Speaking of sewing....

Sure. I used to see handheld sewing machines for sale on TV all the time some years ago.
here's one:

HANDHELD SEWING MACHINE

I was in Target yesterday and thought, "What the heck, let me see if they have sewing machines."

They do, mostly regular ones, but I bought this one made by Shark (the hand vacuum people) for 20 bucks. So, I it doesn't work, no big loss.



When I went on the Target site to copy this image, I looked at the reviews of people who bought it.
It was funny, the people who were realistic, saying they just needed it for sewing a seam or something, were all satisfied.

Others who hated it mostly were making comments like "It doesn't do a back stich" or "You have to run the material through by hand"

WTF did they expect for $20?

I shall keep you informed as to the results.

Hey, thanks for posting this-- I only sew for the same reason as you-- to hem a pair of pants, or the occasional repair. I never knew they had hand-held sewing machines.

I havea really nice pair of pants I bought last summer-- and have not gotten around to wearing them because of having to do the hemming. This might help.

I have one like that. It works fine for what you want to do, Chai. It's functional enough for quick clothing repairs, hems, dog/kitty beds, zipper fixes and simple curtains. One of my nieces used it to make a summer wrap dress, I was very impressed - not being much of sewer myself. I think some women buy it thinking it will replace a larger machine, but it's just not designed for any heavy duty work or thick fabrics. Actually, it's not real great with denim, it just doesn't have the power. My only other complaint is the needle that comes with it tends to break easily. You can get a better one at any decent fabric store.

I know this is a different thread, but I have the tomato pincushion, a pewter dragon pincushion and the chinese figures holding hands. I inherited a bunch of fancy sewing notions years ago, but rarely find a use for them nowadays.

I've got my mothers' old sewing machine, a White, and all of her threads and pins and needles and scissors. It's not working and I use the cabinet as a minibar but someday I'd like to have the machine repaired, if possible, and maybe whip up some curtains in her honor.

I take my hems and all other sewing chores to a seamstress. Ten years ago, I discovered I could have it done through the dry cleaners for $9.00 to hem a pair of pants. She did better work for $6.00. Ten years on, she still does the same quality work, only now, she charges $6.00 to hem a pair of pants.

I mentioned this to her. She told me some people still complain about the price. Me? When I get a good deal, I don't try to negotiate.

Wow. I just said those very words to a seamstress that I'm using for the first time. Her price is so low that I'm a little nervous about the quality but, I told her that she didn't charge enough and her words were exactly the same. "People still complain about the price."
We'll see...

Six dollars to hem a pair of pants...wow. I'd happily go to her. I can see myself with the hand-held sewing machine-- it takes time and a bit of planning to hem your own pants.

Years ago, when I lived in New England, the sporting goods store Bob's would hem your pants for $1 when you bought the pants from them.

Yeah. Dillards used to do free alterations, but only on dress pants and such that were sold with pinking at the bottom, and only if they were not on sale. If they were on sale, their charge for alterations put you back up to the regular price which gave you free alterations. Whooda' thunk a dumb customer would figure that out.

If you use the office stapler, it costs almost nuthin!

I used this method on blue jeans in the past, but the staplers don't work to well where I work now-- another hazard of stapling pants is the occasional staple that becomes unhinged, which can leave some nasty cat -like scratches on the legs.

Holy Smokes!

That little sewing machine is really something else. Looked what I whipped up since my last post.

I am SO ready for Easter.....

Chai, how much does the hat weigh? It looks like she's having some neck strain.

Never mind the hat, look how I attached a man's head to the elbow of the suit.

Cool, huh?



that'll teach those pesky door to door salesmen.

And, he only looks moderately inconvenienced.

I'm ready for Easter too, Chai. I see we are both going as Asians this year.





Here's an Easter Bonnet for Slappy and Kicky. Think safe sex during the fertility holidays!

It looks as if she's narrowly missed being impaled by a chopstick.