Tag: crafting

Featherweight case ideas and accessories to make or buy

March 18, 2024

Case Options
Your beloved Featherweight’s original case is at least 65 years old. Even if it came refurbished and seems sturdy, buy or make a cover to protect the carry case if you plan to transport your machine in the original case. There’s a Featherweight Shop branded canvas cover in a variety of colors that can zip around your original black case to protect it. It’s available from the Featherweight Shop, Missouri Star and other retailers. If you prefer to DIY, take a look at the following patterns: Sew Portable Travel Set pattern by Jeni Baker or The Boxy Tote pattern by Penny Sturges.

No case? You can buy a new black replica replacement case for about $100. I purchased one of these for my 1935 FW that came without a case. (Hint: search online for “P60221 sewing machine case” – prices vary widely so it pays to comparison shop.) Want something a bit lighter and easier to carry? The FW Shop offers a very nice padded tote, which I was able to admire in person at Treelotta Quilt Shop in Denver, CO. I almost bought one, but had no room in my luggage to take it home on the plane. No worries, because another option presented itself shortly thereafter. How about a 24-can cooler bag from Buc-cee’s? The inside is completely smooth and it’s well padded like the FW padded tote. It’s also budget friendly and always seems to elicit a smile when folks see the Buc-cee’s logo on the bag. Did I also mention I adore Buc-cees?

Protect your FW for travel and storage
At the very least, you’ll need something to wrap up your foot controller and power cords. You’ll also need something to protect the fold up extension bed from being scratched by the presser foot thumbscrew and the faceplate cover screw when the bed is folded up. Batting and/or soft towels will certainly do the trick, but why not make some custom accessories for your beloved FW? Below are links to free tutorials to get you started. Limited time? Head over to Etsy to find all sorts of ready-made FW accessories or actual patterns if that works better for you.

Lined drawstring bag to hold your foot controller and power cords

Faceplate cozy to protect your bed from scratches when transporting or storing. I made an extension bed cover before I was introduced to the faceplate cozy. Either option will protect the bed. The faceplate cozy is faster to make and offers less bulk to go inside a small FW case with an already tight fit.

Sewing machine mat to place under your machine when sewing or over your machine when packed away

One final suggestion: Subscribe to the mailing list at the Featherweight Shop. Subscribers have FREE access to manuals, vintage advertisements/articles and patterns (currently includes mini-dresden spool pin doily pattern).

Thrifty Craft Supplies & Storage Solutions

March 7, 2024

Nothing beats the back to school sales for stocking up on basic craft supplies like glue sticks, crayons, markers, scissors, construction paper, etc. For items such as yarn, ribbon, pom poms, felt, wiggle eyes, craft foam, pretty craft paper, feathers and the like – check for sales at Hobby Lobby and Joann throughout the year.

Otherwise, I’ve found Wal-Mart and Dollar Tree to be the best places to buy general craft supplies everyday.

Dollar Tree is usually my first stop. I’ve picked up small caddies in the school supply section to hold scissors, glue sticks and crayons. The book section is a great resource for simple workbooks, puzzles and stickers. The crafts aisle generally has a little bit of everything in smaller packs so it’s perfect for small scale crafting or just trying out a project without spending a lot of money. If you need to scale a craft project for a large number of kids, I suggest shopping for supplies at Wal-Mart or Amazon.

My find this week was SureFresh round containers to store our bagged/random Perler beads by color. You’ll find them in the kitchen section near the zipper bags and plastic wrap. Each container holds at least 1,000 beads and you get 5 containers in each pack. This works out to 25c per container. Much less expensive than some of the other options I’ve found available. BTW, these also work great to corral wiggle eyes, pony beads and buttons.

For storage solutions, I like the bins that latch with a carry handle. I picked this one up at Michaels, but you can find some variation of it at most craft and big box retailers. All 20 bead boxes, beads to be sorted, tweezers and small Perler templates are in the box. Ironing papers and design charts fit on top before adding the cover. Once the beads are sorted, there should be enough room to add the larger Perler templates. This means I’ll be down to one carry bin and one large jug of assorted melty beads. Perfect!

Storybook Arts & Crafts with a side of Sadie {Update}

January 7, 2024

Monday enrichment begins anew on January 22nd. I’ll have 3 classes this semester lasting about an hour each. My students are K-5. I told my boss I was flexible and could arrange activities to suit any of the K-5 groupings I might be assigned. This semester, I challenged myself to not spend any money on picture books and to use existing supplies for craft projects as much as possible.

Class rosters came out yesterday. This semester, I have 31 students spread over 3 classes – many more than anticipated. This called for revamping the activities I’d planned to do with the kids. I had to pick-up more scissors, crayons and construction paper to start the semester. When I started to overthink activities and go down the maker rabbit hole, hubs yanked me back to reality. He wisely reminded me to keep things simple. Use what I have, but go buy what I need. [Made use of the giftcard my aunt gave me for Christmas!] Make activities enjoyable, keep weekly preps easy on me. The kids will have fun regardless of what we do. Good advice, but so hard when you find all sorts of cool projects you want to make…

Here’s the plan through Winter Break:

1/22 & 1/29: How to Catch a Snowman by Adam Wallace & Andy Elkerton – snowman activity from A Simple Mom plus whatever snowman/snowflake book I can get from the public library – cut paper snowflakes using templates from Superstar Worksheets and by hand following art teacher video on YouTube. Update: 4th & 5th snowman activity: download assorted snowglobe templates and have students design trap to keep snowman from escaping snowglobe. 

2/5: Grumpy New Year by Katrina Moore  - Dragon paper roll activity for the littles and fabric fortune cookies for the big kids (hand sewing).

2/12: Whatever Valentine book arrives first from public library – Paper plate Valentine suncatchers.

2/19: Sadie visits – dog themed stories from Sadie’s library - simple craft activities - littles: paper plate puppy activity. older students : origami dog bookmarks.

And this gets us through Winter Break the last week of February!

Note: I post these ideas to share with librarians, teachers, former colleagues, homeschool moms or anyone really who is looking for great read-alouds and low cost craft activities to share with their kids. I may be retired, but I still get texts from former colleagues needing ideas for books and teaching research skills.

Photo by Yan Krukau on Pexels.com