Pre-Dawn Ramblings of a Treadle-Owning Insomniac

Grant me this: I work fast.

Meet the newest member of the family: my 1920 Singer 66 "red eye" treadle sewing machine! 

This little beauty was being sold by a young Parsons grad named Tomoko who lives right around the corner from me in a four-story walk-up -- fortunately on one of the lower floors!  She'd bought the machine at an antiques store and never used it for anything other than as a computer table (no reflection on Parsons, I'm sure...).  She's about to sublet her apartment to a friend and wanted to clear some things out first -- the treadle/glorified Macbook stand included.

After scoping out the machine carefully at Tomoko's apartment and taking a few pictures, I returned home, discussed the matter with Michael, dumped it on you guys, and made my decision.  Then I went back to Tomoko's -- after a quick visit to the ATM of course -- paid for it, unscrewed the machine from the table and carried it home.

In the late afternoon, Michael and I returned to pick up the table which, while not heavy without the machine in it, was a little awkward to move.  Luckily we didn't have far to go: literally around the corner.

This is the machine itself without any cleaning at all.  Not bad, huh?









Tomoko was originally asking $250 (on Craigslist) but was willing to go with $200.  Still high, some might say.  But since I don't own a car, anything more than a block or two's distance would have required a car rental -- with all the cost of time and money involved -- or arranging to have it delivered (ditto).

Did I mention that Tomoko lived around the corner?  What are the odds?  Around the corner.

Factoring all of this in, I decided to go with it, especially because the sewing machine itself was in good shape and had the drop-in bobbin as opposed to the older, more cumbersome shuttle.  The table could use some some minor cosmetic help, but who couldn't?  Mostly things like water rings.  Heloise, some helpful hints, please.



I still need to buy the belt for it; I may be able to find that locally or I can order one online -- they're inexpensive.  But I've oiled both the machine and the treadle and both work smoothly.  So quiet!

Poking around inside I found about what you'd expect from a machine that probably hasn't been used in seventy years:

A Singer bobbin with old, discolored thread:



Lots of fuzz:



Some crud.



Nothing too bad, however.

Most importantly, she sews -- cotton...



...and leather:





There's still some fine tuning to do, but the essentials are all there. 





She's much daintier than I'd imagined: about the size of a child's desk and with the lacy wrought-iron stand, not bulky at all.  I just love the way she looks!

Meanwhile, a rather ugly rumor has been circulating in the sewing blogosphere, to the effect that this whole treadle drama (all 48 hours of it, hello) has been merely a ruse to put off Michael's suit project just a little bit longer: 

First I said I was going to sew it before my August vacation, but suddenly I had to tackle my Burda A-line dress muslin.  Then I was going to do it first thing after vacation, but no, suddenly I had to go searching for a treadle sewing machine and now that needs to be fixed up.  And then I have to sew the Burda dress in the Liberty fabric and have Cathy model it, which means the suit is not going to be ready for Michael's mother's seventieth birthday family portrait in late September.  Then, seemingly out of nowhere, an imminent thirtieth high school reunion, followed by my brother's wedding in November, etc., etc.

Let me put an end to these rumors, which obviously have been started by one of my bitter rivals and I have many.  Life happens, OK?  You just can't choose how things are gonna play out.  I said I'd make Michael the suit and I will make Michael the suit.  I bought the hair canvas, didn't I?   (The things I have to put up with...)

Guys, I'm starting to fade and I wasn't all that vivid to begin with.

On a serious note, a big shout out and muchos hugs to frequent commenter and all-around funny-girl/sewing genius, Debbie of Stitches and Seams, whose eldest son is shipping out today to U.S. Marine Corps boot camp -- eight months earlier than expected!

Now I don't have any children as you know, but I do have two chihuahuas, and the idea of sending either of them off to boot camp...well, just tell me where to sign.

