Compact sewing machine suggestion

Lisa Ellis wrote:
Kate Dicey wrote:


The Outdoor Education types - those who were doing a combination of
climbing/mountaineering, sailing, white water canoe stuff... Always
ripping gear and needing it mended. I ended up one afternoon with 3
blokes sitting in my room with no trousers on while I sewed bits
back on their breeks! They were also the crew who had me sewing the
lorry tarp (Ian's Land Rover [ex army and... hm... 'tatty' fits the
bill!] needed a new one made from a tarp that literally fell off the
back of a lorry onto his bonnet on the A1!), spray decks for the
circumnavigation or Ireland by kayak (all the way round with no land
support team!), and various other things like tent zips - for which
I was payed in beer, bottles of wine, free trips to Scotland (and
guaranteed place in a tent, rather than having to bivvy), and other
things. I was dangled off rocks, hauled up hills, given hypothermia
and resuscitated from it, dunked out of kayaks into the river, and
generally shown a good time as only mountain freaks can do it!



Now I know you had a good time in college...

lisae

and the outdoors types are always so .....healthy...tanned...
muscular..fit...fun....g

small change wrote:

Lisa Ellis wrote:

Kate Dicey wrote:



The Outdoor Education types - those who were doing a combination of
climbing/mountaineering, sailing, white water canoe stuff... Always
ripping gear and needing it mended. I ended up one afternoon with 3
blokes sitting in my room with no trousers on while I sewed bits
back on their breeks! They were also the crew who had me sewing the
lorry tarp (Ian's Land Rover [ex army and... hm... 'tatty' fits the
bill!] needed a new one made from a tarp that literally fell off the
back of a lorry onto his bonnet on the A1!), spray decks for the
circumnavigation or Ireland by kayak (all the way round with no land
support team!), and various other things like tent zips - for which
I was payed in beer, bottles of wine, free trips to Scotland (and
guaranteed place in a tent, rather than having to bivvy), and other
things. I was dangled off rocks, hauled up hills, given hypothermia
and resuscitated from it, dunked out of kayaks into the river, and
generally shown a good time as only mountain freaks can do it!



Now I know you had a good time in college...

lisae


and the outdoors types are always so .....healthy...tanned...
muscular..fit...fun....g



And gentlemen! ;D MUCH more fun than the ones who thought it was
daring to mess with drugs, or regarded getting drunk every Friday night
as a necessity. I'd be dragged up round aircrew: adrenalin was always
my choice over drugs, booze, or stupidity.

Though I did go out with a bloke who was into potholing and cave diving
for a while. I never joined him underground... He said the most
unpleasant thing he'd done was put on a half frozen, muddy, gritty wet
suit for a second trip down a hole after camping out over night...

--
Kate XXXXXX R.C.T.Q Madame Chef des Trolls
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!

Kate Dicey wrote:



And gentlemen! ;D MUCH more fun than the ones who thought it was
daring to mess with drugs, or regarded getting drunk every Friday night
as a necessity. I'd be dragged up round aircrew: adrenalin was always
my choice over drugs, booze, or stupidity.

Though I did go out with a bloke who was into potholing and cave diving
for a while. I never joined him underground... He said the most
unpleasant thing he'd done was put on a half frozen, muddy, gritty wet
suit for a second trip down a hole after camping out over night...


Can you translate please? I don't understand..."I'd be dragged up round
aircrew"...


Anyhow, in my experience adrenalin and stupidity are not mutually
exclusive, although those who mix the two often don't survive...I

georg wrote:


This part I didn't know. That makes more sense now. You hadn't said she
did say she wanted one, and that's why I was pushing the "talk to her
and make sure she wants one."

So sorry -- I am world famous for never giving the entire picture on the
first shot.

I hope you both find one you agree on.

Thanks.

Lisa Ellis wrote:

Kate Dicey wrote:



And gentlemen! ;D MUCH more fun than the ones who thought it was
daring to mess with drugs, or regarded getting drunk every Friday
night as a necessity. I'd be dragged up round aircrew: adrenalin was
always my choice over drugs, booze, or stupidity.

Though I did go out with a bloke who was into potholing and cave
diving for a while. I never joined him underground... He said the
most unpleasant thing he'd done was put on a half frozen, muddy,
gritty wet suit for a second trip down a hole after camping out over
night...


Can you translate please? I don't understand..."I'd be dragged up round
aircrew"...


Anyhow, in my experience adrenalin and stupidity are not mutually
exclusive, although those who mix the two often don't survive...I


My dad was RAF aircrew - I knew a lot of young pilots of fast jets.
They live on adrenalin, and like fast stuff! Once you have lived that
life, anything with adrenalin in is fun, but you have little patince for
the terminally stupid... ;D

Two guys I played bridge with were killed avoiding a school full of kids
when their craft developed a fault on take off. If they hadn't stayed
with it and gone in, a whole school full of kids might have died rather
than the 3 smalls in the houses they hit on the edge of the dog track
they were aiming for.

--
Kate XXXXXX R.C.T.Q Madame Chef des Trolls
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!

