My Favorite Antique - That I Don't Collect

  Whenever I go in an antique store, no matter what I'm initially looking for, there is always one item I have to take time to study and admire - the sewing machine.

  I've always had a soft spot for Singer sewing machines in particular. The first machine I ever used was my mother's 1970-80s Singer when I was very young, and even though it was fairly old, it always worked beautifully. I only ever tried one other brand, and it paled in comparison to that trusty old thing.  When I needed to buy a new machine about two years ago, I couldn't help but buy a Singer, and it's been just as wonderful as my mother's.

Singer Corporation is an American sewing machine company, starting in 1851 by Isaac Merritt Singer.  Isaac, interestingly, was a scandalous figure, having multiple wives and mistresses, to which he had 24 children.  Because of the notion that sewing machines were to be sold to respectable homes, he was convinced to leave the country so that his infidelities wouldn't affect his booming company.  He died in 1875, but left a legacy of Singer sewing machines that are still around today.

  My love of Singers increased when I started to antique, and I was able to see so many varieties going all the way back to the 19th century. The vibrant paint, heavy ironwork, and decorative metal panels make these machines so beautiful to look at. And the best part is that they almost always work! I know this because I can't resist turning the needle wheel on every machine I see, and if that wheel works, there's a good chance it can be restored(however the skill needed to accomplish this, I don't yet have).

  Antique sewing machines are not only found in antique stores, mind you. Sometimes I'm fortunate enough to see them in museums and historic houses, so on those occasions I make a hobby of photographing them, even if they aren't Singers. Here's what I've seen so far:

Grand Traverse Lighthouse, Traverse City, MI.

Hackley & Hume House, Muskegon, MI.

The Elms, Newport, RI.

Roseland Cottage, Woodstock, CT.

Scolnik House, Muskegon, MI.

  Even though I'm sure I've seen many that were of a good price and could be used, I've never indulged in buying one. They're certainly too cumbersome to have multiples of, but with any antique, it's very hard to own just one. In the mean time, I'll admire them from afar, handle them when I can, and always be on the lookout for the one machine that will change my mind.






All Singer images are from my copy of Singer Sewing Library - No. 2: How To Make Dresses, The Modern Singer Way.

Hat Pin Holder and Collection

"Put another pin in your hat, Dot. You're in for a very fast ride."

~Phryne Fisher, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

  Ever wonder how ladies wore their hats in such gravity-defying angles? The answer is the hat pin. As far back as women were wearing hats for style instead of practicality, they needed something to help anchor the hat to the variety of hairstyles that were worn underneath. This gave a woman the freedom to move around and not worry too much about her hat falling off, and also allowed for more extravagant styles.

The hat pin is just visible, and clearly needed for a style of this sort.

(source)

(source)

  My hat pin collection is a bit of an accident. I was looking for ones that were long enough to use with hats ranging from Victorian and Edwardian to 1940s, and in both black and white, so as to match whatever I decided to wear. While antiquing I found one very long black one, and a shorter black one, but seemed to have a hard time finding a white one for a good price.

First two hat pins.

I passed over many pins before acquiring the perfect find - a lot of hat pins and holder!

Hand painting details.

 

Lucite, fabric, and possibly ceramic.

All my long pins.

All my short pins.

  I wasn't necessarily looking for a hat pin holder, but this set found me and I couldn't pass it up. The holder has plenty of holes for as many hat pins as I could want, with an additional tray at the bottom for hair pins, bobby pins, and the like. It also came with what I had been searching for - a white hat pin! The holder and almost all the pins had rust on them, so I used a wet paper towel to clean the holder and a fine sandpaper on the pins, and with some rubbing alcohol they would be sanitary enough to be worn. However, it seems over time they've started to rust again(I only noticed when I took these photographs), which means they would need a good cleaning before using, and probably every so often as a preventative measure against more rust. Check your hat pins, ladies!

All pins in their holder, with some additional hair pins and bobby pins to show what the dish might have been used for.

  I doubt I'll be on the lookout for any more pins, since I surely have enough now. However, there certainly are some beautiful specimens out there, and maybe one will tempt me enough to add it to my humble collection.

These Art Nouveau hat pins are to die for!

(source)

For more information about the history of hat pins:

The American Hat Pin Society