Back in 1999 I was looking for a sewing machine that I could use that didn’t require a foot pedal as being paraplegic my lower half is paralysed roughly from roughly the bra line.  While I was in the Singer shop I asked to see how a certain foot pedal worked to see if I could come up with a solution.  It basically worked by air pressure.  The more pressure you put on the foot pedal, the faster the machine would run.  So I asked them to take the foot pedal apart and I was able to use the air bubble (that was inside) with my right hand,  squeezing and releasing to do the same actions as a foot  pedal would do.

This worked for years and years until I started getting arthritis in my hands.  My fingers can no longer bend around the air bubble so I couldn’t use my machine any more.  Just recently I found a place called REMAP on the internet.  They are a voluntary organisation who  come up with solutions to problems that disabled people may have, that would enable them to carry out everyday functions or be able to maintain their hobbies.

I put in my referral and Paul came out to visit and go through what my actual needs would be and we brainstormed a few ideas.  Initially we thought that as the machine used air pressure then I may be able to use a mouth part to blow air through to run the machine, however, I have Sjogrens syndrome which affects the mouth and teeth so I asked if he could come up with something else.  At the next REMAP meeting where all the volunteers discuss the cases, Paul put me in touch with Benjie.   The very clever Benjie was able to make an electronic solution to fix my problem.

Benjie made an ‘L’ shaped bracket, that slots under the machine, that has a slider control that I just have to nudge with my hand or finger to adjust the running speed, and has an emergency stop button.

For the reverse stitching he added a button that I can press as I pull the reverse lever down.  This is just attached with blu-tac so I can remove it if it gets in the way of material going through the gap.  As all the electronic buttons are removable I can still get the sewing machine lid on.  He made up a small electronic program where he could just adjust the air pressures required to allow the machine to run and put all the circuit boards and other gubbins very neatly into a clear box and viola –  I can now use my sewing machine again!

Just to get some practice I made a square cushion cover from a pillowslip so it would match the rest of my bedding.

If you have a disability, infirmity or illness  and have a problem that you think REMAP could make or adapt something that would help,  you can use their online referral form 

REMAP is a voluntary organisation and need donations so if you want to volunteer or make a donation please don’t hesitate to get involved.