Foot Pedal Controller Speed Adjustment

  If your Singer Featherweight 221 foot controller (aka foot pedal) has only one speed (fast) OR is getting way too hot, then it might just need a simple adjustment inside. Watch this video tutorial for how to calibrate and make the necessary adjustment and to keep your machine operating safe...

How to Clean Under the Bobbin Case Spring

This is just a quick video we made for a customer who had questions about the bobbin case tension. This tutorial will help teach you how to clean lint out from under the bobbin case spring with a pin as well as how to do the bobbin case "yo-yo" test. This test is not foolproof and can sometimes v...

Replacing the Needle Clamp & Thread Guide

When replacing the needle clamp or thread guide, sometimes it can be a bit tricky to get everything aligned just right.  This video tutorial will help you learn how to easily replace the needle clamp and thread guide on your Singer Featherweight 221 and 222K.  

How to Attach the Feed Dog Cover Plate

  We here at The Featherweight Shop are really excited to introduce the feed cover plate designed specifically for the Singer Featherweight 221. It is an exact replica from the very, very scarce-to-find (and expensive) original feed cover plate attachment. Unlike the plates that screw onto the b...

How to Fix a Stuck Hook Assembly

After removing the hook assembly screws on a Singer Featherweight 221 sometimes the assembly will still remain stuck on the shaft. This quick tip will help you remove it easily without damage to your machine or that expensive original part... just be sure to watch all the way to the end of the vi...

Featherweight Timing (and how to replace the Gib Hook)

In this video tutorial, Carmon Henry gives the step-by-step process for how to set the hook timing on a Singer Featherweight.  Timing is almost never an issue on a Singer Featherweight 221 or 222.  What that means is -- that it is virtually impossible for a Featherweight to get out of time just f...

How to Fix Terminal Receptacle Pins for Better Connection

How to Fix Terminal Receptacle Pins for Better Connection   A common question we receive has to do with the Featherweight plug being too loose in the receptacle. Watch the short video above to see what to do should this ever occur with one of your Featherweight machines. My Featherweight fri...

Singer Featherweight Blackside Finish

The “Blackside Featherweight” can be an obscure find unless you know what to look for, because it may just look like a regular Featherweight with only a few darker looking parts. However, there are some important distinctions, so you don't want to presume that just because a Featherweight has a ...

Fixing a Broken Motor Cap Screw

Broken Motor Cap Screw This Featherweight Hint has been provided to us by Brad Sawatwipachai.  Brad is a friend and Featherweight collector in Ontario, Canada.  He recently hosted his first Featherweight Maintenance Workshop and posted photographs of something he had to remedy while in his clas...

Good vs. Bad Bobbins

This Featherweight Hint is all about bobbins.  What type do you have in your machine?  After reading this post, it might be a good idea to double check your supply, or at the very least make sure you know the source for your Featherweight Bobbins. A couple of weeks ago we had a machine co...

Factory Vintage Tour

We do enjoy sewing machine history, especially when it comes to Singer, and their manufacturing process, advertisements, catalogs and antique publications.  Yesterday we managed to find some information and illustrations that we thought you would all enjoy seeing as well and taking a virtual ...

Singer Wrinkle (Crinkle) Featherweight 221

Serial Number:  AF589*** indicates commission date of August 15, 1940   This uniquely finished Featherweight has been most commonly referred to as the “Crinkle” Featherweight or sometimes called a “Matte Finish” Featherweight.  However, we would like to dispel that descriptive adjective with th...

Putting Your Machine Away

This Featherweight hint is actually a simple one but could save you some heartache just by being conscientious and a little bit careful with your Bakelite Terminal Receptacle. Did you know there is a proper way to put your Singer Featherweight away into your case?  Indeed there is.  Time and ...

Learning About Motor Felt Wicks

There has been much talk about motor lubricating lately, including many that are advocating not lubricating the motor at all.  I am not sure where this advice started, whether it began because the later white Featherweight motors do not have lubricating ports, or if it was from those warning agai...

Thread Cutter Fun Fact

All Singer Featherweight machines originally had a little Thread Cutter.  Although, I have to admit that I never use it.  It was probably more of a selling point for the Singer Sewing Centers …. I can hear it now ~ “…and it even includes a handy little thread cutter!”  Honestly, it seems more ...

Featherweight Needle Direction

NFL – not the National Football League, but that does work as a good reminder. Needle Flat Left While today’s tip might seem elementary to some, it is the most common culprit to a Featherweight that has suddenly stopped sewing correctly. We get numerous calls from frustrated quilters who snappe...

