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20dollarlolita · 1 year

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Hey Pink,

so I went to a flea market today and scored a old singer machine for 10€! Now I'd like to know when it was made and probably where but I'm completely lost, maybe you could shed a little light on it?

I cleaned the serial number plate as best I could. I suppose it reads: G67875 (2 or Z, I cannot tell)

Thank you so much!

It's a Model 15!

Here's some more information on the Model 15. Note that they're calling theirs the "15K", but the K just indicates that it was made in Scotland. Yours is likely a 15 and not a 15k, unless it says it was made in Great Brittan in the text along the top.

If you're ever unsure about the date on a Singer machine, I recommend this taxonomic key, and the Ismacs serial number database.

We can tell from the bobbin threading path on the front that this is a very early Model 15. According to the serial number, it's likely one of a lot of 50,000 made in January of 1910.

I believe the decal style on that is called Tiffany or Gingerbread. The first thing that I noticed about that is the absolutely exceptional state of those decals. Usually, machines of this age have a lot of the decal work worn off. If you want to clean them, be careful about damaging them.

The best advice I've found for cleaning and restoring old machines is from Doug at treadleon.net. Here's an excerpt from one of his articles:

Now let's talk about appearance. Some folks like to see an old machine shine like new. If the basic decoration, paint and decals, is good enough, that can be done. Most machines we find in sales aren't quite that good, or may actually be very bad. I like to let old machines show their age and usefulness. To clean a machine's surface, I use first a gentle mix of diluted dish soap and water, rubbing small areas at a time with a soft cloth. Often there is old dried oil or shellac on the surface. The earlier cleaning with kerosene may have loosened a lot of that up and it will rub off, too. Often it can be scraped off with a fingernail. Don't use hard scrapers, you'll scratch the enamel. Once I have the plain dirt off, I wipe with sewing machine oil several times over a period of days, then wipe off all the oil and wax. I use Turtle Wax. Other folks have had good luck with ArmorAll.

There are folks who favor various cleaning compounds, such as Simple Green, 409, Windex, etc. Great care must be exercised here. Many of the chemicals in these compounds, especially ammonia, will destroy the gold in the decals, leaving you with silver decals, or no decals. Since the decal content and manufacturing varied over the years and between manufacturers, the fact that a product did a great job on one machine does not mean it will not damage another. Always start by cleaning a small area in back of the pillar to see what is going to happen.

I've also found that liquid wrench spray penetrating oil can get through some really nasty dirt on the machines and it pretty decal-safe. It's become my main "clean now or else" tool for when dish soap is not doing the job fast enough.

One really cool fact about the Model 15 is that any time you're looking at sewing machine parts and you see the number 15, it's likely because it was a part first used in this machine. They use our standard needle, which is the needle family 15x1. If you go out and buy a standard sewing machine needle today, it will be a 15x1. When you go buy the standard bobbin for most Singer/Janome/Baby Lock/Brother/Bernette machines (plus some Pfaffs and Vikings), it's called the Class 15 bobbin. That's because the first machine to use these needles and these bobbins was the Singer Model 15. It's that influential.

The Model 15 sits flat on a table even without a bottom case, though you can buy some really nice bottom case reproductions on etsy or get a generic flatbed machine case from SewingPartsOnline if you do want a base for it. Note that if you use a generic case, you'll have to take the hand crank off when you store it with the lid on it. That said, I have my hand crank machine in a cheap generic flat bed case and it's always quite an enjoyment when someone opens it up and expects a mid-1990's machine and SURPRISE! It's an antique!!

Anyway, excellent find! The Model 15 was hugely influential. Pretty much any time that you find a modern sewing machine thing with the number 15 on it, it's because the item was first used on the Model 15. The needle family that all non-industrial sewing machines use today is the 15x1 needle family. That needle was first used on the Model 15. If you buy bobbins for almost any Janome/Brother/Baby Lock/Bernette and many Pfaffs and Vikings, it's called the Class 15 bobbin. That bobbin style was made for the Model 15 machine. I just think it's so cool that this machine became the standard so effectively that you can just go down to your local big box craft store and buy needles and bobbins for it!

PS if anyone wants a sewing-related rabbit hole to go down, Japanese Model 15 clones that are actually improvements on the Model 15 is a good one to check out. It was cloned long after Singer discontinued the Model 15.

#sewing machines #antique sewing machines #singer 15 #singer model 15 #sewing machine history.

