Machine No. 10

I don't really think of myself as Sewing Machine Collector, but there must be a threshold when casual accumulation becomes obsession.

For many years, I had just the one machine, my Bernina. Then I was gifted with not one, but two Singer Featherweights by my French friend. The first one proved a lifesaver when my Bernina was in the shop, making me see the wisdom of having at least 2 machines. I inherited my Mother's & Grandmother's cabinet machines -- Mom's, a Kenmore from 1949 or 1950, is the machine I learned to sew on; Grandma's is a treadle machine, a Ben Hur, that hasn't worked in decades because the belt is broken -- both are more sentimental than functional. I got the hand-crank Singer for power-outage sewing. The Brother machine has a deep throat-space & lots of power; I got him because I was quilting more & larger quilts. My Singer 66 Lotus is an Art Object -- I haven't sewn with her, she should be on display. I was casually looking at machines on eBay & saw the pale green White. I liked her because she was pretty & after a tune-up, she's a joy to sew with.
So:

• 1 machine, a deliberate & considered purchase that I've never regretted
• 4 machines, gifted or inherited, I think of them as passive acquisitions
• 2 machines, acquired to fill a need,
• 2 machines, acquired merely because they are pretty
• Total: 9 machines

I had been seeing old Kenmores & Whites on Flickr that had the same rough texture & dark colors as Mom's & was just, well, curious, about what I might see on eBay. I saw one like hers only in a reddish-brown color & a portable -- though at 30 pounds it's not really all that "portable". Offered at a good price & with free shipping -- a few days later Machine Number Ten arrived at my house.

I'm officially in the "like another hole in the head" zone with my sewing machines. For no good reason, I still hanker for a blue & white Morse -- they look like a 57 Chevy, 2-toned & chrome-y -- & a pink International. I had thought I should stop at 9, a perfect square. Now I have 10, a nice base number. But maybe I should try for 11, a prime number? A friend suggested 13, a baker's dozen -- & another prime number!

Mathematicians? Numerologists? Financial counselors? Suggestions?