One day many years ago, I walked into an antique store and saw a toy sewing machine that was covered with Art Deco decals. As I looked at it, the toy struck me as a sculptural work, almost with a Pop Art quality, and I bought it.
And so began yet another collection for the Ruffnerian Museum of Miscellany. The collection grew to a couple dozen, but is now down to 15. And today, I thought I'd share several toy sewing machines with you.
The gem of the collection is the American Gem. I've been told that this dates from the 1870s, though the stitch plate merely says "PAT APD. FOR." It has very delicate flower decals and has survived in remarkable condition.
Amazingly, the original instructions for the American Gem have survived, and came with the machine.
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It's important to note that these miniature machines were much more than toys! They were fully operational merchandising tools often made by the same companies that made machines for adults. They were intended not only to instruct children (girls) to use sewing machines, but also to accustom them to a particular brand.
Many of the machines have patent numbers stamped onto them, and that's an easy way to date them. This Smith & Egge machine received patents in 1895, 1897 and 1899. I've always been attracted to the Smith & Egge because it does in fact look like a patent model.
Many of the toy sewing machines were made in Germany, and below are details in a grouping from that country.
I am only the second owner of this 19th century miniature. I bought it from the estate of the original owner, so I know that it was treasured for a lifetime, as it still is.
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Another collector of miniature sewing machines was the great costume designer,
Edith Head. Here she is, shown with her own collection.
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Dear Mark,
ReplyDeleteI like this latest exhibition from the Ruffnerian Museum of Miscellany!
I like the painted flowers on the American Gem and I find this collection to be an interesting example of 'getting them while they're young'. I suppose it is no different to the computer technology bought for children today.
Kirk
PS
For my part I never really had practical toys when I was growing up. Cowboy outfits, tents, toy animals, racing car sets and the dreaded cricket bat that caused so much angst among the siblings. . . these were the sorts of things I received.
Dear Kirk,
DeleteSome of my childhood toys were pretty elaborate, including a 3-foot, tin aircraft carrier and a puppet stage, but my favorites were always the simplest, and I think there's something to be learned from that by today's parents. In my own case, the simpler the toy, the more imagination there was to expend.
Absolutely!
DeleteI recall the hours my sisters and I spent jumping off an old tree stump with umbrellas to see if we could fly like Mary Poppins . . .
Kirk
I love that image!
DeleteTo day I feel happy, I stumbled over your blog at Rosemary's! Via your gift for her. Your blog is a gem, itself, I think! Not only your sewing machines. Have a nice day!
ReplyDeleteDear Lise,
DeleteThank you for visiting my blog and for the nice compliment. Rosemary has a beautiful site and, as you know, a delightful blogging friend . . .
Dear Mark, What a fine collection you have! I learned how to sew on a toy Singer...they came in very handy when the power was shut off in East Germany and my Mother's Singer had to be hand cranked, as well.
ReplyDeleteDear Gina,
DeleteI used to watch my grandmother sew on an ancient Singer that was manual, but which had been electrified at some point. It had a treadle and probably dated to the 1920s or 1930s.
Hello Mark, This has got to be your coolest collection yet, although you do make it hard for us to decide. They are incredible together, but I agree that the best one has to be the American Gem.
ReplyDeleteBy coincidence, I just bought a 19th century print of the Wilson Sewing Machine Company in Cleveland. I wonder if any of your miniatures represent Cleveland or Ohio makers. White was probably the most famous (I think you posted some of their ephemera before).
--Road to Parnassus
Hello Jim,
DeleteExcept for the Singer trade card in this posting, I don't have anything relating to sewing machines per se. I do have, however, much ephemera relating to needles and thread, and at some point, I'll do a posting on the Clark company. Seeing all the advertising for thread, one realizes that making one's own clothes was a major home activity of the 19th century.
these are charming, I have never heard of them before. Great photo with Edith!
ReplyDeletebtw -how do you store all of your collections? You have so many so you must be a master organizer! That would be a good blog post!
ReplyDeleteHi Stefan,
DeleteI think close friends of mine would agree that I am organized; in another life I would doubtlessly be a librarian or curator. Part of that impulse is to continually upgrade and edit, and more recently, to disencumber.
When I moved into my current house, I built floor-to-ceiling bookcases that filled two walls of my living room. Closed cabinets were below (and collections went into them) and a shelf on top connected the bookcases and essentially ringed the living room. This too was filled with collections, which were displayed, but which also collected dust.
About 10 years ago, I started selling off collections entirely, or keeping just the stars of each collection. If you were to walk into my house today, it would not strke you as crowded, in part because many of the remaining collections are items that are small (buttons, daguerreotypes) or flat (trade cards, cigar labels). These live in filing cabinets and flat files.
In terms of taking up space, the toy sewing machines are an exception. I also think it's a great idea to put collections to practical use — I have a bunch of cigar boxes which I use for storing other things.
Hello Mark:
ReplyDeleteWe never fail to be surprised and enchanted by what emerges from the Ruffnerian Miscellany of Collections. You are now making it very difficult for us to decide what to 'steal' should we ver be invited to your house [!!!!]but these delightful toy sewing machines have stolen our hearts. They are truly remarkable although we cannot approve of the instruction manual only written for girls!!!
