I had just picked up my Singer 201-2 from being tuned up at Modern Domestic. I was really excited to finally see how she worked, because I still hadn’t done any real sewing on her. I carried the machine over to one of my sewing tables and discovered that Tony (he services the machines) had made sure she was securely fastened into the carrying case. I had merely set the machine inside the case for transportation purposes, and hadn’t bothered to actually attach it. I thought I’d sew on it a bit and then unscrew the machine from the bottom of the carrying case, because I like the machine just the way it is, sitting on table.
I was so happy with the stitches and the soft purring of my pretty machine. Did I ever tell you I finally named her? I settled on Charlotte the Singer. For a while I considered Ruby, but no, it just didn’t fit. Charlotte’s stitches were perfectly even and beautiful. She hummed right along thru any fabric I gave her, without questioning even several layers of thick coating.
After a bit of playing around, I knew it was time for me to get back to work, which meant Charlotte had to be put away. I was intending to move her over to my large drafting table where I could easily remove the carrying case base from her, and then set her back on her perch in the corner of my sewing room. I put the case top on, clicked the side clips closed, and picked up the case. All I had to do was turn around, and she’d be on the drafting table. I really wish that’s how these events had transpired.
I don’t quite know how it happened. Maybe the case clasps came undone, or maybe I hadn’t fully snapped one of them shut. One minute Charlotte was in her case, and the next minute she was crashing to the ground. A loud “NOOOOOOOOOO!” came out of my mouth, because it felt like I had just dropped a baby on the ground. My 72-year-old, cast-iron baby, was broken. I didn’t care that she had put four deep gouges in the wood floor, two of them being from the plastic carrying case. If that case wouldn’t have been attached, who knows what else would have broken or bent on the bottom of the machine. I probably owe Tony some cookies or something.
What happen next involved a lot of f-bombs and a few tears. I felt sick to my stomach. How was I ever going to find parts to replace what had just broken into a few tiny pieces?
I looked over the machine, and didn’t notice many other marks or scuffs. There was one corner with a bit of grey paint on it (my floor is painted grey), but except for her power block falling apart and her bobbin tension disk needing adjustment, she seemed to be okay. THANK GOD.
I remembered a website that I would often look at before I found Charlotte on Craigslist. It’s Singer Original Vintage Products, so I hopped on there and emailed Duane, the owner, with a few photos of what had happened. I heard back from him within twenty minutes, and he had the part I needed. At this point I knew I could stop feeling like throwing up, but I wasn’t going to be happy until I had the replacement piece in my hand.
It came in the mail a few days later, and it’s a perfect match. I am SO RELIEVED! Charlotte will need to go back into the shop to have the power block replaced, but I’m so thankful that this old beauty will live to sew again.
