A Thing of Beauty

A while ago I posted about the hand crank sewing machine that was being sold by All Brands. I was intrigued by it but just couldn't find a reason to buy one. The reason came the other day when speaking with friends about preparing for the next hurricane. All of us were envious when someone proudly proclaimed that she ran her sewing machine off of her generator during the two week blackout we suffered thorugh last year.

The light bulb went off in my head and I have now added this hand crank sewing machine to my disaster supplies.

What I didn't expect is how beautiful it is. The decals are wonderfully intricate and would be at home in an Egyptian museum. The etched machine head cover is also quite lovely. Here are some bright pictures I took the other evening.

In addtion, there is wonderful instruction manual that is all in pictures. The one thing it does not cover is how to thread the machine... great pictures for winding and loading the bobbin, for installing it in a treadle machine case and lowering the feed dogs but nothing on how to thread it for proper operation.

I finally found the right instructions in a book for my Featherweight. I also bought the kit for electrifying this machine but may never add the motor. Fortunately the motor is easily removable if I do go this route.

The best part about this beauty is that it really sews very well. It makes a nice stitch and, even though one hand is occupied cranking it, it sews very straight... unlike many modern machines that tend to skew the fabric in one direction or another.

Now I am prepared for the next hurricane ... lots of bottled water, some canned foods, batteries for the electronics, a hand crank radio, important papers all in one container and, now, a sewing machine to keep me from going crazy without electricity.

Who could ask for more?