Pandemic Sales Plan

Regular readers might remember that I occasionally use my blog for sales purposes.  This is one of those times.  It's the easiest way for me to share photos and detailed information with potential purchasers.

FOR SALE:  An all-metal Singer vintage sewing machine, model 185.  A 3/4 size straight stitch only machine.  Cleaned, oiled, tested and ready to sew!

Singer 185.  A straight stitch machine is all you need to sew face masks.

A lot of people are stuck at home and returning to old ways (baking, sewing) or trying them for the first time.  I have heard through the grapevine that sewing machines are sold out in the stores.  Lots of of people are making masks.  My quilt guild buddy Jo has made over 400, and my buddy Molly has made over 700.  I have made and distributed more than 125 and have another dozen on hand.

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I used this machine to sew ties on to pleated face masks.  It sewed through six layers of quilting cotton and 2 layers of bias tape like they were butter.  Please note, though, that material thicker than quilting cotton is too heavy for a pleated mask, although it would be fine for a shaped face mask.

It is early June 2020 and I have been in lockdown since March 14, although for the first three weeks I was still getting drive-through fast food.  It has been long enough now that I am pretty confident that I don't have the virus.  Although my advice to others is to realize that when you trust someone else you are not only trusting them with your own life, you are trusting them with the lives of others close to you.  So I am going to describe in detail how you might purchase a machine from me during this pandemic.

The machine will be plugged in, threaded up and with fabric available, and sitting on a table on my front porch ready for you to test it.  My front door has a window and we can talk to each other by cell phone while you are here.

You will need to wear a mask and gloves while you examine the machine, and a mask and gloves will be on a table at the beginning of the sidewalk before you get to the machine.  You can keep the mask and gloves whether you decide to purchase the machine or not.

The machine comes with a vintage Singer carrying case.  As with all vintage cases, you should keep a hand underneath it and not rely on the handle.  This handle and the latches on this particular machine are sturdy and secure but why take a chance? 

If you decide to buy it, you can leave the money on the table.  I'll trust you about that.  (The price will be listed in the Craigslist or Facebook marketplace ad.)  If you don't decide to buy it, I will wipe everything down with a bleach solution AND I will let four full days go by before showing it to another customer.  I couldn't find any specific data online about cast iron sewing machines, lol, but the National Institute of Health found that the virus can live for up to three days on stainless steel.  And that's without a bleach wipedown.

That's as safe a way as I can figure out to sell a sewing machine during a pandemic.  If you have additional ideas, please leave them in the comments below.

My idea is to provide a complete kit of everything needed to make masks. Much of this comes from thrift stores but some things just have to be new to be worth using (needles and scissors for example).

These items will be included with the Singer 185

In a semi-vintage plastic sewing box I will provide:

• extra sewing machine needles, new
• hand sewing needles, not previously used
• a plastic thimble
• Partial spools of several colors of thread, polyester (which is strong and does not "go bad" over time)
• extra bobbins.  This machine takes class 66 bobbins which are widely available
• seam gauge
• tape measure
• pins
• pin cushion 
• a piece of tailor's chalk
• two screwdrivers, the kind that come with a new sewing machine.  
• scissors, new
• snips, new 
• a bottle of sewing machine oil, new (the ONLY thing you should use on a sewing machine)
• a lint brush
• at least 6 "fat quarters" of quilting cotton 18" x 21".  Each fat quarter should be enough for a couple of masks. 
• four yards of quarter-inch elastic
• a seam ripper but no guarantee that it is still sharp!  I personally don't care for them but I acquire them with other thrift store sewing supplies sometimes.
• I will even throw in an iron upon request and at no additional charge.  It won't be a steam iron but a spray bottle of water or a damp cloth can provide you with steam if you need it.

A threading diagram and description for this machine can be found here.

If you just need a machine and not all of the supplies in the kit, the price will be reduced. However, this is an all-or-nothing deal.  I won't, for instance, just sell fabric, or a pair of scissors, etc.  I'm not a store, heck I'm not even a business.  I have a limited amount of accessories and supplies that I have hoarded from thrift stores over the years, but that stuff is for my sewing students and the sewing friends with whom I regularly swap stuff.