Finding Dish Cloth Patterns to Knit

I've been relearning how to knit and decided to purchase some cotton yarn to make dish cloths in the process. I want to use this post also as the means to help YOU find patterns as well since many I've been finding that I like are from websites that are no longer online. This will be one post of many on my knitting addiction, but it seems to help unstress me and I plan on using this during my work breaks to pass my time. Just search my blog by using 'knitting' to pull up pages or patterns I have found. Also check below for my Ravelry.com projects page to see what I might be working on. :-)

It's okay to stalk me! Just share your favorite dishcloth patterns in the comments that you think I need to try. :-)

Knitting Dish Cloth Patterns from Group Epp - Archive DOT org is a handy website to use when you're looking for patterns


My Ravelry Projects I'm working on - Click here!

Shop Your Way Rewards & Sweepstakes - A New Adventure

Just recently I started to participate in the Sweepstakes on the Shop Your Way website. Just yesterday I was able to purchase a sock loom for FREE with the points I won in the past 2 days from the instant win games. So I'd like to recommend that you all should give it a go. If you already had a rewards card from Kmart or Sears, use it to your advantage. You can purchase anything off of the website search including craft supplies - yarn, thread, quilting rulers & other notions, sewing machines, kitchen gadgets, socks, etc. I promise to blog with you my items I get for free and help you to be a winner too. :-)

Boye Sock Loom Kit

I'm a newbie at this so hopefully I'll have more to show you as time goes by. I feel so blessed to be able to find another way to purchase craft supplies for my hobbies. 

No More Boring Drive Thru or Diner Biscuits and Gravy

I almost cruised through the drive thru at McDonalds this morning, but the line was a little TOO long for my liking. Then realized I had all the ingredients to make Biscuits & Gravy at home. Back in the old days I baked biscuits at Hardee's and learned the secret to good biscuit making. Although we used real buttermilk, I can make an awesome baking powder biscuit that is just as good and fluffy. Ditch those Grands biscuits, you know those flaky ones you pay out the ear for... you now have an awesome and quick recipe to make your own right here.

Take those and add some sausage gravy

And then get this lovely little concoction..

Gravy from McDs is frozen in sausage like packaging and warmed up and also their biscuits are frozen and nuked in a microwave. Do yourself a favor and make your own. No preservatives and you know exactly what is in your food. If you want that little McD's taste, add a little bit of sugar to your gravy. 

And now for your recipes:

Baking Powder Biscuits - 

2 C flour

1 T baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 to 1/3 C shortening (more makes the flakier biscuits)

3/4 C milk

1. Mix the dry ingredients together then add shortening. 

2. Use a pastry blender, a couple of knives, or just your clean hands to mix the shortening into the flour mixture until it is spread throughout.

3. Make a hole in the center of the bowl by moving the ingredients to the sides.

4. Add milk

5. Stir with a fork until all ingredients are mixed thoroughly, but do NOT overmix it.

6. Roll out on a floured board to 1/2" in thickness and cut out the biscuits with a cutter or a drinking glass.

7. Put on an ungreased baking sheet/pan and bake at 425F for 12-14 minutes or until light golden brown on the edges of the top of the biscuits

8. Remove from oven, then pan and put on a wire rack to cool. You can brush with butter on the tops if you want, but it isn't necessary.

9. Serve.

You can easily double this recipe if you have a hungry group to feed. I also use this recipe with the lesser amount of shortening to make dumplings for my chicken soup or beef stew.

Sausage Gravy

This is on you to suit your tastes, but this is the method to make this.

Brown 1/2 pound of sausage and reserve about 1/4 cup of drippings, add 1/2 to 1 cup flour, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tsp sugar (optional) to the drippings and add a little more flour if needed if it doesn't 'sop' up the grease in the pan. Add 1 C milk and cook on medium heat until it begins to thicken. If it is too thick, add more milk until you get the right consistency a little at a time... maybe about 1/4 c at a time. Season to your preferences or dietary restrictions.

Just a good old comfort food that can be made for a few dollars and made up in advance to eat the next morning before work or school.

Cookie Baking Challenge - November

I'm going to make the last few days of the month into a challenge to bake as many cookie recipes I can. You all are more than welcome to join me. You may share your favorite cookie recipes or pictures of your cookies. This will be an online fun cookie recipe swap with a holiday flair. Let me know what you do with your cookies you do make. Do you participate in local cookie swaps or do you donate to a worthy cause?

