presence, having made a decision to do so so years ago based on need. I know it’s harder to get content publicized.
A good rest of the evening to you!
No worries do whats best for your mental health and privacy! Thanks again and when I finish I'll update you on how it went. You've been a big help.
Aww, thank you. Very best indeed, and if you ever wish to let me know how the drafting and project went, how I'd love to hear about it.
Post a Comment