What's your sewing set up?

[406]

I have an old Necchi sewing machine that does great. Light industrial that I bought refurbished off eBay several years ago. Currently living in an old tiny sewing stand like everybody's mom used to have.

I'm thinking about building a big cutting/sewing table in my basement. 6'x8', shop table height so I can work sitting or standing, big bin drawers, spots for dowels along the back for rolls of material, and wheeled so I can push it into the corner when not in use.

Haven't sewn much since we moved, just not a good set up in our spare room. Hopefully this reignites things having it set up and ready.

Do you guys have dedicated space & tables set up, or do you just take over the kitchen table when it's time to get to work?

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[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

I use part of my office now but I've taken over the kitchen in the past.

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[Ghillie_55]

I take over the kitchen. I cut long lengths of fabric on the tile floor, and do alot of pin up work on the kitchen counter peninsula.

I actually like sewing better standing up at the kitchen counter, than sitting at the kitchen table. Standing up allows me to manipulate the fabric better in my limited work space. It would be nice to have a dedicated area to sew because when Im done I have to pack everything up and take it back down to the basement.

 

[406]

Yeah, the plan is to be able to stand. I need to find a drafting style chair for sitting too.

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[gumbl3]

Dining room table for the machine but I have a lot of wood floor space to tape things down and and layout. Big table would be nice, gets old on the back and knees working on the floor.

 

[reaper]

I am working in the garage,using one or two tables,but stuffs always touch the ground anyway when its a big project like shelters lol.

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[Pierrebuiltknives]

Bought this at 19years old. Currently 33 Paid 1300$ and had to get it rebuilt for 500$ Probably made 200-250,000$ off it. Used mainly for custom motorcycle and bike seats. Pfaff made in west Germany. I am going to order a flat foot for doing more nylon. I wonder how many millions and millions of yards it has sewed. I provably used it the least in its life time.


I have been using a old kitchen table for years. I was a upholstery salesman for a year around 23 and saw almost every shop in wisconsin. The places I was the most jello were sail makers. They typically had long arm machines (if you know machines add 3000$) and pits where they were surrounded at machine level by table.
I would say a table with 2 sheets of dryway works good butted up to the machine.

 

[406]

Saw a sewing pit like that at a wall tent shop.

Cool machine.

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[Flashmo]

1950's Singer 503, 1200 square foot shop with two 4x8' benches(I make my living in it, some sewing included).

Clear and clean a bench when needed for cuts.

Sewing machine lives on a 2x4 fold up table pretty much year round...with a dust cover of course. Clean and oil about every 10 yards(2 months). I will cut and pre-sew 10 yds worth of product. Then cut to custom length and finish as needed.

Ironing is done on whatever is available...cleaned first, of course. Dedicated iron, not the one we use for edge banding.

 

[406]

Nice!
Just started building my table tonight.

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[Flydaho]

My work space consist of our living room floor, which as you can imagine my wife LOVES. The straight lines of the hardwood floor are really handy for getting square cuts but it is hard on the knees. Once things are cut I move to our kitchen table where I use my wife's Brother LS-2125. I was very skeptical about the machine's capabilities at first. It is close to the lowest level sewing machine that you can get, i think the newer models (LS-2125i) sell for less than $100 MSRP and you can generally find them for 25 - 30% off. Needless to say, my expectations were not very high when starting out. But with quality needles (Schmetz) and good thread (Gutermann), and plenty of test runs to dial in the top thread tension, it actually sews just fine. The needle position is sloppy, and the start-up resistance is terrible (it wants to go from 0 to 100%), but I can sew a straight and zig-zag stitch just fine. Eventually I will upgrade to a better machine, but I have the luxury of waiting and watching craigslist until then. I don't think you need the best machine out there. Just grab what you can afford and start sewing. Once your skills outmatch your machine's capabilities, then you can upgrade.

 

[406]

So the base and sides and divider are done. Top goes on today if I can get my ass in gear and drive to town to pick it up.

Cutting out the hole for the machine is going to be nerve wracking.

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[sneaky]

I just picked up a Singer 401A from a lady this evening. Sewing desk, bunch of accessories and thread and bobbins. I think she was excited that I was interested in sewing so she kept adding stuff to it lol. I'm pretty sure the one key thing I'm missing is a walking foot for it. Anyone have a spare one laying around? I could trade you a ruffler attachment for it

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[406]

Nice

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[AGPank]

I picked up a Singer 4423. It's their "heavy duty" residential model from a pawn shop.

I have some problems figuring out the tension settings, but now it's working well.

I sewed through two layers of webbing and a layer of 1000d without any problems.

It's been years since I've sewn, looking forward to some DIY projects.

 

[Kevin Dill]

Bernina 830 Record. Built in Switzerland and runs like a Rolex. I found it on Craigs a couple years ago and it turned out to be a real cherry. Original case, manual, accessory box, loads of feet, walking foot, tool kit...amazing. I use it mainly for repairs and light fabrication.

 

[Beendare]

I've got a Juki 2010 I bought the dealers demo....

I work on my island shaped office desk....dang would it be nice to have one of those big cutting tables like in the fabric shops!

 

[Bughalli]

Funny....I was just looking through Craigslist today because there's a few things I want to make from canvas and nylon webbing. I've never sewn anything. Any advice on what I should be looking for?...or what to avoid? I'm looking to stay on the lower end of the spectrum. Those industrial machines are crazy expensive.

 

[406]

Funny....I was just looking through Craigslist today because there's a few things I want to make from canvas and nylon webbing. I've never sewn anything. Any advice on what I should be looking for?...or what to avoid? I'm looking to stay on the lower end of the spectrum. Those industrial machines are crazy expensive.

I found mine on eBay, from a guy in Canada that finds and rebuilds them. I think I paid$250-300 but that was a long time ago. If your patient you can find a deal.

I spent a little more than I wanted to at the time but it's worth it if you add up all the regular machines I've wrecked over the years. It's a Necchi made in the 60s- "Light Industrial", not really sure what that means to be honest. It looks like a regular machine but it weighs 35 lbs. No plastic gears. Spend a little more, buy once cry once. There is nothing more frustrating than running a regular machine hard and having to fix stuff all the time. Takes the fun right out of the thing.

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[Kevin Dill]

I'm the farthest thing from being an expert on machines and what to buy. I think initially I wanted a cheaper Singer unit. Then I began noticing a bunch of older rehabbed units on Ebay and other sites. A lot of studying and I finally decided to pick ONE good unit and find it. It could have been anything but I wanted a quality machine built for serious sewing and with plenty of parts/service availability. I joined a few sewing forums to learn and ask questions. I found my way to a woman who does a lot of serious custom sewing for horse owners...meaning leather, canvas, cordura, wool, webbing and plenty of heavier stuff. She liked the Bernina 830 Record as a general-use machine capable of some heavy work as well. Easily capable of handling multiple layers of pack cloth, canvas and denim. I waffled around trying to find a cheaper one and it didn't happen. Finally searched Craigs and found one outside Cleveland. The woman had owned it 20+ years as the second owner. First owner used it little and it ended up in her estate. It was like looking at a 1969 Camaro with almost no road wear. She had a load of accessories with it and spent a couple hours with me teaching the essentials. I paid a fair chunk of money but came home totally confident in having bought a really superb machine.

My electronic foot control went kaput a few months ago. The original Bernina control is still available at something near $140 or more...ouch. I somehow found a guy on Ebay with 5 new ones and the price was $69 each. Score one foot control and my machine is back to perfection.