Kidding aside, while Debbie and I have had our differences, most recently over a bottle of Hidden Valley Spicy Ranch salad dressing (on quesadillas?) I wish her all the best on what's sure to be a tough day for any mother.  I have a mother myself with whom I pathologically over-identify so I can imagine the emotions.  Hang in there, Debbie!

Kids, I think it's time for this little treadle-owner to close the proverbial table top and return to the sleeping chamber -- otherwise known as the chihuahua kennel.  (Whoa, not a pretty sentence.)

Thank you all so much for your many wonderful comments of support yesterday.  You guys crack me up -- in a good way!

So, who wants to try my treadle?  Don't all shout at once!

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Treadle Sewing Machines: Yea or Nay?

Dear Hearts and Gentle Lurkers, I have a new obsession: treadle sewing machines.  I just checked this machine out this morning.  It is ONE BLOCK FROM MY APARTMENT.   I found it on Craigslist.  According to the serial number, it was manufactured on April 28, 1920.  Ninety years old!

The seller was asking $250 but will take $200.  Yes?  No?  The hand wheel turns smoothly as does the treadle.  It will need a belt.  It takes regular drop-in Singer bobbins.

I hate to dump this topic on you so early in the week but I need to know.

I'm not sure how this treadle meme got planted in my brain.  I saw two for sale when I went to the Chelsea flea market with my sewing machine-enabler friend, Johanna, a few weeks ago.



And then I read Through the Eye of a Needle, as I mentioned yesterday, in which treadles are a major theme.

I know I don't want one as old as the one above; in fact I'd prefer one with a Singer 15, which do exist apparently, albeit in less lovely treadle tables.

Oh, the stress of it all!

You know, sometimes I do wonder if maybe I am a bit of a drama-- no, I won't say it.  Some of you know what I'm suggesting and the rest of you, well, no matter.  But do you ever wonder if you don't actually invite drama into your lives; like when things are going just fine and dandy life feels a little....boring?

And speaking of drama -- LOOK what was sitting in my mailbox upon my return from rain-soaked Provincetown on Saturday:

Readers, I know it doesn't seem possible that someone with as dewy-fresh a complexion as mine could be facing his THIRTIETH (not thirteenth, my dears, thirtieth) high school reunion, but I recently looked at my passport and the dates do indeed line up.

And here I am in 1979 at seventeen and my oomphiest.



I don't know where to start:  What should I wear?  Should I sew it myself?  Should I invite Cathy? 

And WHO holds their high school reunion at the Waldorf Astoria?  Shouldn't this take place at the Econolodge on Rte. 17 or the high school gym or something?  This is not just fancy, it's fancy-shmancy, and I know most of you recognize the difference.  I guess since I'm not on the reunion committee I really have no right to complain though.

Long-time readers will remember that I have already attended a thirtieth high school reunion, only not my own, as the guest of an old (well, my age) elementary school friend, Amy.  So I should feel well prepared, right? But I don't. 

What do you think?  Obviously I have to go -- if only to experience cocktails and dinner at the Waldorf, not exactly my usual hang-out.  If I thought I might run into Ginger Rogers and Walter Pidgeon having a "week-end" there I might be more excited. 

In closing, three questions:

1. Is a treadle sewing machine worth getting now or should I wait until after the Peak Oil apocalypse?  Do you own a treadle?  If you do, is it hard work to pump it?  Is it fun/reliable?  Should I buy the one pictured up top?

2.  What should I wear to my thirtieth high school reunion?  (It''s October 2nd, right around the corner)

3.  Finally, do you think I'm a drama _________?  (rhymes with clean).  And if yes, doesn't that actually make for better blogging, when you think about it?  Do any of you identify as such?

Be kind!

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Vacation, schmacation - Peter Comes Home

Friends, it is good to be home.  Oh, not Manhattan (though that's nice too) -- I mean here with you at Male Pattern Boldness!

Let's face it: my life as a blogging male home sewist is a lot more glamorous than my real life, where -- I can conceal it no longer -- I am actually Gertie's book agent.