How to Fix a Floppy Bed Extension

For today’s hint, we will be discussing a floppy Featherweight bed.  This remedy is quick and easy and will keep your bed from flopping down too fast. (Note: This only applies to black and tan Featherweight Machines.  Singer cut a few manufacturing corners when they made the White Featherweigh...

How to Change a Singer Featherweight Light Bulb

For those of you who do not have local access to a hardware store or don't want to drive all over town trying to locate the right tubing product, we do carry them in the shop as a convenience to our customers: Many of you have probably tried and found that the area where the light bulb g...

How to Use the Singer Style-O-Matic Attachment

The SINGER Style-O-Matic Attachment with 17 Different Finishes all in one Attachment.  Singer introduced this amazing little gadget in 1934 and after that, it has been referenced in very, very few publications and advertisements.  A very short-lived attachment - making it a very scarce collectib...

Is Your Machine Jammed?

Hook Assembly with Bobbin Case Base Removed April 7, 2020:  UPDATE & ADDENDUM, New Video Tutorial In September of 2014, we posted a Video 1 Tutorial showing how to remove thread from the hook assembly on a Singer 221.  Then, in May, 2018, we updated the video to add the tutorial for the...

Wobbly Rubber Bed Cushion Feet

What do your bed cushions look like on the bottom of your Singer Featherweight 221 or 222K?  Are they hard and brittle or are they pressed flat and full of lint and hair?  Either one is an easy fix and will help your machine maintain stability on the table as well as properly absorbing vibrations...

How to Use the Singer Tucker Attachment

How to sew pintucks using an old-fashion Singer Tucker Attachment. This demonstration was with a Singer Featherweight 222 Sewing Machine. The video was created back before we had cell phone video coverage, and we could only do it in one take with our limited technology. But, this should help gi...

How to Sew Flat Felled Seams

This tutorial was featured on the Oliver + S blog. A flat-felled seam is accomplished by sewing two lines of stitching at the seam while simultaneously enclosing the raw edges of the fabric. This seam finish not only prevents unraveling or fraying but makes the seam very strong. It also gives th...

Using the 1/4" Narrow Hemmer for a Vintage Styled Apron

Amazing. Simple. Let me say it again - A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Constructing a little apron for my daughter's Kindergarten teacher I decided to see if I could try out the 6mm or 1/4" Narrow Hemmer foot (6mm) to quickly hem the ruffle pieces prior to gathering the opposite edge.     I did a quick fin...

Zipper Feet Sewing on a Featherweight - Regular or Invisible

For traditional zippers, you can use either the old-fashioned wide Singer Zipper Foot Attachment or the Narrow Zipper Foot Attachment (both shown below) or even the new Narrow Zipper Foot Attachment. I've found that it makes little difference for application, wide or narrow, which foot is used. ...

How to Use the Shirring Foot Attachment

  Shop Shirring Foot Here Ever wonder what you can do with this little attachment? Using this foot has made a drastic difference in the ease of shirring, so I thought I would tell you about this obscure Singer Attachment. It's called a Shirring Foot or sometimes referred to as the gathering atta...

Pink, Pinker & Pinking

Finish Seams, Trim Dressing Tables & Lamps, Edge Chintz & Waterproof Fabrics ~ the old-fashioned Singer Pinker accessories are desirable tool for any sewing room.        Above Left:  Singer Hand Crank Pinker #121379 Above Right:  Singer Pinking Attachment #121021 (Both styles are s...

How to Thread a Singer Featherweight

Is your machine skipping stitches, or looping strangely after it was sewing just perfectly moments before?  Most all stitch problems on a Singer Featherweight have to do with the way it is threaded.  Unlike most modern machines and even a few older Singer models, the Featherweight 221 & 222...

Introduction to Getting to Know Your Featherweight Video Series

Welcome to the Getting to Know Your Featherweight Video Tutorial Series! Ruthie Henry demonstrates each step needed to get you and your Featherweight up and sewing in the seven part course! Starting from How to Thread Your Singer Featherweight all the way through Backstitching & Reverse Stitc...

Singer Featherweight Red 'S' Badge

The Red S Badged Featherweight "I hear a lot about the Red 'S' Featherweight - what is it? and what does it look like?"This is a question we receive once in awhile and it is a good one!A Red 'S' Badge on a Singer Featherweight A Red 'S' badged black Featherweight has become one more novelty for ...

The White Featherweight 221K

Produced from the mid to late 1960's in Kilbowie Scotland, this machine was something fresh and new to the Singer Featherweight market. The official Singer color was called "Pale Turquoise", but the machine was often times more white or pale green in appearance depending on the casting light. Fo...

