UPS dropped off Lydia on August 6, 2009. I was excited, yes, but anxious when I saw her packed in a fruit box with a makeshift top and bottom.
Who ships a vintage sewing machine in a banana box -- and leaves the holes open?
The seller sealed the open top with a flat UPS Express Mail Box. Clever but risky, don't you think?
I opened the box top to find one sheet of bubble wrap and Lydia's hard plastic case shrouded in a black garbage bag. No other cushioning at all.
I opened the black bag and saw the hard plastic Necchi carrying case. Would it be cracked, I wondered.
The (now empty) banana box with its makeshift bottom (matching it's makeshift top).
When I lifted the flat Express Box, I saw the hole in the bottom of the banana box.
Oh, Joy! -- the hard plastic carrying case was intact, without cracks or damage.
I opened the case and there she was in all her beauty. What a relief! But did she work?
That's Willy, my chihuahua, behind Lydia. He's white and she's cream.
An old spool of thread was still loaded on the machine.
How old do you think this spool is?
Here's her name plate. That bit of scuffing is from the carrying case.
The face plate. She's a high shank machine and came with a few different feet.
She has a secret compartment for storing accessories.
I love this design. She also has room to store 3 bobbins. You can see 2 in the photo.
The feed dogs and zig zag foot. She came with the top half of a needle intact and I would soon discover why.
Light bulb was intact, miraculously.
The bobbin case was a little discolored but intact.
A free arm machine can be nice, though not a necessity. It's annoying that you have to remove this section to access the bobbin.
Another view. Look how clean and shiny she is.
A very nice straight stitch in light denim. When I tried her the first time she would hardly move -- the hand wheel was awfully stiff -- and today (one day later), after some oiling, she's a speed demon!
Gorgeous, yes, but she tends to race. I can slow her down with a plug-in light dimmer.
I broke a needle for the second time when I tried to use the zig zag stitch. It's her cam stack -- cracked, as one often finds on this model. Regardless, she a decent straight stitch machine if nothing else.
I didn't exactly "need" a third (!) sewing machine, but that's not really what it's about, is it?
Here's her zig zag foot and face plate. Needle's threaded and ready to sew.