My biggest challenge each year during the holidays are to keep everyone out of the cookie jar, so ideas on hiding cookies and other goodies are more than welcome.

So let's all gather up a few recipes and gather up our ingredients while the basics are on sale. Countdown to cookie baking in 10 days. If you start before I do, feel free to post a comment. :-)

Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe

My first ever meringue pie was a lemon meringue that had a recipe posted on the crisco website. My feelings are that if I can do it, so can you. So basic and easy to make even with the few steps it takes to get it done. Maybe one day I'll get better at the crust, but you can cheat and use a store bought one instead if your crust shrinks too much from not putting the fork to it properly on the sides of the pan.

Classic Lemon Meringue Pie

I've included the link above to the recipe. You can use any citrus you want for this recipe if you want. :-) Just give it a try and make something that will NOT last long. Do not be intimidated by the meringue making. It is actually easy to do if you follow the directions.

Getting Back To Blogging :-)

It's been forever since I posted my random blog entries, but I will be back and better than ever. One kink in my plan is getting a new laptop. My keyboard is angry so I have to use the on-screen keyboard to type about 30% of my letters :-(

So now I'm shopping for a new laptop and the #BlackFridayAds do not have any huge bargains to try to shoot for. Yay me!  NOT!!!

PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH APPLE PIE

This is the BEST apple pie that I enjoy to make, bake, and eat. Pretty easy and straight forward that anyone can make this and serve at the holiday table. Practice with a homemade crust so you can keep your shopping costs down. :-) 

PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH APPLE PIE

7-10 apples, peeled, cored and sliced Place sliced apples in 9 inch unbaked pie shell. Mix and sprinkle over apples: 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon cloves Sprinkle 1 tablespoon water (or fresh lemon juice if you have it) over top. CRUMB CRUST: 1/2 cup sugar 3/4 cup flour 1 stick butter Mix together sugar and flour. Cut the butter into the sugar and flour mixture using a fork, pastry blender or food processor.Sprinkle over top of pie. Bake at 400°F for 40-45 minutes. If the pie begins to brown too rapidly, cover lightly with foil.

Lemon Bars Recipe Guaranteed not to Last on the plate

Lemon Bars
Crust:
2 Cups flour
1 C butter
1/2 C powdered sugar

Mix them together, pat into a 9X13 baking dish, and bake in 350F oven for 15 minutes or until slightly browned

Filling:
Sift together
2 Cups sugar
4 Tbsp flour
1 tsp baking powder

Then add:
4 eggs beaten
6 Tbsp lemon juice
Grated lemon rind from 1 lemon

Mix together and pour onto crust. Bake 20-25 minutes.

Dust with powdered sugar and cut into bars/squares when cooled.

Impossible Pie with an Eggnog Twist

If you love pie, this one is a good one. I've tweaked this recipe to make it into an Egg Nog Flavored pie and after several tries, I was able to get the flavors just right. This would be a great holiday pie to add to your menu and make it into a family favorite. I hope you enjoy!

Impossible Pie

3/4 C. Sugar 
1/2 C. Flour 
1 C. Coconut
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 C. Butter
4 eggs
2 C. milk
2 tsp vanilla

for a more egg nog flavor add this to the base recipe:

1 tsp rum extract & 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Put all ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix until blended thoroughly. Pour mixture into a 9 inch greased pie plate. Bake at 350F for 1 hour or until center is firm.

How it works: The flour settles for a crust, coconut rises for a topping and the center is a custard filling.

Recipe from: Family Favorites: From the Kitchen of the Brenneman Family. Pg 213

Sewing Baskets... I'm Clueless and researching...

Okay... so I don't know much about baskets, but grabbed a few up to get the stuff inside of them at an auction. So this post is dedicated to the baskets that I got and hope that with some help from Google and others that I can figure out what they are called and maybe who made them.  When I find a website or two while researching I'll post the links to the blog for fast research later in a similar manner to my Vintage or Antique Sewing Machine blog posts. :-)

 

This basket is a nice size. It is sitting on top of the Wards Brunswick sewing machine cabinet. It has all sorts of notions in it. The lid comes completely off and the handle is stationary. It is oval shaped.

The second basket is more squared and the lid is easily removed. The two handles will move out of the way to each side for easier access to the basket.

It had some needlework things in it and some patterns hiding in it. Nice sized as well on top of the same cabinet as the basket above.

This next basket is rather interesting. It's a nested basket with 2 baskets and one lid. The handle is stationary. 