By the way, there is a strong possibility that MPB is going to be turned into a Lifetime movie-of-the-week.  OK, would you believe a slight possibility?

A dim possibility?

I'm pushing for a fantastic all-star cast, headed by Jason Batemen in the role of Yours Truly and sister Justine as cousin Cathy.   If they're not available I'll settle for Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Tiffani Thiessen or just Mario Lopez in a dazzling dual-role star turn -- a shoe-in for an Emmy nomination!

I welcome your suggestions and/or contacts as it really helps to get a commitment from a star first, or so I've heard.

Oh, and do you read In Touch?  Esther Williams is making a comeback (finally!) in a sequel to that 1949 MGM hit, Neptune's Daughter.  Working title: Million Dollar Mer-crone.  (I know, not my best material...)

But enough silliness; let's get back to sewing.

When I got home I was so excited to see that this had arrived at long last and it's very attractive:



Can't wait to get started on the Burda A-line dress.  And then the suit; I haven't forgotten the suit.

My friend Johanna recommended this book to me and I finally read it on my vacation:



It's a collection of essays about one man's discovery of the joys of sewing one's own clothes with vintage sewing machines, interspersed with thoughts about Peak Oil, reducing one's carbon footprint, and the consequences of outsourcing jobs to low-wage countries -- all my favorite topics!  A great read and very thought provoking.  Author is John-Paul Flintoff, btw, a British journalist.

What else?

Readers, it rained for the first four days of our vacation.  And I know this is going to sound perverse, but I think I actually preferred it.  I'm not much of a fun-in-the-sun type, despite rumors to the contrary.  I hate slathering my skin with sunscreen, traipsing out to the beach and baking in the heat, or sipping daiquiris out of cheap plastic cups poolside to the throb of Nineties house music.

 

I much prefer a long run on a cool, overcast morning and then reading, listening to music, and cooking.



I hope that doesn't sound insensitive to those who never got to sip a daiquiri this summer.  It just gives you a headache.

More vacation pics here:



In closing, readers, it's so nice to be surrounded by my sewing machines and sewists once again!

Many of you have written to say that you chose five things from among my eleven recommendations and completed your assignment.  Others seem to have cheated a bit, settling on one or two of the easier ones and calling it a day.

As for the rest of you...I hope you're taking this Pass/Fail is all I can say.

Seriously, what have you been up to all week?  Did it rain where you live for days and days?



What have I missed in the blogosphere, if anything?  Give me all the gossip!

Have a great Sunday, everybody!

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My Vacation, YOUR ASSIGNMENT

It's Friday at long last, kids!  First things first:  WHO won the McCall's wiggle dress pattern?  The winner of the pattern is....

 

Rebecca!

I'm sure we all remember Rebecca's winning entry, the concise-yet-powerful couplet:

I must confess,
I need that dress!

No one need worry about the state of contemporary poetry after scanning yesterday's submissions!  Thanks again for taking the time and don't wait for the next pattern giveaway to give voice to your poetic selves.

(Rebecca, please send me your mailing address at peterlappinnyc at gmail dot com by 2 pm EST and I'll get this in the mail today; otherwise, upon my return.)

This will be my last entry till Sunday, August 29 as I'll be on a wacky and wild -- but wholesome -- beach vacation with Frankie, Annette, Troy, Sandra, and the gang. 

Here's what I'd like YOU to do in my absence:

ASSIGNMENT

Please pick at least five items from the following list.  You can choose more if you wish but you won't receive any extra credit or anything; the reward will be your own.  

1.  Buy yourself a vintage dress pattern.  Etsy's a great place to start.



2. Watch any Ingrid Bergman film with a one-word title; I recommend Notorious. Spellbound, or Gaslight.



3. Rediscover the joys of Deanna Durbin -- alive and kicking and apparently planning a comeback opposite Mickey Rooney!  You can start here.