I think Heirloom sells Bernina ( on the same road as BJU but about 2 miles
up towards town). DD can check in Greenville's Yellow pages. There is also
Classic Keepsakes with Viking (on Congaree Road behind Haywood Mall and in a
small shopping center about 4 miles from BJU), and downtown isVacumn &
Sewing Center (or is it Sewing & Vacumn Center) with Singer, Pfaff and the
more expensive machine ( but they sometimes sell rebuilt machines because
I've seen them). They are on Augusta Rd. at the corner of Augusta & Main,
about 4 miles away. BTW, depending on what your DD plans to do with her
education, but BJU's diploma is not always accepted out of SC, unless they
have been certified within the past 2 years and I missed reading about it in
the Greenville News. Especially the teaching certificate. Didn't know if
you realized that. BJU is an excellent school with a good reputation.
Barbara in FL & SC



Melinda, there are 3 good sewing machine shops within 4 miles of BJU
where
she might get a machine that doesn't cost very much. small.

Please contact me privately and I'll look in my phone book for the telephone
numbers.
Barbara

There is a Sears store in Haywood Mall that should have one of the
inexpensive $40 machines that does a straight stitch only.
Barbara

That gives me an idea. My mom used to have an old hand-held sewing
thing that made a chain stitch,

I suggest a Janome Gold or something similar. I think I paid around $300.
for it a few years ago. I got it because I wanted somethin to take to
quilting classes. I was "sewing machine" challenged until I got it. I
think it was because my Singer Golden Touch & Sew never worked for longer
than 30 days without something happening to it, and also because my mother
told me that I was hopeless when it came to sewing. She was almost right.
I never could make a garment that I would consider wearing. That is
probably because there weren't any sewing classes offered in the private
school that I attended. My Singer was an expensive pile of junk. Our
television sits on the cabinet now. I enjoy my little Janome. I hope to
get another machine soon.

Sherry Starr

"Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply" wrote in
message ...
I am trying to figure out what kind of compact-sized sewing machine to send
my daughter at college and thought I would take suggestions here. I doubt
she is going to be doing a lot of sewing over there, but she does split
seams, rip pockets, and tear out hems a lot, and she might sew a skirt or
two if she really got desperate. The following issues are pertinent:

* I am a single parent (she is paying for her own college education
herself, BTW), and the most I have ever spent on a sewing machine for
myself was about $300, so please don't suggest a $1000 machine, because
I'll never be able to afford it.

* She was not interested in taking my Featherweight, which I would have
been willing to give up for her to take. (I don't think I can afford to
buy one just for her on my budget.)

* She also was not interested in taking her own sewing machine. I am not
sure if it's because it is too big, because she never really liked it
after we got it (although she liked it perfectly well before we got it),
because there's something wrong with it that she doesn't want to tell me
about, or because she is not happy that I didn't pass my lovely 70s or 80s
era New Home (which I am *VERY* emotionally attached to) down to her once
I got my Singer 500A -- or maybe it's a combination of all of the above.

* I live in California. She is in South Carolina. The postal charges to
there are pretty steep from what I have mailed her, so I don't want to
have to mail anything terribly heavy to her.

* It's got to be something noticeably smaller than a full-sized machine,
because she's living in a dorm room and doesn't have a lot of space.

* We have a Singer 99 here, but I suspect it's too heavy to ship (see
distance and shipping cost comments below).

* Ditto for a Singer 66 that my son never converted to a handcrank model
and I might be able to talk him out of, but I think that might be a
full-sized machine anyway.

* I also have a Singer 301, but not only am I moderately attached to it,
but I think it's bigger than the 99 in size by the time you include its
carrying case, so I'm not sure if she would want that or not, but then
again, if there is a soft-sided case somewhere that would fit it, I could
probably afford to buy one for her off of Ebay or somewhere similar
(sew-rite.com?).

* I am pretty sure a Singer 400 or 500 series machine is out due to size.

* I also have a Singer 185K in a nice hard plastic case that may or may
not weigh less than the 99, but I haven't ever compared their weights. I
rescued it from a thrift store and it runs perfectly except that it needs
a new belt, which a local sewing machine store can provide. I have no
emotional attachment to this machine, so apart from possible weight issues
it is a good candidate.

* I see Singer Genies -- those "flower power" machines from the 70s or 80s
or so -- on Ebay off and on, and I could try to convince a seller to pack
it well and send it directly to her instead of to me, and the price would
be right.

* I could also save my money for a few months and get her a Janome Gem
($249 USD new or I also see them occasionally on Ebay) and have it sent
directly to her.

* I've been off the beaten path on older machines -- if anybody could
point me to a list of which Singers were more compact in size, that might
help me select one from Ebay or somewhere.

* I really would like to send her a machine that has ZZ on it without
needing an attachment, but that's not a 100% requirement, just a strong
hope.

Any ideas would be gratefully received.

Barbara Raper wrote:

Thanks for the names of the places.

BTW, depending on what your DD plans to do with her education, but
BJU's diploma is not always accepted out of SC, unless they have been
certified within the past 2 years and I missed reading about it in
the Greenville News. Especially the teaching certificate. Didn't
know if you realized that. BJU is an excellent school with a good
reputation. Barbara in FL & SC

She is not getting a teaching credential so it doesn't matter. Even if
she was getting a teaching credential, she couldn't get a California one
in South Carolina, that's for sure. She is majoring in counseling and
is still thinking about doing a double major in financial management. I
have known about BJU for 20 years and know all the up sides and down
sides, and so does she.

FWIW, they have applied for a certification with some international
Christian college accrediting agency that will allow students to apply
for Pell grants and the like.