Friday, July 12, 2013

Borders.....and to Solve an Irritation......

I just finished the main body of my quilt....all 23 rows of 19 blocks each.

Only have the 3 borders to work on, one set of which I have put together and the other two borders comprising only 1 1/2" wide strips of fabric I have yet to pick. 

Time to think about the next thing to do....



My Singer 503 has behaved beautifully..... still quiet and sturdy....

Except...



The original spindle size is too small for the spools of thread these days.  They are long enough so the spools won't bounce off, but they do bounce....and make noise...


Also, the holes in the spools are too wide for the spindles, and they shimmy and shake.  Sometimes I feel like I am making music for wild jitterbug dancers....

Understand, I can live with this....when the spools are full, they don't move around too much....but I do like to hear the sweet hum of the machine as I sew, and that "ain't gonna happen" as it stands now...

Other than bypassing the spindles altogether and using an off-the-machine holder for my thread, does anyone have a suggestion of something I might be able to use as a spacer? 

Anyone?  Anyone? 
(ie: Ferris Bueller)




3 comments:

Vroomans' Quilts said...

This is just like my Mom's machine. My Dad long ago made a 'hollow spindle' to slide over the original - not sure if there is such a thing you can buy now. Maybe try some fishtank water tubing?. She also uses a felt spindle doily (just cut a heavy felt circle and clipped a hole).

Ann said...

I agree with the previous poster. A red felt cushion placed on the pin would probably help. You can find them on ebay or make your own. The ones on ebay are really nice and thick.

Charlotte Lyon said...

When my spindle is too short, I put a drinking straw on it and then place the spool on. I agree with placing felt cusion on as well. Good luck!