4. Read a book about memes.  You can start with Virus of the Mind: The New Science of the Meme by Richard Brodie.  Place it on reserve in the library or purchase a used copy on Amazon; interesting stuff.

5. Oil your mechanical sewing machines and clean the fuzz out from beneath the needle plate. 

6. Go through your closet and pick three things you never wear and are just taking up space.  Give them away.

7. Try this excellent beauty tip from Cathy: start with a 10-minute firming egg white facial mask (a little bit goes a long way and you can eat what's left for lunch), and follow it with a ripe avocado moisturizing mask (ditto).

8. Eat something green at least once a day -- lime Jello doesn't count.  Try something new like kale or chard: steam them and serve with a little extra virgin olive oil and lemon.

9. Treat yourself to some new underwear for heaven's sake.

10. Go someplace you've been wanting to go but haven't made the time.  What are you waiting for?

BONUS TASK!

11. That sewing project that you started that's been hanging over your head for weeks and fills you with despair every time you think about it -- DUMP IT AND MOVE ON.

That's it kids; hopefully your assignment will keep you busy until my return.  I'll have access to my email of course and can read any comments you leave on old entries.  Don't forget the MPB Archives; remember when Cathy gave me a makeover?

Have a wonderful week, everybody, stay out of trouble, and happy sewing!

P.S.  If you haven't signed on as a Follower, now's the time -- it's nearly Sweeps week.

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1960 MAD MEN Wiggle Dress Pattern GIVEAWAY!

Good morning, all!

As you can probably guess after Wednesday's pre-dawn post, I spent most of yesterday in bed trying to catch up on my sleep.  I am happy to report that, not only do I feel rested and refreshed, I also look ten years younger.

Michael made the most refreshing summer drink with dinner, which helped.  Here's the recipe: 

MICHAEL'S SUNNY SUMMER QUENCHER 

To a (room temperature or cool but not iced) half-gallon-sized pitcher of filtered water add:

• Several stems of basil (leaves and, in this case, basil flowers)
• Several stems of mint leaves
• One yellow cucumber, sliced thin (green will do, peel if not organic)

Refrigerate for one hour.  Serve over ice, with a bit of maple syrup to taste.

Refreshing and so invigorating!

But let's get back to sewing...

Friends, as you've pored over Cathy's photo shoots featuring the styles of so many different eras, you may have noticed that the period conspicuously absent is the late Fifties-early Sixties, currently known as the MAD MEN era.

I do not own a television set, so all I know about MAD MEN is what I read on the sewing blogs, increasingly my sole source of information, period.  I know it has something to do with wiggle skirts, advertising, and Brylcream.

As far as women's fashion goes, I'm not fond of this era.  Of course, this was the height of the Doris Day sex comedy, and Doris was undoubtedly fetching in those cinched-waist, wiggly-skirted sheath dresses.

They just look so uncomfortable to me and Cathy -- who refuses to cinch -- isn't fond of them either.  Or the hair, or the shoes...

Anyway, my loss is your gain.

I think it was reader Kelly who sent me this pristine, 32" bust, McCall's classic wiggle dress pattern from 1960 and I believe I received Kelly's permission to give it away.  If it wasn't Kelly and and if I don't have permission to give it away, well, you never should have sent it to me in the first place.

(Click on photos to supersize.)

Your pattern is complete and in excellent condition.  It has been sniffed by dogs but that's the extent of it.  Again: It's a vintage Size 12 or a 32" bust.

To vote, please leave a comment below.  However, this comment MUST rhyme.  It can be as simple as:

In that pattern
I'd look like a slattern.

or

Girls in wiggle dresses
Rarely are successes.  

Those are my rhymes; you'll you have to come up with your own.  A simple couplet is sufficient.  Sonnets are welcome but won't earn you extra points.

NO HAIKUS PLEASE!

