Antique Toy Machines 2

Toy sewing machines fascinate me. We still see them today in stores for children but most of them are mostly plastic and not really able to stand up to a child's exuberance. Toy machines of years ago are different: they lasted, are made of metal and some were even electrified or battery powered. They stood the test of time.

Two in my collection are Casige machines. This particular one is Model 2015 and made for little girls in the 1940s. It is electrical (I have not plugged this one in to test it....yet....) as it is missing the rubber belt on the wheel. I bought this one in a store in Dallas. It's pretty and my favorite color.

 The sides have decals, too.

My pretty blue hand crank Casige is stamped "Made in Germany British Zone". Some German munitions factories were retooled after WWII to make toys as they did prior to the war, as is the case for Casige. I'm thinking this one was made in the 40s or 50s. Here's more information on the Casige factory. And an explanation of the "British Zone" reference if you'd like to learn more.

This machine is a "Kay-EE Sew Master" toy machine. It's mounted on a wood base, unlike the other metal ones. The face plate is engraved with "Berlin Made in Germany US Zone". It's powered by batteries (I haven't tried that yet) and in good shape. This was manufactured in the 40s or 50s.

I hope you enjoyed these little, fun toy machines!

Antique "Toy" Machines

Who doesn't love a sewing machine? I do...I have 5 of them. Admittedly, that's a lot, but three of them are the same and getting old. If a motherboard goes on their computer (which can't be fixed now) I can always use it for parts. But I digress....

My collection of antique sewing implements includes five toy machines. I'm going to share two of them today. The first was my mother's machine and was made in Germany by Casige. It sews a chain stitch, and yes, I have sewn on it many years ago just for fun. The decals have worn, some of the metal is corroded, but I like it all the same. I'm guessing this one is about 100 years old.

The second one is somewhat of a toy but it was also used to repair clothing. When folks were taking the Grand European Tour they would pack one of these little babies into their trunk so they could repair anything while on their tour of many months. Pretty neat. This Singer is a hand crank and works quite nicely. It dates to 1920, maybe earlier. A clamp would be used to attach the machine to the table when in use to hold it steady.

Here's more eye candy. Last year I had the great pleasure to tour Harry Berzac's offices where he has an incredible international sewing machine collection. Below are two photos from that tour displaying just toy sewing machines.

 A wall of toy machines in Mr. Berzac's collection, each one identified and carefully labeled...

And the "Lilliputian" toy machine, c 1930, made in Germany, and it is a toy machine just about small enough for an American Girl doll.

Next time I will show you 3 more of my own toy machines.