Beginners Sewing Machine

My friend and I really want to start sewing (Me mainly after many
irritating shopping trips where nothing fits exactly right) and I was
wondering if anyone could suggest a good starter machine?
I'm not looking to spend over 200 dollars because I am just out of
college and I have a million (well not a million, but enough) student
loans to repay.
Thanks!!
Terri

"violetaria" wrote:

My friend and I really want to start sewing (Me mainly after many
irritating shopping trips where nothing fits exactly right) and I was
wondering if anyone could suggest a good starter machine?
I'm not looking to spend over 200 dollars because I am just out of
college and I have a million (well not a million, but enough) student
loans to repay.

The usual stuff applies here. Don't buy a cheap machine from
Target/WalMart/Kmart etc. Don't buy a machine in a box from
Joann/Hancock (*). They're usually fairly junky machines that don't
work very well, or last very long.

(*)if the sewing machine area inside your Joann/Hancock is affiliated
with a real sewing machine shop, that's ok. The clerk in there should
be able to help you. The floor clerks at Joann/Hancock can only
really tell you what the box says.

Go to a sewing machine store or a repair shop. Tell them what you're
looking for, and how much you want to spend. They should have some
new machines to look at (although maybe not under $200). They will
probably have some used machines. Don't be afraid of the used
machines. In most cases, the older machines are better built than the
new ones. Get one with a warranty. Ask about lessons. You may need
to go to a few different stores to find what you're looking for. Try
out the different machines they suggest. If they won't let you try it
out, walk out.

This gets discussed a lot on both this newsgroup and on alt.sewing.
Check the google groups archives for discussion on sewing machines.

http://groups-beta.google.com/group/rec.crafts.textiles.sewing and
http://groups-beta.google.com/group/alt.sewing

"how to buy a sewing machine", "good sewing machine"
--
Jenn Ridley :

what do you guys think of the

Simplicity SA1100 or Simplicity S07?

"violetaria" wrote in message
ups.com...

what do you guys think of the

Simplicity SA1100

For $129.99??? It's very likely a toy or a piece of junk.

or Simplicity S07?

Which sells for $109.99. Another toy or POC. I'm pretty sure you can
depend on the fact that those are NOT *serious* sewing machines. (But if
all you intend is occasional mending-hemming they might work ... for
awhile.)

If that's your budget, I recommend looking at 30-40 year old Singers.
Specifically the 401 and 401A. Solid machine, great straight stitch, and
many useful decorative and utility stitches.

You may be able to find a re-conditioned one at a repair shop or one which
someone (foolishly) traded in at a sewing machine shop. They come up on
eBay frequently, too.

S

"violetaria" wrote:

what do you guys think of the

Simplicity SA1100 or Simplicity S07?

Neither. Really. Anything under $200 new is probably going to be far
more trouble than it's worth, and may turn you off sewing entirely.
Did you even *read* my message?

If you only want to spend $150, don't buy a machine. Learn to sew by
hand. It'll be far more satisfying than fighting a junk machine.

Go to a sewing machine shop or a repair shop. Ask about their used
machines.

You'll get a much better machine for the same price. F'rex, when I
took my 1940's Singer into the Singer shop for a tuneup, the shop had
a bunch of early '60's Singers, Pfaffs, and Kenmores. All in good
mechanical shape, 1960's colors, some cosmetic damage (mostly wear and
tear, although there was one that had a chip in the enamel). All of
them were priced under $175. You get something like that, it'll run
circles around the machines you mentioned (probably sew circles around
my White 979, as far as that goes). It'll last you longer, too.

IMS wrote:
On Thu, 12 May 2005 16:51:46 -0700, "Sarah" wrote:


If that's your budget, I recommend looking at 30-40 year old Singers.
Specifically the 401 and 401A. Solid machine, great straight stitch, and
many useful decorative and utility stitches.

