The Sewing Machine by Natalie Fergie
The Sewing Machine’s story is told through the lives of four generations: Jean, Connie, Ruth and Fred. Oh, and the sewing machine, a Singer 99K, a machine that was hand cranked with no reverse. Beginning from Jean’s story in 1911 and the strike at the Singer factory to Fred now, we find these lives stitched together in ways these four people would, right up to the end, never imagine. The old machine saw each become a little more personally and financially independent, contributors to their communities, it saw them through emotionally difficult times, but quietly.
The threads on the bobbins, a secret message sent on one of the
bobbins and hidden with thread, journals recording every piece stitched with
the machine along with a sample of the fabric, repairs to the machine, the care
each generation gave it and their dependence on it, these are all woven into
the story, all making you want to pull your little Featherweight machine out
and buff it up and use it for something soon.
This story will make you wish you had kept a stitch journal
of each item you sewed with your machine.
It will make you want to get your great-grandmother’s treadle fixed and
learn how to use it, it will give you a special appreciation of those who have
gone before us, leading their quiet lives while sitting at their machine.
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