A Change of the Machine Guard

I'm still working on my MIL's wallhanging!  I'm hoping to finish either today or tomorrow.  Part of the reason for the delay in progress is that over the weekend, I had to change sewing stations:  the drafting chair I use while sewing has breathed its last!

I've had it eleven years, purchased long before I had my Koala table.  Guess I'll be shopping for a new chair for New Year's.  None of the house chairs are high enough to use at the sewing cabinet so I've had to switch over to the dining room table and Rhubye, my Singer 401, and I are making it work!

I haven't had her out in a while so it's good to give her a work out.  I had finally decided on her name over the summer.  She's named after my (maternal) grandmother's middle sister.  My 401 was birthed in South Carolina, is sturdy and a bit modern much like her namesake.  My great-aunt was a thick-set and very no-nonsense woman.  When I was a teenager, there were many summers that I traveled with my aunt to visit our relatives down South.  She was the first in her family to go to college, which she did at a late age, unusual in her day.

I also outfitted Rhubye with a new gadget recently:  the Singer Featherweight Shop ran a "12 Days of Christmas sale" and on one of the days the special was for their new thread post.

This creates a horizontal spool pin on the machine which allows for better thread flow for cross-wound spools.  Although the Featherweight Shop primarily offers accessories for Featherweight machines, they are now starting to add items to their stock for other vintage Singer machines too.  However, this new thread post will also work on Featherweights.  I already had their original thread stand for my Featherweight:

I think it adds to the vintage look of that machine.  However, I do like the "low  profile " of the new thread post for the 401.  I think it fits her modern style -- although the 401 is not as "space-age modern" as Singer 500 "Rocketeer" Series machines.

So, Rhubye and I are hard at work on finishing up my MIL's Kringle gift.  Let's get back to work!