The top picture shows it in the two separate baskets and the bottom picture is of it put together. Pretty neat basket.

The last basket I had gotten was this pretty blue one. I've left all the goodies I got in it instead of taking the picture of it empty.

So that is the baskets I have that I need help with identification. Like how to name them mainly. :-)

1895 Singer Model 27 with Sphinx Decals - Rusty Rescue

Nothing is as sad as seeing an OLD antique machine in this condition found at a hoarder's junk shop in Marshall, Missouri. In the freaking parking lot out in the weather.

Looks pretty rough doesn't it? Well... with a little bit of work for the last couple of days I have gotten her to this point: 

In the next few days I'll be working on getting the locked up mechanism to moving again so she can possibly stitch when I get the shuttle slides unrusted to the machine. Just wanted to show folks that you can take a super nasty looking machine and make them look a little better with Sewing Machine Oil, some metal polish, and a super fine grit sandpaper.

1923 Singer Model 66 Redeye Decal Treadle

I drove to Kansas City a few weeks back and got a couple of treadle cabinets and 4 other treadle machine heads of various makers and model types. Today's post will be of the Redeye that I'm hopefully going to put to good use.

The 'before pic' is here:

I had to put her in a different cabinet that had a foot pedal on it as this one does not have it. :-( I'm currently on a search for the pedal from a local person so I don't have to chase one down off of eBay.

Here are other pictures of this machine now: 

I had to add a spool holder, the felt, and a new belt. I'm still trying to get that belt tight enough to work. Now to get the presser foot unstuck so I can use the machine to sew a few things as a test. I'll also come back and use something on the wheel for the rust. So excited to see something locked up and not moving to get to this point. YAY!

My biggest help for getting me more active in this adventure of rehabbing old machines lays with this wonderful Facebook Group of Enablers: 

Vintage Sewing Machines

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VintageSewingMachines

Buyer Beware -- Craigslist Stoopid People and Sewing Machines

Okay, so today's been one of those weird days where some of us Vintage Sewing Machine Addicts dig through Craigslist ads in our area.  So we find an ad where some person proclaims a RARE sewing machine that really isn't all that rare. So as a crazy test to see if the moron... um... poster is really on the ball, we sent an email to ask a few questions.

Here is the ad BEFORE it is edited:

Then the emails and questions abound and we get this: 

So needless to say this machine was NOT made in 1874. It is actually from 1924 and 35,000 of them were made. If you pay some nutcake $150 for this, then you are paying way too much and are being ripped off. It is missing parts, it is NOT reconditioned, it is NOT original. It is a treadle and one of many that Singer made MILLIONS of. It is NOT handpainted. So no matter what some people tell you in order to get money from you, please do research and ask for Serial numbers, a front view of the machine, an open bobbin cover, and cabinet/case that they might come in for storage. For all you know the irons on this treadle may be broken, missing parts, cabinet may be damaged beyond repair, or whatever. DO NOT pay more than these machines are worth. Please use common sense as you try to add a much loved machine into your home when you are starting in using sewing machines as decorations or as a needed appliance into the household.

Minnesota Treadle Machine Without Cabinet

I picked up several machines and a couple of treadle cabinets about a month ago. My goal was to learn a little more about how to clean and repair machines properly. The hardest thing with any sewing machine so far on dating has been with non-Singer varieties of machines. So all we can do is find the history of a Sewing Company or the catalog companies that sold these machines to get a guestimate on when they may have been created.

Minnesota - Front before cleaning

Minnesota - Back before cleaning

So after reading how to use sewing machine oil to clean so that I wouldn't wipe away the decals, this is how they turned out:

It's just the first part of the cleaning stage. This machine is super smooth and quiet. I can't wait to find a cabinet to put it in and see how it works. :-) So more to come at another time.

Davis Vertical Feed Treadle Sewing Machine NVF

WOW! It's been a month since I typed up and published a page on here. I'm still here and busy as heck with several sewing machines that I am servicing, parting out, or working on purchasing. So for the next few posts I will do separate posts for each machine. I am the owner of way too many sewing machines now, BUT the good thing is that I am also working on learning how to properly care for neglected machines so they can possibly be used again. So on with the blog and this new to me OLD machine. Please note that these are the 'before' pictures. I haven't started cleaning and preserving the machine or cabinet yet. If anyone has any hint on the year of this machine by the serial number, please post a comment.

