New Recruits

So I've been browsing around on CL for the past few months in search of a steal and this week I definitely found it. We have three sewing machines currently, all beautiful pieces from the late 50's early 60's, all metal, pretty heavy-duty. But we're just about at that point where we need some more horsepower. When I was living in LA, I remember driving past a warehouse out in the valley that was liquidating industrial sewing machines by the dozen. Some were selling for $50! The same machines here in Chicago are being sold for what they are actually worth ($500-$800), so when I saw these two listed for $100 each I felt like I had to act. We picked them up from the daughter of an Italian seamstress who had been sewing since she was 11. When she passed away, the daughter inherited the machines and they've been sitting in the garage for about 12 years. She was glad to see that her mother's machines were being taken in by a younger generation. It's always nice to know a little bit of the history embedded in the things we use.
A box of Q-tips and a bottle of oil later, they are as good as new. Lets see what they can do.

el gato negro (Singer 241-3 1941, Elizabethport, NJ USA)













the gray goose (Singer 20U-33 circa 1980, Japan)