Deadline is Friday, 6 a.m. EST.  I will announce the winner (chosen at random) on Friday morning.  I'll need your mailing address ASAP as I'm leaving town on Saturday, or else you'll have to wait a week.  Sounds fair, right?

I'm opening this up to my readers all over the globe, so Aussies and Kiwis, rev your engines.

Have a great day everybody.  Get out your rhyming dictionaries!

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It's 3 o'clock in the morning...

Friends, once again I must apologize for my pre-dawn stream of consciousness.  Don't ask me why I am awake at this ungodly hour, but I have learned that if I am, it's better to just get out of bed and start my day than to toss and turn in the darkness, thoughts of my next blog post filling my head.  I have Freddy here curled up on the sofa next to me, so off we go....

I am still waiting for my Liberty Art fabric to arrive.  That's the pattern above and I'm trying to recall how large those "lozenges" are.  Somewhere online I'd found an image of the fabric with one of those little rulers at the bottom showing the scale of the design, but I haven't been able to relocate it.  I am hoping the image above represents say, five inches of the pattern and not a yard, otherwise that Burda dress is going to be rather hard on the eyes.

I did receive a very special package in the mail yesterday, however:







I am so excited about this men's tailoring book by Roberto Cabrera and I know it's going to help tremendously with my suit project.  You do remember it, don't you?  While I got distracted there for a while, please don't think I have forgotten my much-heralded-and-as-quickly-sidelined suit project.  In fact, I am thinking of announcing an official MPB September Suit-a-thon just to raise awareness.  (Won't you help create a suit today....Please?)  What do you think?  

And while we're on the subject of you...

I've noticed that when I post a blog entry, the very first readers tend to be the editors, the ones who'll alert me to the difference between bespeckled and bespectacled or discrete and discreet, usually early enough for me to avoid large-scale public embarrassment.

After the editors, come the continuity experts.  Their job is essentially to comb for any inconsistencies.  Is there a beginning, middle, and an end?  Does what I'm saying make any sense at all?  Will anybody get my jokes? 

Next come the critics.  They read my entry and focus on the content: Am I alienating the Aussies?  Have I been mean to anyone who doesn't deserve it?  Can you see the outline of anything you shouldn't in my latest pants project photos?  Their comments usually arrive via personal email.

Finally, we have the sewing police.  They're the ones who remind me -- publicly and occasionally in caps -- that a Forties dress should not have serged seam allowances -- on the outside -- and that no self-respecting tailor would baste with anything but dental floss.  They have so much knowledge to share and, if we're able to swallow our pride a bit, they can educate us all.

Friends, it takes a team to keep me at my absolute best, day after day. I couldn't do it without you.  To think that Emily Dickinson had only one editor...or was that Janice Dickinson?

Oh, yes, then there's the fans...

They're the ones who stick by me through thick and thin, the vast majority so bleary-eyed and over-caffeinated they don't even notice whether there's a lack of basic subject/verb agreement. They're here primarily to see pretty pictures of cute dogs, Cathy in my latest creation, and me in silly get-ups.   They're the ones who make it all worthwhile!

And speaking of fans...

I forgot to mention that on Monday I had the the good fortune to spend a few hours with Mainely Dad and his posse right here in NYC.   You'll recall that Mainely Dad -- let's call him Duane shall we?-- is the gentleman who sewed himself the amazing Japanese pattern book toggle coat and turned me on to "The Bishop Method of Clothing Construction."  He, his partner Brian, and his two endlessly patient adult children were in town on Monday and we all met up for coffee and a little fabric shopping -- what else?



I won't lie: I think Duane et al. were secretly hoping to meet Cathy, and I could sense a bit of disappointment when they realized it would just be plain old me, fresh from the City pool and still smelling of chlorine.



Duane needed to buy buttons and lining material for his next project, a men's topper-style coat.  If there's one thing I love to shop for, it's lining material, and we visited some of my favorite fabric stores, including Truemark on Seventh Ave. and 25th St., and H&M on 35th St., where Duane found something to his liking among the six hundred possibilities available.