Front cabinet

Cabinet back 

Cabinet opened and head in table

New Vertical Feed by Davis - Front

New Vertical Feed by Davis - Back

Serial number 3740054

Look! No Feed dogs!

Left side cabinet

As with any of my machines, they are always for sale. If you see something on my blog and want to purchase it before I dive in too deep, just post a comment or message me.

My research links for this Machine:
ISMACS link to Davis VF Manual

An Old Singer 128-13 Sewing Machine in Combination Table

My first antique sewing machine renewal project.

Back of case - Before

 Case Front - Before

 Case Right Side - Before

 Case Left Side - Before

And then the machine table:  Before -

After

This little machine is the 3/4 size machine with electric and the light. The Singer 128 Model is the electric and more 'new-fangled' version of the Singer 28. It has a vibrating shuttle in it instead of a regular bobbin that most of us are used to sewing with. I don't want to plug it in until I get the wires covered that run from the machine to the little covered box on the side. The plug that goes into the machine and plugs into the wall is in pristine condition. So after this machine is cleaned up and the wood is repaired and a solid piece again, I'll plug her in and see if the light works or if the motor still works. 

A little background checking for this machine were found with these links: 

How to identify Singer Sewing Machines made before 1950 that don't have model numbers on them

The Combination Table this machine uses

Singer Sewing Machine Serial Number Database

Singer 128 Manual

Singer 128 Service Manual

A History/Biography Lesson on Isaac Singer (neat read)

Polishing Nickel plated parts DIY

Re-birth of a Vintage Japanese Branded Sewing Machine

Okay, I did another garage sale thing yesterday and brought this baby home. Her cabinet is in bad shape and she is a little dusty with quite a few cobwebs. It's another Japanese Branded Sewing machine where many badges of all different names are put on a sewing machine. This one has embroidery cams to make designs while stitching. So first things first we will take it out of the cabinet and fix the leg that has become unattached. Then the machine will be totally cleaned and re-oiled. Then we'll put her back in and test her out.

For those of you hitting google trying to find these machine manuals and parts, it is a tough ride. We rely on one another to post the information we find to save us days or even weeks of research. So anyone looking for the Coronado, manual or info... go to the Singer website and type in W231 for the manual in the manual search page. Apparently I have a White machine after all.

A big thanks to Yahoo Group - vintagejapansewingmachines for the information I received so I can get done with this latest venture. :-)

The FREE manual for this machine can be found HERE

I Think I Want to Fix up some OLD Sewing Machines

This past Saturday I went out to the local citywide garage sales. I ended up bringing home THREE older sewing machines and only spent $2.00. NOT A TYPO! I bought one and two of them were free. The one free one needs just a bobbin case... $6.00 or so. The other freebie was an OLDER Dressmaker model in a cabinet that someone threw out at the curb. I'm spending gobs of time online trying to find what parts will be needed for which machine and joined even more Facebook & Yahoo Groups to find information on all of these since Google hates me and just wants to sell me more sewing machines or manuals. :-(

So everyone knows that the blog will be kind of quiet for a bit while I dig up some info. I'll try to feature each machine I have that I plan on working on for the topic of a post. I figure if I can learn to fix bicycles when I was a kid... what will it kill me to learn how to DIY a few sewing machines? LOL! Famous last words I'm sure!

So keep your eye out on the following players:

JC Penney Model 7057 Cat Number 868-4698 (I need to take a pic and will post it later)
It supposedly has a bobbin tension issue, but I'm going to clean it and check it out when I get a bobbin to fit it as it isn't the 15 style/size of bobbin.

Manual can be found here: http://www.singerco.com/uploads/download/1278_4538.pdf

Montgomery Ward UHT-J 1934 

 

All this baby seems to need is a bobbin case so as soon as I find one for the best shipping price AND price, I'm getting one.

Then I have the oldest machine that needs some major TLC

Dressmaker

This poor baby was thrown out to the curb and will require the most work so far to get her all fixed up. I need the shank, feet, bobbin winder tire and some bolts to attach it to the hinges in the cabinet so I can put it away. The cabinet has some paint splatter on it and I will work on getting that off as well. If anyone reading this blog post today has any GOOD resources for any of these machines or sellers of parts... please comment with info as I'm getting angry at google about this search stuff. I even used the UK version of google to get away from the eBay sales and nonsense things. I know there are free tutorials, manuals, and low cost parts out there. I just don't want to dig through 100+ pages to find it all.