How to Use the Two Thread Embroidery Attachment

This is rather strange looking attachment, wouldn’t you say?  I likened it to a preying mantis because of how the thread arms reach out and the bottom arms crisscross… Nevertheless, this is a very, very scarce attachment to find indeed! We know this attachment is expensive. It is quite a collect...

How to Use the Single Thread Embroidery Attachment

I have had many, many rare attachments over the years but this one is by far my very favorite to use. Curly-Q’s and Loopy-D-Loops make this attachment fascinating to watch!     The Single Thread Embroidery Attachment was made by the Singer Manufacturing Company beginning in 1930 and continuing...

How to Use the Singer Walking Presser Foot

This Walking Foot is in a class all by itself. But then, should it be any surprise coming from the SINGER of yesterday? All metal, sturdy, high quality and with no plastic parts – it was built to last!  Those factors alone help play a major role in the collector’s price tag that these fetch tod...

How to Free-Motion Quilt on a Singer Featherweight

You can follow along with the video tutorial below for how to free-motion quilt on your Singer Featherweight or read through the text further down.     Click Here To Order Embroidery Foot Click Here To Order Embroidery Foot The foot I am demonstrating today is a new, all-metal, low shank embroi...

The Importance of a Thread Stand on a Singer Featherweight

Learn about the various types of thread spools and why a Thread Stand is important for proper tension on a Singer Featherweight!   In the original days of the Featherweight, the only thread spools available were the wooden "stacked" spools, designed to spin as the thread was gently pulled strai...

Adjusting the Belt

Is your Featherweight a bit sluggish or does the belt slip when you sew? This quick tip for how to adjust the belt will help you remedy the problem in no time at all. The first thing you will want to do is remove the spool of thread as well as the bobbin case from the machine. Next, using a long...

How to Adjust Tension on a Singer Featherweight

Learn how to easily and properly adjust the upper tension as well as the bobbin case tension on your Singer Featherweight 221 and 222. Below is a transcript of the video above. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me. I am happy to assist anytime. If the video was helpful for ...

Quarter 1/4 Inch Foot Comparison

  We often receive questions about the various quarter-inch feet that we carry.  I had been wanting to do a comparison video for quite some time so I made this video tutorial showing the Scant 1/4" Foot, True 1/4" Foot, Spring Hinged 1/4" Foot, Patchwork 1/4" Foot, Open Toe 1/4" Foot and 1/4" Lit...

How To Remove and Install a Singer Featherweight Belt

We are sometimes asked when to replace a Featherweight belt as well as how to remove and install a new belt. This video tutorial will show you examples of some bad belts and what to look for, as well as the proper way for installing it.   Another thing to take note of is the motor pulley because ...

Motor Lubricant and the Proper Melting Point for Sewing Machine Motors

  Are you using the right motor grease and lubricant for your Singer Featherweight?  There are old, original tubes, new tubes and even some new kinds on the market... but are they properly suited for the Singer Featherweight?  How would you know?  Watch the video tutorial above and our old one b...

How to Clean & Lubricate Your Gears and Motor

Learn how to properly clean and lubricate your Singer Featherweight 221 & 222K sewing machine gears as well as the motor. Video tutorial walks you through each step for where to apply the lubricant.  If you do not have the right grease on hand, then scroll down below the video to order a tube...

How to Oil Your Singer Featherweight 221 Sewing Machine

Give your Featherweight a "Spa Day!" This oiling tutorial will teach you every step of oiling your Singer Featherweight 221 Sewing Machine and is geared more towards routine maintenance. HINT:  If you have discovered after opening up your Featherweight that the gear mechanisms are covered with ...

Birthdate Featherweights

How great it would be to have a Singer Featherweight made in the very year you were born or the year you graduated from high school or college or perhaps the year your child was born. The data below, inspired by Graham Forsdyke's original reference chart, graphs the number of machines manufacture...

Vintage Singer Attachments & Accessories Identification Chart

(If using a mobile browser, this page is best viewed with your screen sideways.) This chart has Singer Attachments that are broken down into subcategories: Common Basics, Individual Spares, Mechanical Attachments, Fashion Aids, and Scarce Accoutrements. Some may fall into two or more categorie...

Dating Your Singer Featherweight Machine

What is the Birthdate of My Singer Featherweight? To date your Singer Featherweight, you will need to locate the serial number on the bottom of your machine.  It has two letters followed by a series of six numbers.  Using the serial number you can use the three charts below to find the date when...

Singer Featherweight FAQs

A collection of frequently asked questions surrounding the Singer Featherweight... from "Is my machine a Featherweight?" to "What is my Featherweight worth?" to "I just got a Featherweight, now what do I do?"... and MORE!  This set of questions will be a great place to begin if you are wanting to...