If you want to find out which fabric he chose -- please, not the heavy poly satin, Duane! -- you'll probably have to visit his blog, which I link to again in hopes of a formal invitation to his weekend house in Asbury Park, New Jersey, and which he really needs to update someday soon (the blog, not the house).

Dear readers, I'm afraid the caffeine is starting to wear off.   I think it's time to either go back to bed or refill my moka espresso pot.  Editors, Continuity Experts, Critics and Sewing Police, it's in your hands now.

Fans, should you ever visit me in New York, please let's shop for something other than three yards of nylon acetate.  How about some stretch lace?

Have a great day, everybody!

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When Bad Things Happen to Good Patterns or "TOKIBAT!"

 

Friends, one of the joys of blogging is that no matter what kind of disasters befall you, you can always turn it into material for your blog.  Barring the type of catastrophe that sends you to the other side -- and I don't mean Europe -- a capable writer can spin any setback into a life-affirming tale of courage-over-despair worthy of a comeback vehicle for Donna Mills.

In fact, when life's troubles get me down, I always say to myself, TOKIBAT!, smile ruefully and go on with my day.  Sometimes I also whistle a happy tune or take a mild sedative.

Sewers with blogs (not you SWOBS, sorry), do you ever find yourself saying TOKIBAT in your lives? Surely, you...

Wait.

When I say TOKIBAT do any of you understand what I'm talking about?

TOKIBAT stands for "That's OK, I'll blog about that!"   It's heard more and more frequently during these challenging times, so full of badly written pattern instructions, cracked cam shafts, and uncooperative sergers.

Let's all say it together: TOKIBAT!

Don't you feel better already?
 
I had a moment of TOKIBAT only hours ago after returning from my dog walk.  I'd been surprised that during a forty minute stroll through Chelsea's steamy streets, Willy hadn't once peed.  It was only when I returned home and was settling down to drink my morning coffee and read my email, that I discovered why:



Readers, I would rather not make this a conversation about paper training, adopting puppy mill puppies, or removing stains from wool carpets.  I can think of a half dozen reasons why Willy did what he did and I'm sure to his walnut-sized brain it made perfect sense.

But why, oh why, gentle people, did he have do it on my Burda pattern?

In the grand scheme of things, this is not a tragedy.  I can spray the carpet with a little "Nature's Miracle" cleanser not that that ever does much but whatever, air out the soiled pattern pieces, trace them onto fresh paper and tape them into place.  I have many, many options.

I don't think Willy meant this as a comment on the pattern itself, which as you know, I think is well drafted if accompanied by instructions that are nearly indecipherable.

Nor do I think it is in any way a signal from the great beyond that my chances of winning this competition are piss-poor.

TOKIBAT!

Meanwhile, as you probably can tell from the photo above, I have finished my muslin -- mostly.  I will practice button loops separately; I simply didn't have the patience the last couple of days.  I'm still sort of "iffy" about the neck binding; I don't think it's necessary but I'll give it a try I guess.

Last night in my dreams an image appeared that was very similar to my cousin Cathy in my Burda muslin...or was it St. Teresa of Ávila?



It was all very dark and my memory is murky, but I see it as a sign that this dress is to be worn with wedge espadrilles, as some of you have suggested.  (Of course, I'm still open to other ideas.)

It also confirmed my belief that a soft cotton A-line tunic dress must be worn above the knee to avoid any similarities to this kind of thing...

Hopefully that Liberty Art print will lend the dress a more sophisticated look, if the fabric ever gets here.

In conclusion, when life seems to be handing you more lemons than lemonade, please remember to TOKIBAT your troubles away.

Any TOKIBAT moments you wish to share, my friends?

I'll be here all day, disinfecting carpets, waiting for the mail delivery person, and having lunch with my mother.

TOKIBAT!

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