A few weeks ago, one of the Tuesday night painters set up a still life with an old sewing machine, a skirt hanging in the window, and other sewing items. I liked how the scene evoked memories of sewing rooms from my youth. Without planning, I began to paint rapidly, expecting to capture the nostalgia I felt.
Two hours later, when it was time to quit, I was dissatisfied with the sketch. The composition was awkward. The blind was only on the right side, leaving a large blank space. The skirt extended below the base of the sewing machine and seemed as though it might be a curtain.
I kept fiddling with the painting over the next two weeks. I shortened the skirt, extended the blinds, and added small details. Unfortunately, the color below the skirt is now overworked, but even so, I like it better.
Deliberate Sketching 
I disagree that the color is overworked because the end result is a great painting!
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Enter this in a show, it’s great!
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Maybe…
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Out right joy! Iconic in my day, whimsically captured, Kudos!
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Thank you Sonja!
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I absolutely ADORE this piece for a multitude of reasons both artistically and nostalgically❤️
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Thank you Sheila!
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This is so wonderful! On Tue, Oct 26, 2021 at 10:57 AM, Deliberate Sketching wrote:
> Sarah Sullivan posted: ” A few weeks ago, one of the Tuesday night > painters set up a still life with an old sewing machine, a skirt hanging in > the window, and other sewing items. I liked how the scene evoked memories > of sewing rooms from my youth. Without planning, I began t” >
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Thank you!
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I like it. It’s a different color scheme and you’ve avoided sentimentalizing the subject. I’ve got decades of sewing behind me but with more modern machines, this reminds me of the Necchi machine my mother had from the 1950’s.
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Thank you Claudia, it was a beautiful old machine. Funny how an object can trigger such nostalgia.
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Reblogged this on sketchuniverse and commented:
🧷🧵HI BEAUTIES, WHO DOES NOT REMEMBER THE FIRST GRANDMOTHER’S SEWING MACHINE?
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Thank you so much! I feel honored to be reblogged by you!
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Dear Sarah, this blog is so proud sharing your always genuine and wonderful works. You’re welcome 🤍🦓🖤
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Thank you!
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I love the sketch. My first machine I sewed on was my mother’s treadle.
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Thank you, Vivienne, for your kind words. Old sewing machines make for good memories, don’t they?
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I love this painting. I have an old singer sewing machine sitting out back in my lean to. It needs to have a new plug and wiring to be able to use it. I hope to be able to get it restored one day so that I can use it. I have such fond memories of my mother sewing with one just like it.
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Laura, I am so glad to hear this. I love it too and it makes me feel nostalgic.
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