Sewing and other projects, starting February, 2025

[flowerbug]

this morning Mom managed to tangle up the thread inside her sewing machine and it was making some pretty bad noises...

i took the cover off the end and the thread was wound around something in there and so with some tweezers, seam ripper, small flashlight and my fingers i was able to get most of the thread out of there, but there's still a few bits in there - but it did run ok. that was round 1. after she went to her friend's place i went at it for round 2 to see if i could get those remaining bits of thread out of there, this time i took a metal dental pick with a sharper end, got a little bit more out of there, but there's still a few bits left that i can't get at without taking the whole end apart to get in there. it could probably a good cleaning and servicing anyways so eventually we'll have to find a place to do that. the sewing center we've used for almost 60 years closed last year after the owner passed away and it is for sale - i'm kinda doubting anyone is going to take it over if they didn't want it by now...

yesterday was bathroom sink plumbing came apart (it doesn't look like it was really ever together to begin with) so now i have the plumbing people scheduled to get here Wed and the washing machine still isn't working, they might get here tomorrow (dunno, haven't heard from them yet, they usually call Monday afternoon - but these parts may have taken longer - we'll see...).

i'm thinking that a very simple life is appealing to me more and more. wash a few clothes in a bucket or the sink... yeah...

 

[ducks4you]

Been there...
"it could probably use a good cleaning and servicing anyways"
DD's abuse their many machines. We found a quilting shop that also services sewing machines, quilting machines and sergers that is about one hour away and close to where my SIL lives.
Timing can be a big issue. Also, using correct tension and other adjustments can cause the thread to spool up like this.
Since you cannot garden today, you could use your phone and find a new service center!

 

[SPedigrees]

this morning Mom managed to tangle up the thread inside her sewing machine and it was making some pretty bad noises...

i took the cover off the end and the thread was wound around something in there and so with some tweezers, seam ripper, small flashlight and my fingers i was able to get most of the thread out of there, but there's still a few bits in there - but it did run ok. that was round 1. after she went to her friend's place i went at it for round 2 to see if i could get those remaining bits of thread out of there, this time i took a metal dental pick with a sharper end, got a little bit more out of there, but there's still a few bits left that i can't get at without taking the whole end apart to get in there. it could probably a good cleaning and servicing anyways so eventually we'll have to find a place to do that. the sewing center we've used for almost 60 years closed last year after the owner passed away and it is for sale - i'm kinda doubting anyone is going to take it over if they didn't want it by now...

yesterday was bathroom sink plumbing came apart (it doesn't look like it was really ever together to begin with) so now i have the plumbing people scheduled to get here Wed and the washing machine still isn't working, they might get here tomorrow (dunno, haven't heard from them yet, they usually call Monday afternoon - but these parts may have taken longer - we'll see...).

i'm thinking that a very simple life is appealing to me more and more. wash a few clothes in a bucket or the sink... yeah...

This is why sewing machines and I have never gotten along. I hope you can find repair places/persons who can successfully repair sewing machine, washing machine, and sink plumbing.

 

[flowerbug]

This is why sewing machines and I have never gotten along. I hope you can find repair places/persons who can successfully repair sewing machine, washing machine, and sink plumbing.

i am mechanically inclined but i do not have some of the special tools and knowing how or where to get parts which come from doing something for a living vs. just doing things once in a while.

like i can take many things apart and get them back together again and working, i know how to do electronics of some types, but i also know there are times when i'd rather pay someone else to do it instead.

years ago i replaced the main sink faucet and also the metal drain stops and baskets because they had gotten pretty corroded after all the years of using harsh cleaners on them. that was possible because Mom went on vacation so i could do it without interrupting anything she might have planned. it went ok, the hardest part was finding the faucet because i knew she would not be happy with anything that wasn't white.

 

[ducks4you]

Actually it is difficult to clean and retime a sewing machine. Small intricate parts.
My plumber who moved to SD told me that he always liked to install Moen or Delta, bc he could always get replacement parts.
Had a hard time replacing Him.

 

[SPedigrees]

Actually it is difficult to clean and retime a sewing machine. Small intricate parts.
My plumber who moved to SD told me that he always liked to install Moen or Delta, bc he could always get replacement parts.
Had a hard time replacing Him.

My plumber told me the same thing. He's worth his weight in gold. I'm sorry your guy moved away.

 

[SPedigrees]

i am mechanically inclined but i do not have some of the special tools and knowing how or where to get parts which come from doing something for a living vs. just doing things once in a while.

like i can take many things apart and get them back together again and working, i know how to do electronics of some types, but i also know there are times when i'd rather pay someone else to do it instead.

years ago i replaced the main sink faucet and also the metal drain stops and baskets because they had gotten pretty corroded after all the years of using harsh cleaners on them. that was possible because Mom went on vacation so i could do it without interrupting anything she might have planned. it went ok, the hardest part was finding the faucet because i knew she would not be happy with anything that wasn't white.

You're miles ahead of me in technical and plumbing repair know-how.

 

[flowerbug]

You're miles ahead of me in technical and plumbing repair know-how.

i've always been curious about water and water systems including septic treatment plants, dams, irrigation, etc... from quite young i was always out playing in puddles and getting them to drain. i got yelled at for digging trenches to drain puddles on the dirt road which was one lot to the north of us which was the farmer's road to get to his field behind us. i thought i was doing him a favor...

give me a stream of any kind i'll enjoy doing something with water to make a small dam or pool to play in or whatever.

so why do i end up living someplace that is flat as flat can nearly be?! i still find ways to do water projects here too. i think in layers and what might be happening underground and how to store water and soak it in, plus also to keep some water going in the ground between the septic drain field and the well so they don't interfere with each other. hopefully they won't but i try to do my part to help. and then thinking about the overall flow of water in this area and where we are and all the ditches around.

it's interesting and gets me into wandering around geological maps and scratching my head. this area has a lot of history. coal mines, oil, salt and brine for the chemical factories.

it is not easy to get fresh water from wells here but we're right in the middle of the flow for the area and have never had salty water from our well - just some iron and calcium.

if you read this far i meant to start out at the top by saying that watching videos on YT can help quite a bit too. but i didn't have that when i was a kid. i did however like to take broken things apart to see how they were put together. sometimes i could even fix them.