Home of Creepy Delights
Creepy creatures looking for their forever homes
...... There are some super cute ones looking for forever homes too!
Occupational Hazard
I suppose it will come as absolutely no surprise, considering what I do, that I have rather a lot of sewing machines.
Eight, to be exact… which I maintain is still a perfectly reasonable number.
Then there’s the knitting needles. An extraordinary collection, apparently. Personally, I prefer to think of them simply as tools of the trade.
I thought this would be the perfect little corner to share some photographs of my beloved machines, each with its own quirks, character, and sometimes a little history.
The newest addition to the family is a beautiful old Vickers machine which, naturally, had to be named Viktor.
Meet The Machines
This is a Bernina Bernette B35, otherwise known as Bob.
He’s my main sewing machine, and I worked hard and saved up to buy him brand new.
To be honest, my first impressions were disappointing.
The needle kept striking the throat plate, several screws and fittings were loose, and overall, the machine didn’t feel especially well assembled.
After a lot of trial, error, and late-night Googling, I managed to get everything adjusted and working properly. And to be fair, it now sews perfectly adequately for what I need. Would I buy another one? Probably not.
I still miss my old Brother machine, which now lives happily in Devon with my daughter.
That said, Bob has made every one of my dolls, so I can’t be too harsh on him. He may not be perfect, but he’s been part of the journey.
This is Viktor, who was hand delivered to me by a lovely friend.
He originally belonged to her mother and needed a new home where his undeniable charm would be properly appreciated.
Vickers sewing machines were produced in Crayford, London between 1917 and 1939 by the Vickers Company, a name more commonly associated with WWI machine guns and, later, aircraft manufacturing.
The Vickers De Luxe model was created in direct competition with the hugely popular German Frister & Rossmann machines. In fact, Vickers was so determined to capture the market that their efforts almost completely eclipsed the German brand, which survived largely in name alone from the 1920s onwards.
Thankfully, Viktor’s days of industrial rivalry are now behind him, and he can settle into a far gentler life of admiration, careful stitching, and being photographed far more often than he probably expected.
