Thursday, March 5, 2015

Sewing Table

Last year in a fit of purging I put a whole bunch of things on kijiji to sell.  One of those was my antique, Singer treadle sewing machine.


I didn't think it would sell so quickly, but it did!  I was a little sad to see it go, because it had been something I had wanted for a really long time.  After owning it for a while, I could see the limitations for me.  It was awkward having the presser food sit on top of the treadle (because there was no other place for it); and all that cast iron plus the machine made it really heavy.  I did miss the drawers for storage and the extended surface though.
For the past several months I have been on the hunt for a new sewing table that would give me enough surface for sewing and storage for my notions.  Before Christmas I found the perfect solution at Goodwill, and it was half price furniture day to boot!


Just for the record, it did not look like this when I bought it!  It was all dark, dark brown, and the added pieces were plain MDF.  She wasn't really very pretty!

At one time this had a sewing machine with it, but a previous owner had removed it and cut a piece to fit the hole the machine swung down into.  They also put another shelf underneath the knee well.  This was just fine for me, because all I wanted was a table.  Both added pieces are on hinges as well, so it's really convenient.


Of course I hemmed and hawed for a week or so deciding how I was going to give it a make-over.  I have always wanted to give chalk paint a try, and thought a nice pink or duck egg blue would be lovely.  In a magazine I saw a picture of an antique table, painted cream with a stained top.  *Ping!* I knew I had found my finish.  Also one that Mr. Crafty World wouldn't cringe at!

I have to say I am underwhelmed at the chalk paint finish.  I used Martha Stewart chalk paint in 'Linen', but I find it streaky and there are lots of brush strokes showing.  I have a feeling that if I ever bring this table upstairs and get to see it in lots of natural light I am going to hate it.
The original finish was a nightmare to sand off.  I only did the top parts of the fold out pieces and decided to paint the interior parts.  It was only after I stained one of the  top pieces I remembered I had originally decided not to stain, but to only wax the top.  Grr!

 I wanted to wax the entire thing after painting, and went completely domestic-geek and made my own wax!  Lavender scented too:) I have to say the whole table smells delicious, so that makes up for the previous gaffes.

On a recent trip to the thrift store I found a roll of this wrapping paper which I thought was so pretty.  I used it to line the drawers, and also to cover the MDF shelf under the top.  Since I will be storing my machine on that shelf when I'm not using it, I covered the wrapping paper with some clear vinyl to keep it from getting ripped.



Now I am puttering around and filling up the drawers with all my bits and pieces that have been stashed here and there.  I am very excited to use my new table!

Here's a funny little post script:  a while back I was driving down the main street of our next town.  I looked out the window and what did I see, but my old Singer treadle machine in the window of a dry cleaner/alteration shop!  So glad to know she didn't get disassembled for parts, and gets to be admired by lots of different people on their way by.

5 comments:

Brigitte said...

Your new sewing table seems to be perfect for your needs. And good to know that your old Singer has found a nice new home.

Anonymous said...

You're so inspiring! I highly recommend Annie Sloan's chalk paint... it's a higher quality paint than what you'll find in the craft stores and so beautiful to work with. Virtually no sanding with it. Just in case you find another piece you want to paint. :) Perhaps you could share your recipe for the lavender-scented wax in a future post.

Cheers!
Dawn

mrs. smythe said...

This looks fabulous! I'm so impressed. Glad, too, that your old table/sewing machine had such a nice ending, too.

Carol said...

I'll bet you were sad to say goodbye to the old Singer--what a beauty! I have my Grandmother's old machine, too, but have yet to try it... Glad you found a new sewing table to suit your needs--love the way you've changed it up, Jenn! The paper you found for the drawers is perfect :)

kjsutcliffe said...

What a lovely find - just perfect for your sewing and crafting :)

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