I'm in love with our local Goodwill. I'm both a closet tree-hugger and a poor student so the idea of getting used but still good stuff for great prices with the proceeds going to good use? Score! So we've been doing a lot of our shopping there this past week. Got a desk, chairs, storage stuff, all for a good price. But yesterday was the definate gold mine. Looking around for a chair for my sewing are I noticed a long, slightly beat-up, rather dated box. Looked closer.
A Bond Knitting machine. From the early 90s. With all it's pieces. For $7.99. Gorgeous! Mine!
I brought it home and last night we got it set up on the one table it fits on (the kitchen table - guess we're eating at the coffee table for a while) and tested it out and I'm utterly amazed and overjoyed. It took some annoying-to-knit boucle yarn I had and turned it into a foot of gorgeousness in just half an hour with no problem. All I had to do was get it set up (admittedly rather time consuming and fiddly) and then slide the cartrige back and forth. And that's it! Love!
I need to spend time over at the bond site for project ideas - unfortunately the ones the machine came with are ... dated. To say the least. Lots of amusement value, though! And a fun, fun new toy to enjoy while I'm up here in sweater land. :)
August Sewing Simplicity 7295
2 years ago
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7 comments:
I want to see pictures of the machine and it's creations. I love a good thrift store find.
Oh, I'm sooooo envious. 5 years ago I was at a sewing & needlework festival with my mom and we stared at the knitting machine demonstration with horror - what's the point of knitting if it's just sliding back and forth and you are done in an hour? Now that I have 3 bins of yarn and a project list longer than I care to admit, it would be really, really handy if I could get the stockinette sections done a bit faster...
Ah, who am I kidding? After having it a week, I'd figure out all sorts of other things I could do with it, and my stash would explode for the new projects!
Have fun with your new toy!!
Fantastic find. Love to see photo of the machine and your newly created knitted piece.
Alicia, didn't know you liked to knit too. There are a couple of local machine knitting groups in the area plus a yahoo group for the state. Here is the url for the grou: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WMKG/
There are monthly newsletters in the file section. In the Madison area, we meet on the first Saturday of the month at the Sow's Ear in Verona. There are likely others that are closer to you. There is a list in the files section of local clubs.
If you'd like more info, just email me.
Hope you had a good time on Saturday with the dyeing. Looking forward to meeting you in October.
Susan
Is there some kind of special trick to it? I actually have one of those knitting machines-- I picked one up on sale with some Christmas money late last year, because I hate hand-knitting (and so do my wrists), and I was hoping to use it to make sweater knit fabric that I could sew with. But every time I'd slide the cartridge, half of the little latch hook thingies would end up staying the wrong way (open instead of closed, or vice versa, whichever it as supposed to be). So then I'd have to flip them the other way by hand before continuing. I spent five hours on it one day and ended up with only seven inches of fabric. It's been sitting in my basement ever since-- I've been contemplating eBaying it, but if there's something I should have done that would prevent that from happening, I might be willing to give it another shot!
Thanks, I've been enjoying the machine! I'll try to get some pictures ... we still don't have internet at the house so uploading pictures just got that much more difficult. Oh, well.
Becky - with my machine I only have to worry about the little latches being open or closed when setting it up. When I knit the latches seem to figure life out pretty well on their own and I haven't had to mess with them. I am using fairly thin yarn and it seems to like that. I wish I could help more but, so far, haven't had that problem. Give me a bit, I'm sure I'll run into just about every issue these machines can give. :)
Wow, I saw a machine a while back also for a bargain, but it didn't have any instruction manual and I wouldn't have known where to start. I hope you're still having fun with your toy. Very jealous!!
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