The Singer Featherweight sewing machine is a beloved, collectible vintage sewing machine that has gained near-iconic status among quilters, sewists, and antique lovers for its quality, portability, and charm. I actually inherited one from my great uncle but never appreciated how special it is until Hubs taught himself how to restore vintage sewing machines during Covid.

July’s theme for the Do It Over Designers is lighting, so when Hubs spotted a Featherweight sewing machine on Marketplace that had been turned into a lamp, he couldn’t resist. He figured I’d have fun with it—but honestly, my first reaction was shock. Who would convert such a sought-after machine into a light? In its original condition, it could sell for over $500!

The woman selling it was only asking $20. But, since she was donating the money to charity, Hubs gave her $50 to support the cause.

The moment I laid eyes on it, I told him, “We have to try to restore it.” And believe it or not, even though someone had drilled through the top and the arm shaft, we carefully disassembled, cleaned, and revived it. And now it runs like new!

That doesn’t mean I won’t still have some fun with the lighting theme, though. I have a plan to give it a creative second life, as a lamp for my craft room, without compromising its functionality. Best of both worlds!

Do It Over Designers

The Do It Over Designers blog Hop is hosted by Ann at The Apple Street Cottage. We’re a group of bloggers who take something old and/or unused and ‘do it over’ into something new. These items can be found in closets, barns, garages, yard sales, thrift stores, you name it! Be sure to check out the projects at the very end of this post!

Featherweight Sewing Machine – Before

Weighing just over 11 pounds, the Singer Featherweight is both portable and powerful – a true little workhorse. It’s a shame someone didn’t appreciate that before turning it into a lamp. Ironic, isn’t it, that they didn’t see the light (pun intended)?

Here’s what we are starting with after getting the Featherweight sewing machine: the green lamp shade is lacklustre, the rod in the top isn’t even sitting straight, and the white cord looks completely out of place; it really should be black. Worse yet, there is no strain relief at the socket or where the cord exits the base, which isn’t safe or ideal.

To start, I remove all the electrical elements.

To clean the cord, Spray Nine works wonders!

Then, put the pieces safely into a shoe box after cleaning them.

I won’t be reusing them for this project, but I do love the vintage charm of the original socket and switch knob—especially with that little “S” detail. At first, I thought it stood for ‘Singer,’ but I’m pretty sure that’s just a coincidence. Still, it does happen to be my initial!

Materials for Featherweight Sewing Machine Lamp

[If you’re looking for some of the things we used, we’ve got you covered (disclosure): The blue links in this post may be affiliate links. We earn a commission from qualifying purchases which we proudly donate to Alzheimer’s research. But don’t worry, you don’t pay a cent more! Thanks for helping to support our fundraiser!]

• Bulb cage
• Edson light bulb
• Socket with turn switch
• 4-6″ Lamp rod
• Power cord
• Lamp pipe cord protector
• Lamp shade (optional)
• Wire stripper
• Needle nose pliers
• Screw driver
• Spray 9
• Rubbing alcohol
• Autosol Metal Polish Polishing compound
• Cotton pads, cotton swabs and cotton T-shirt fabric for cleaning and polishing
• Scissors

DisasSemble Sewing Machine

Now, it’s time to take everything apart on the actual sewing machine.

But when I took off the decorative faceplate over the needle bar, I discovered metal shavings scattered everywhere—from where the hole had been drilled for the lamp.

Anyhow, it took me hours to carefully remove all the debris using masking tape and Q-tips. In all honesty, I could’ve tried vacuuming it, but I didn’t want metal shavings anywhere near the vacuum system. On top of that, everything was mixed with grease, which would’ve made it difficult—if not impossible—to clean out that way.

Just when I thought I was finished, we discovered even more shavings after taking off the drip pan. Those things really get around!

Pre-clean Parts

Once all the metal parts are off, we soak them in alcohol.

Even though we’ll also put these parts through our ultrasonic cleaner, Hubs scrubs some of the dirtier parts.

Getting the initial dirt off first will save us time in the long run.

While Hubs was doing that, I set about to clean the featherweight sewing machine body. Believe it or not, many sewing enthusiasts and experts recommend using the original Gojo hand cleaner in a tub. However I think it’s been discontinued and we wouldn’t recommend another other kind; not sure what Hubs will do when his supply is gone!

For the nooks and crannies, I’m using cotton buds. 

Otherwise cotton pads or a cotton t-shirt to wipe it on and buff it on will do the trick.

We loosened off the motor so we could clean underneath it too. However, it turns out that Hubs had to rebuild it later to get it working properly again.

Organize

Keep all the like metal parts grouped together in Ziploc bags to make it easier to remember where everything belongs. Now it’s time for a deep clean!

Ultrasonic Cleaner for Sewing Machine Parts

We’ve done numerous posts showing how to use the ultrasonic cleaner to clean parts (see our circle earrings or vintage button necklace posts for more details.

Just keep the parts in their respective bags while cleaning.

The parts come out sparking clean. Look how pretty the cover plate is! But it’s not done yet. It gets a final hand polish and buff with polishing compound.

DIY Lamp Project

Reassemble

Then Hubs reverse engineers everything he took off. My advice to anyone who wants to get into restoring old featherweight sewing machines is to take a ton of pictures and videos. Here’s a great Singer Featherweight video tutorial to start.

The parts that aren’t chrome just need a little bit of oil before reinstalling.

There was just one little hiccup in getting it running again; Hubs had to rebuild the motor. But now? It’s purring like a kitten!