We have been immediately drawn to the Singer sewing machines as they remind us of our first teaching jobs, at a school in Coventry, part of which was the home of the Singer family!Needless to say that the majority of the school was a modern concrete extension, but the 'Old House' was a joy!
We shall be away for two weeks and may be 'off air' for a little while.However, we shall catch up on our return no doubt when more goodies have been added to your delicious collections.
Dear Jane and Lance,
DeleteI have read a little on the life of the inventor Singer, and I understand that he was a very eccentric man. The lasting image I have of his story is that he had a large family and commissioned a bus-like carriage to transport the whole brood.
Have a wonderful next two weeks; we'll look forward to being in touch when you're back.
Dear Mark - travelling with you is a continual voyage of discovery. I would have loved one of those little sewing machines when young.
ReplyDeleteI still have my mother's singer sewing machine, and cannot bear to part with it, It is housed in a lovely wooden domed case, and covered in gold transfers, with lots of gold and silver badge attachments on it. The end housing the needle has a silver plaque engraved with vines. I wonder why they were decorated so elaborately?
My favourite decal is the first - the art deco.
Dear Rosemary - My mother's machine came in a black case that was so substantial, it might have housed an important laboratory instrument. She chuckled over it because towards the end of her life, when she would take it in for repairs, the Singer people would always try to buy it back!
DeleteI love those art deco decals too, Mark. What an interesting collection. :) I've never met (or heard about) a sewing machine collector before - you're the first! I'm continuously fascinated by what people collect but I've given up trying to figure out what collections reveal about the collector.
ReplyDelete'Ruffernian Museum of Miscellany' I like that.
My attraction to these machines was initially because I saw them as sculptural. I'm not exactly sure what the collection reveals about this particular collector, but one thing I'm conscious of is that while seperately the machines are associated with little girls of yesterday, taken as a whole, the collection seems quite masculine. To see them all together is like looking at a little Industrial Revolution.
DeleteP.S. Mark, I meant to add that years ago we had a beautiful vintage Singer sewing machine which came fixed to a gorgeous oak stand which when you opened it up on top forced the machine to right itself for use. The bottom of the stand was all beautifully worked wrought iron including the pedal. We FOUND THIS ON A NEW YORK CITY Street!! Someone had thrown it out. Go figure.
ReplyDeleteDear Yvette, I know the very handsome wrought iron stands you're talking about. I had friends who turned such a stand into a chic hallway table by giving it a heavy glass top. They put potted plants on it, and it looked like a million bucks!
DeleteWhat a beautiful and special collection, Mark. Are all of them black? I love the design of your American Gem. What a pièce de résistance! It reminds me of English Victorian papier mache and toleware. Even a bit Chinoiserie. Love the photo of Edith Head :)
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Loi
Hi Loi,
DeleteYes, all of them are black, and in fact I've made that a prerequisite for additions to the collection. You're absolutely right about the American Gem looking like Victorian paper maché — you do have a good eye!
Cheers, Mark
As others have noted, you have extraordinary collections of a variety of objects. I think your neoclassical house will metamorphose into a museum, n'est pas?
ReplyDeleteHello, Columnist - Some have said that it already is. But I continue to pare, even as I continue to collect.
DeleteHi, Mark - I came across the below post, and thought of you. Didn't you write about it?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.themarthablog.com/2012/11/a-meal-at-the-columbia-restaurant-in-tampas-ybor-city.html
Hi, Loi - Yes, this is the same restaurant I blogged about this past summer. I had their famous 1905 Salad. It's good to know that Martha Stewart and I travel in the same circles (but she never calls!).
DeleteDear Mark,
ReplyDeleteOnce again, a most fascinating post and collection! I absolutely loved seeing these "toy" machines that somehow manage to be both industrial and adorable...! Isn't it interesting how, even though these were created for little girls to reinforce their gender roles, they are still very much functional, heavy duty tools. They seem to presuppose a much more capable girl when compared to the pink/lavender plastic, non-functional "sewing machines" sold today.... Hmmmm, is this a sign of regression in gender roles???? In any case, these are fascinating objects, and I think as a collector you're in wonderful company with Edith Head!
Warm regards,
Erika
Dear Erika,
DeleteOne thing that's interesting about my machines, most of which were made between 1890 and 1910, is that they helped launch a generation of women who bought patterns and made their own clothes. And if you do the math, these were the same people who were homemakers during the Great Depression, when that could have been a real lifesaver.
My own preference for toys is that they should be crafty and/or fun instruction (I strung beads and painted by numbers), or they should be simple enough to require greater imagination (I enjoyed separating face cards from a deck and imagining court intrigues). I am disappointed to see so many electronic games for very young children on that count, and wonder whether children's intellect develops differently because of it.
I was delighted to find the photo of Edith Head and her collection; I had known she was a collector, but just happened to luck into that photograph.
OMG, Mark, these are fabulous! It makes me realize even more how much we have lost in fabrication of "modern " products. Everything now is plastic or a laminated paper facsimile. Hard to collect when it is not made to last....
ReplyDeleteHi Theresa - You know, as a collector of paper ephemera, I have so many beatiful pieces that were printed on paper that had a rag content. Today's non-digital designs won't last and I'm seeing that much of the digital content that I've saved is either no longer "supported" or falling victim to CDs that actually don't have an indefinite lifespan!
Delete