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finnglas · 9 months

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hmmmMMM Kaide and Tali (and Lyna if you want??), gardening

[this fits their Inquisition canon v well]

Herbalism is one of the many things the clan tried to teach her, but Ines hadn't truly been interested until Kaide had pulled out his fancy scissors while they were on a ride to harvest a lovely seeding bit of royal elfroot. "These will be nice for growing," he'd told her, carefully scraping out a pod but leaving plenty for the wild animals and wind to scatter. "We'll plant them in Skyhold's garden."

Which was how Ines had become interested in the courtyard that Kaide had claimed for his own space, with one corner for healing herbs and one for poisonous ones, and one for the ones that could go either way. The last corner was for the seedlings Ines was growing herself under Kaide's patient tutelage, and that is where Taliesin finds him, kneeling in the dirt, the sun catching at the fine teal velvet of his sleeves and picking out the red highlights in his hair.

"These are almost ready to harvest," Kaide says as Taliesin approaches, sounding worried. "She was so excited to get to do it herself. Have you heard from Lyna at all?"

Ines has been traveling with the clan for the past couple of weeks, spending time with her mother, mainly, although she had promised Taliesin she'd also speak to the Keeper about the possibility of vallaslin. Maybe.

"Not since the last one, but the clan should be passing close by any day now, so--"

"Ada! Papa!"

Kaide is on his feet faster than Taliesin has seen him move outside of battle. Ines hits him full-force at a flat out run and nearly takes him down, and Taliesin spares a moment to rub his bad knee and be grateful it wasn't him.

"Easy," Kaide laughs as he pats her on her back. "Your deadly nightshade is almost ready to harvest. You're just in time."

"Ooh, can I borrow your scissors? Hi, Ada." She interrupts herself to give Taliesin a hug, and over her head he sees Lyna coming through the courtyard gate that Ines had flung open.

"Hi, Bee," he laughs, kissing the top of Ines's head. He'll ask her how her time with the clan was later.

"Can I borrow your scissors to harvest them?" she asks Kaide again. Those fancy little things. Taliesin still thinks she only learns about herbs to get to use them.

"We'll, no," Kaide says, and Ines looks positively crestfallen. Taliesin tilts his head; it's the first time he can remember Kaide denying the girl anything. But then he reaches into his coat and pulls out a leather bundle, grinning. "Because you'd probably rather use your own, right?"

The sound Ines makes has the horses snorting and stamping from the other side of the wall, and a dog barks nearby, alarmed. Kaide helps her unwrap the little belt pouch, and inside is a set of herbalist tools, maybe even fancier than the ones he carries.

"I couldn't get back to Ostwick to get a set like mine," he's explaining, "so these are from Val Royeaux."

"How much did those cost you?" Taliesin laughs, and Kaide shrugs.

"Oh, Ines, hang on - gloves. The 'deadly' part of the name isn't for decoration."

While they go off looking for a pair of gloves for Ines, Lyna finally makes it to Taliesin's side.

"Are they always like this?" She's smiling, though. She's told him before that she's perfectly happy to have a third parent in the mix. Taliesin hasn't told her that Kaide has been discussing making Ines his formal heir, with a title and land and everything.

"They're thick as thieves. He gave her a pony within the first month she was here with us," Taliesin says by way of answer, chuckling. "I think he'd give her all of Val Royeaux if he could."

"I'm glad," she says softly. "It eases my heart to know the two of you have someone looking out for you who loves you so much."

"You know, he's offered to invite you to stay here, too."

But Lyna is already shaking her head. "It's a generous offer, but I'm not made for staying in one place. I'll visit, though. Perhaps next time, I'll plan to stay for a bit." She grins slyly. "I noticed a handsome young blacksmith on my way in today. Perhaps I'll stop to speak to him."

Taliesin snorts. "Good hunting," he teases, as Kaide and Ines come back into the courtyard, properly gloved this time, Kaide apparently talking her through the fine art of making poisons. Just what he needs.

Kaide pauses near him to say hello to Lyna and kiss Taliesin briefly, lingering with his arm around Taliesin's waist as they all watch Ines - carefully, for once in her life - harvest the nightshade and transfer it to a bottle. Taliesin foresees her interest in the hobby waning quickly, now that she has her own scissors and has accomplished her goal of growing a plant, but he also knows Kaide won't mind, will just cheerfully keep enabling her along whatever path her interest takes next.

Lucky, indeed, all of them.

#long post #oc fiction #dragon age ocs

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