[Bobby]

My Dad was a farm hand -back in the 50/60'S.  Mum had moved miles away from her family - that was back in the days when you did not work, you did not eat - I can remember collecting pig swill from the posh houses, getting laughed at in school because I wore raggy clothes, but we were happy and loved each other.  I have lost my Dad, mum and youngest brother, but not one day goes by that I do not say thank you, because I knew hardship - but love and that love made me what I am  So I do't need an armarni suit to make me feel good - I have what I need in my heart.  We all need different things to make us tick.
Bobby

[doganjo]

Well said, Bobby.  That applies to met too - brought up in a loving but firm family and to know the values of things.  I brought my own kids up the same way and they are bring up my grandchildren that way too.

[sandy]

I agree with those sentiments Bobby, I used to dress nicely sometimes designer labels but often cheaper unlabeled stuff, good material, good quality and good fit does not necessary mean designer.

Some people have led very sad lives often through no fault of their own and feel they need to impress people to gain respect, I suppose if you have low self esteem, designer and expensive things do impress some people but definitely not me.

 I have met so many shallow people who get depressed if they haven't got the latest "thing" for themselves or their family, have they not realised they are being exploited by marketing and follow trends as if they were law!!!!

[lara]

I always longed for  a pony when I was younger, but had to make do with goats instead....my stepdad bought a milker ( british saanan called Snowy ) to provide us with milk... But I really got interested in them whan I was allowed to have  one of the lovely female kids as my own, and we started to go to local shows. I really enjoyed that time of my life (aged about 13 ) even though me & my sis had to do all the milking and looking after them which was very demanding.,
I think that was the foundation of my love of animals and the great outdoors.
 And I think the thing that we(YOU LOT OUT THERE ) all seam to have in common on this forum is that we have all known some hardship, had to make do and mend, worked hard , enjoyed a loving family life and really appreciate what we have, taking nothing for granted ....... in fact we are all a credit to ourselves. well done everyone.x

[doganjo]

Hear, hear. Well said Lara.

Referring to designer clothes, my second, and very dear, husband, as late as the first (my little joke to keep my spirits up lol)  was very influenced by designer labels.  He used to spend a small fortune on top notch climbing gear - Berghaus, Raichle, Salomon etc.  I was going out shopping one weekend and he insisted on coming with me as according to him I didn't spend enough on myself.  He persuaded me to buy a lovely pair of Gerry Weber trousers - they were indeed very smart - till I washed them (following the instructions)- they shrunk, changed colour and the seams fell apart!  I took them back to the posh shop I bought them from but they wouldn't replace them - they said I must have washed them too hot!  What a waste of £100 - I could have had 4 pairs for that!

[lara]

exactly Annie - i'm the same , I hate buying new clothes , -some of my gear is well over 10 years old but still very wearable I dont really go out at night so I'd much rather spend the money on something for the garden or the house , i must say I do love my home. ... I'm a very traditional person and hate wasting money on things which will just sit in the wardrobe.

[sandy]

My "posh" stuff comes from the charity shops, I love getting bargains from them. I too would rather buy garden stuff or house things than clothes!!!

[rustyme]

I don't like buying new clothes either ...so wear mine till they either fall apart or go so thin you can almost see through them !!!  Lack of money is also a contributing matter too... The only name I have ever bought was Levi jeans or cords , but that was up till about 25 years ago, after that I just bought cheap but good long lasting stuff. Lately I was a bit stuck, as I couldn't get what I wanted for less than about £25  for cotton trousers  , So I did a search  and found a company , bought a couple of yards of cotton material for £3.99 a yard and made 2 pairs of trousers  , so £4 or so for pair of trousers . I have a few old hand operated sewing machines circa early 1900's , which do the job well . My late mum was a seamstress , and she taught me to use a machine.  She spent years making stuff for a company that supplied C+A . I had my own hand operated machine as little kid.... lol . So after a 30 odd year gap I am back to making clothes again . The loom and spinning wheel are next to get set up and working ...

cheers

Russ

[sheila]

O.K Russ. Can I be the first to put an order in?

[sandy]

Blimey Russ, well done!!! what a skill, I cannot even hem something straight. I got a very nice free sewing maching off freecycle and started by hemming a curtain and it is very wonkey!!! I did make 4 cusions from some material from a charity shop. I always think if  you are handy with a sweing machine you can trawl the charity shops and either alter stuff or use the material for other things...maybe one day!!!!

[doganjo]

I have a sewing machine and can cut out and sew up - just never seem to have the time - or maybe it's the inclination I don't have.  Well done Russ.

[rustyme]

 Funny isn't it ,when you can do something you don't think of it as a skill , just something you can do !!!!  It has been over 30 years since I touched a machine properly, I was given an electric one , but that needs adjusting as it just makes a big mess of the thread , looks like a birds nest ... I used to make most of my own clothes up till I was about 19 or 20 ,apart from the levis!!! but shirts, jackets, trousers were all home made . As I said , mum was a seamstress, and I grew up being able to use a machine . We had 2 huge commercial sewing machines in the back room  , and mum would always be on one , and the other one would be used by sometimes, my older sister, or my dad or me .  The other kids were too small then . I used to mainly sew arms , front panels and back panels for jackets (nearly all leather), and mum would sew all the bits together. I used to get offcuts of leather and suede from the company mum worked for, and cut wiggly shapes out of them and sew them onto cheap cotton backing and then make them into jackets or trousers . The firms boss ,who was also a friend of the family , saw them one day and said what a great idea !! had me in the factory showing them what I did and they started selling them . I got £500 for the idea.. not bad for a 14-15 year old in 1971-'72 !! The multi colour suede stuff was the best seller , it seemed that everyone had something made by us then . We would see stuff made by us on things like top of the pops regularly . I still have a couple of pairs of unworn suede flares now . Ahhh the good ole days !!! I remember when I were a lad .....(the sound of the Hovis music plays in the background ) that day afta war , eeeee it were grand...(The only thing is, if it had been me going down that hill on my bike , I would have crashed at the bottom doing about 40mph ...another 3 months in hospital  !!!!)Ahhhhh the pain  !!!


cheers

Russ

[Tullywood Farm]

Hi Russ

I had that problem, it is the tension, there are two adjustments, one on the bottom bobbin that is just a screw in the bobbin holder that adjust the tension on the bottom thread.

The other, is dependent on what machine you have, and can be a dial or another screw on the older machines.

Make sure the stitch length thingy is not on too small, and with a bit of fiddling on scrap material it will eventually fix the problem - then write down the setting somewhere incase it happens again. ( draw a pic of the screw angles or write the numbers down on the dial for the tension)

Hope you can get it working

Julie

[doganjo]

Thanks, Julie - that should fix mine too.  Guess that's why I haven't done any sewing for a while - it was chewing up the thread - I remember now.

[rustyme]

Cheers Julie,
              it is buried in the shed at the moment , but as I empty out all the cr*p I will discover it again and have a play !!! The main reason I didn't really bother mucking around with it was I had the hand operated ones anyway , and I will be down on the land sometime soon , no leccy there . So it will be just the hand crank ones getting used. Trouble is I have too many toys to play with ....


cheers

Russ