What better way to document what you have than lumping them all into one blog post.  I see Shannon cringe every time I mention one, but she gets the joy of disposing of them all when I die.  I do hope she’ll offer my sexy sister Jill to take whichever she’s like first.

My oldest would be a late 1800’s Household coffin top treadle with a beautiful fiddle base machine in it.  This one I plan to gift my sister when they move to their new house.   She needs some oil but all her parts are there including the shuttle and she seems to run fine.  I bought her from the original owners family along with the 1948 Singer featherweight I gifted Jill.  This way she has the 2 that belonged to the same family.   This picture was before I cleaned her up.

Number 2 in line is a beautiful Singer 128 that my friend Sue in Michigan gifted me this year.   She’s a 1923 in simply stunning condition and she sews like butter.  I need to learn the shuttle bobbins before I use up all her thread but I plan to start sewing with her. She is sitting on my Martha Washington sewing cabinet.   This one opens on the sides rather than the top like most.

 

Number 3 in line is only a cabinet now.    It’s a 3/4 size early 1900’s treadle by National.  Unfortunately I dropped the machine out of the cabinet while moving it and it was damaged beyond repair.  I now have her covered with a piece of glass and use it as a table for my featherweight.  To the right is my 1920’s thread cabinet on a small table.

 

Meet number 4 in age.  Again I could only confirm a date range 1908 to early 1920’s.  She is one of the German made Singer 66 treadle models.  They were never made to sell outside Germany so the serial numbers were never added to the Singer database.   Unfortunately in tracking the serial number, Singer list just a range and a note the factory in Germany was raided during WWII by Russia and all the records destroyed.  Apparently this belonged to a tailor that left when the German army started forcing everyone to sew uniforms.  She runs like a dream and I was blessed to get her from a friend of my cousins – free.

 

I am sure number 5 will become my favorite.  It is a 1930’s Jones No. 35 hand crank.  It’s being repainted so I’ll repost it then but here she is original.  I can’t really date her other than she was built in the 30’s for only 2 years and from what I’ve found, there weren’t a lot built.   They went on to fanicer models with more decorative decals.  Most of the machine companies never kept records to be able to date machines.   She was the one Jones model that didn’t come with all the decorative, fancy decals.   Pretty much just the Jones No 35 brand which was her model.  I bought her from a machine repairmen so of course she is smooth running.  Can’t wait till she comes home painted.  I really wanted red but decided on her original black.  She had terrible pin rash and her paint had pitted so I didn’t mind repainting her.   I buy them to enjoy not to save for the value.

 

Numbers 6 and 7.  Next up are my Singer 221’s, commonly called Featherweights.  My sister Jill has the original 1947 I bought and Robert has the 1949.  Just this year I happened to run across 2 more that needed a good home so now I own those.  The first one is a 1948 I purchased from a fellow church member.  Beautiful condition and I love how pristine she looks.

The second I just happened across by chance.  I didn’t need it but the seller was asking half what they sell for as she was listed as decoration only, doesn’t run.  Turns out she just needed some love and was all knotted up in the bobbin.  I have to say I could barely find any wear on her and imagine my shock to open her up and find a badged centennial edition.   Not just badged centennial but actually built in the anniversary year. She came with tons of accessories as well as a baby Singer oil can.  She is my new take to class machine.

 

Meet number 8.  I just got her and she is stunning.   I haven’t looked up her serial number but she’s a 1950’s Singer 99.  Completely serviced and running like new.  Her paint and decals are in amazing condition.  I think I am going to use her to teach my quilt friend Diane how to do free motion quilting.

Number 9 in age hasn’t come to live with me yet but I bought her today.  Like everyone but Singer, again no records to date her age.  She is one of the Japanese built machines from the 1950’s.   Badged Atlas but from what I can find she was built by Bel Air.   I’m told they only sold one run of these and were advised cease and desist by the Atlas Sewing Machine Company.  The only 2 others I have seen are badged Bel Air but are identical machines.  I know Belair also badged red machines as Arrow and Reliable so that may have been for marketing.  I still plan to one day find one of those red ones for sale but this one is super cool.

 

Here is number 10.  Again Husqvarna Viking never kept records to be able to date their machines but I’m told they are around 1962 – 1965.   I have read that these green machines are seriously sought after and 2 machine experts I read, claim this 19e Special is likely one of the best sewing machines ever built.   Can’t wait to get past the holidays and start using her.   I wish I had been able to find her extension table but the search is still on.

So those are my vintage babies.  For now lol.  I’ll post the Jones once she is refinished and when I take pictures I’ll post my newer machines.    I think I need a 70’s and 1980’s model to round them out.