Featherweight Sewing Machine Lamp

After getting it sewing like a dream again (they must’ve built them to last if a few holes can’t even ruin it it), I turned my attention to reworking the lamp components.

The original shade sat on a standard harp, but that didn’t fit the vintage-industrial vibe I was going for, so I’m taking things in a new direction.

Instead, I scored this metal bulb cage on Facebook Marketplace for just $5. It had been listed for over a year, just waiting for the right project, and this is it! I actually got two; you’ll see what I did with the other one soon!

Another lucky find was a new threaded lamp rod. I wandered into the clearance section of a lighting store and, when I asked about buying one, they handed me a spare black one—for free! Don’t you love it when a project gets an unexpected boost like that?

By the way, notice what’s wrong with this picture? I completely forgot to wire the sewing machine first before assembling the rest of the electrical parts. Don’t ask how many tries it took 😉. And in the end, the rod was a little too long for the proportion of the sewing machine so I did swap it out before the final reveal.

Given that I’m no expert on wiring, I’ll link you to this amazing video on how to rewire a lamp.

However, there are a few important things to remember when rewiring:

⚠️ Safety Tips:

Always unplug the lamp before working on it, and if you’re unsure, consult a licensed electrician—especially if you’re repurposing vintage wiring or parts.

Be sure to tie an underwriter’s knot; it helps prevent the electrical connections from being yanked loose if the cord ever gets tugged; and.

Lastly, most lamp cords are non-polarized two-wire cords with one side smooth and the other side ribbed. So when re-wiring a lamp, the side of the cord with the ribs is the neutral wire. This should be connected to the silver screw on the socket. The smooth side of the cord is the hot wire and connects to the brass screw. This ensures the lamp is wired safely and correctly.

🔌 Lamp Cord Wiring Basics

Still confused about how to determine which wire goes where?  Here’s a visual on how to tell them apart and wire them correctly:

How to Rewire a Lamp

For this particular project, these are the steps I took to update the sewing machine lamp.

1. Thread a rubber grommet onto an electrical cord (which Hubs upcycled from old electronic equipment).
2. Insert the cord from the bottom hole in the sewing machine upward through the top hole. Make sure there is slack.
3. Thread on the tube. If it’s too wide, like mine was, twist on a threaded nipple first to reduce it down to 3/8″ (the size of the hole drilled).
4. Screw on the socket. Tighten the set screw if there is one on the socket.

5. Cut the cord down the middle for several inches to separate the wire into two pieces.
6. Strip the ends to expose the copper using a wire stripper (I used the 16 gauge marking).
7. Tie an underwriter’s knot.
8. Use a needle nose plier to bend the exposed copper in a clockwise direction.
9. Now, take note of the markings on the cord. Attach the ridged side of the cord to the silver (neutral) screw and tighten the screw.
10. Attach the smooth side of the cord to the brass (hot) screw and tighten the screw.
11. Ensure the socket is lined up with the switch. Then, pull the wire back down the tube until the underwriter’s knot is snug at the bottom of the socket.
12. Screw on the remaining piece of the socket.
13. Clamp the bulb guard onto the socket and tighten. Screw in a lightbulb. I prefer an Edison bulb for this project in keeping with the vintage look!
14. Insert the rod into the top hole in the sewing machine. Snug up the rubber grommet under the sewing machine. Note, you can also buy lamp pipe cord protectors to prevent the cord from fraying.
15. Plug in and enjoy!

Singer Featherweight Lamp

Although I’m showed you how to rewire this vintage lamp, there’s another option if I still want to use the Featherweight as a sewing machine: a wireless light bulb. With that, the lamp would be cordless so I could simply lift the rod out whenever I want to sew. Of course, the trade-off is that wireless bulbs aren’t exactly pretty, and they typically only last a few hours, so it’s definitely a compromise.

Here’s the Featherweight sewing machine lamp with the light off.

And here it is lit up. I love the new industrial look. What do you think? Are you team industrial?

Or do you prefer a more traditional look? We found this lampshade at the thrift store.

For $3.99 plus a 30% seniors discount, I thought it would be fun to try it too. 

Hubs prefers a traditional look. Do you have a preference?

Interested in another unique use for a sewing machine? You have to see these DIY bookends! In keeping with the sewing theme, we also have some interesting sewing table ideas.

Fall Into Fabulous

One of the things I love most about blogging is connecting with other makers. And this Fall we’ve created something truly inspiring together: 16 digital goodies from top creators — planners, recipes, colouring books  & more — including our Beginner Crochet e-Book!

Grab it now — the bundle is only available for a limited time at this price: use the coupon code FALLFUN to get it for $9.99! 

As always, every dollar of our commission goes straight to Alzheimer’s research, so treat yourself knowing that you’re making a real difference! Let’s make this Fall fabulous and full of hope. 💜

Pin Featherweight Sewing Machine Lamp

If you found this project inspiring or helpful, why not share the love? Pinning is a great way to support our charitable work and helps others discover creative ideas too! Just click the Pin button and save it to your favourite board; you’ll be able to find it later when you’re ready to try it yourself. Every pin makes a big difference and keeps the creativity flowing!

Do It Over Designers

Now, our talented blogger friends have some amazing and inspiring DIYs for you! Don’t forget to visit these posts for more upcycled do-it-over transformations!

• Unique Creations by Anita
• Sum of Their Stories
• Vintage Style Gal
• The Apple Street Cottage
• Birdz of a Feather (that’s us!)
• Exquisitely Unremarkable
• Pandora’s Box
• Purple Hues & Me