For those interested in mechanical advances as well as sewing aficionados, the Sewing Machine Museum is a must-see. It is one of London's lesser-known museums and is only open one Saturday afternoon a month, so you will need to plan ahead for your visit. The Sewing Machine Museum is location a short stroll from Tooting Bec tube and is free of charge although a donation is suggested and the information is provided for two separate local charities. The Museum is actually the private collection of Ray Rushton, whose father, T.A. Rushton, had a sewing machine shop not that far away (that's the full reproduction of the original shop in the photo on the far right below).
What's amazing is how many different shaper, sizes, and format the machines come in and that you as a visitor are able to touch so many of them. A few are off-limits, of course, such as the one (middle photo, below), which once belonged to Vicky, Queen Victoria's oldest daughter. But the others can be looked at rather more closely by the visitor, who may be astonished to learn that many are in good working order. This will not come as a surprise to many, however, as reliability is a key feature of a good machine!