Perks of Being a Mom

1. You get your hair combed with fascination, and utmost care by your 18-month-old daughter :)
2. You get to play hide and seek all day, and have an instant playground without going out your house.
3. You get inspired to read more books because the little one makes it a point to read her book again and again everyday.
4. You will always have someone running to give you a hug.
5. You are taught a new song everyday and do a duet as well.
6. You will learn that cellphones don't need installation guides. Hey, a toddler can always fix one!

Admiral Star: Our Vintage Sewing Machine

Today is a very good day. I woke up at 4.30 am to cook for my husband's breakfast and his lunch for work. Yes, he takes lunch box at the office. Sometimes, I go back to sleep when he leaves at 6.15, especially when my daughter goes to bed at 1 or 2 am 😃. But today I didn't.

I planned to finish my new doll's body (remember Laura? ) so I should take care of some house work first asap. Glad my sister is here for a month :) She helps me with some of my chores.

For three weeks, I've been very busy restoring the vintage sewing machine in the picture above, squeezing the little time I had each day.

It's Admiral Star. Probably 40 years old or older. My mom also got one which is 56 years old now.

This Admiral Star was owned by my husband's grandmother. And since nobody used it for more than 10 years [yes that long!] I asked my parents-in-law if we could take care of it instead.

We had a machinist oil it since it got stuck and the wheels wouldn't turn.

I repaired the casing on the other hand [literally by myself], which took 3 days.

Had to sand the whole body, used a steel brush on rough and RUSTED surfaces, applied polyurethane to wooden case, and spray painted the steel parts. (I learned that brushing rust off is a VERY tough job.)



It was a makeover :) A big one I would say. Glad my husband was very kind to encourage me with the project. Whenever I was on the machine, he would take care of our daughter.

To make sure everything would be safe for her, I had to train her not to play much with the sewing machine. By the time she had satisfied her curiosity with it, it was then okay to install the needle.

I'm excited to make my very first doll with the help of our Admiral Star. Wish me luck!