You may be able to find a re-conditioned one at a repair shop or one which
someone (foolishly) traded in at a sewing machine shop. They come up on
eBay frequently, too.

S



I second this idea. IMHO the Singer 401 is the best of the vintage
Singers. They are absolutely awesome. I have two, one was $100, the
other $40. They are my main machines (I have over 50 vintage machines
most of which are Singers). I sew a LOT, including quilting, home dec.,
clothing, etc. Right now I'm making fabric boxes.....

-Irene

I am a heavy user of sewing machines (a fact well known on this and
several other sewing groups). Listen carefully to what Irene and Sarah
are saying.

I bought a 1923 Singer 66K while I was a student back in 1976. I still
have it, and I expect to leave it, still in good working order, to my
grandchildren. As my son is presently 10, that won't happen in the next
couple of years... OK so that machine still only does straight stitch
(not even reverse!), but on it over the years I have sewn:

spray deck for sea-going kayaks (they went across the Irish sea and
circumnavigated Ireland)
A PVC window in a Landrover tarp...
More jeans alterations than I care to remember! (Putting coloured
'flares' in straight leg jeans when you couldn't get flared jeans!)
silk chiffon
panne velvet
more garments than I can actually remember...
Bags
projects with kids

...and far too many other things over the last howevermany years!

I recently bought a brand new Singer Featherweight II 117 for my mum.
It was £200. I looked at a lot of machines in the £100-£300 price
bracket and discovered:

Most of them were 'thin and plasticky' rather than just light weight
Stitch quality was dubious
ease of use was non-existent/awkward
feet and attachments were flimsy

I bought the Singer after testing, and found it good FOR THE PRICE and
FOR THE USE it was intended: light weight domestic use. My mum is 75
and has rheumatism: picking up heavy machines is a no-go for her. Light
weight and lots of stitches was her need. She will not be sewing heavy
duty fabrics like denim, heavy costume or outerwear items like coats, or
large things like curtains. For occasional light weight dress making
(blouses, skirts, whatever), it is good to go for several years. Nice
solid little machine. I did a full work-up on it before handing over.
It's worth looking at, but may be out of your budget, if that is only
$200.

If you are at all capable of lifting a heavier metal machine, want to
make LOTS (say a garment per week or more - I sometimes make more than
one garment per day!), then look at the older machines. Something like
the Viscount 2000 on my web site, or the machines Irene mentions will do
you very well indeed. That Viscount cost me £70 used several years ago,
and would now sell for under £40, despite being capable of sewing a far
better stitch than the new modern light weight cheapo-crap. For new
light weight machines, look at that little Singer, look at the £200
Janomes (NOT their very cheapest - next level up!), as I hear good
things of them, and avoid anything put together in Iran (some of the
Silver/Viscount machines). My dealer had to send a whole lot back as
they were ALL faulty! They are trying hard, but quality control is very
poor. The Brazilian made Singers seem to be OK. Machines made in Korea
and Taiwan seem to have more consistent quality than anything other than
the TOTL machines from the Big Names.

--
Kate XXXXXX R.C.T.Q Madame Chef des Trolls
Lady Catherine, Wardrobe Mistress of the Chocolate Buttons
http://www.diceyhome.free-online.co.uk
Click on Kate's Pages and explore!

In article , Sarah of uttered

If that's your budget, I recommend looking at 30-40 year old Singers.
Specifically the 401 and 401A. Solid machine, great straight stitch,
and many useful decorative and utility stitches.

Or similar vintage Pfaff or Husqvarner
--
AJH
no email address supplied

Yes I *read* your message (no need to be rude). I came for advice
knowing absolutely nothing about machines, or sewing for that matter,
and will look for some repair shops in my area. I'm not looking to
start sewing like a madwoman (it will probably take me a month to get
my first project done), only as a hobby since I work all week. Thanks
for all of the advice everyone! I'll post back once I've gotten my
machine and let you all know what I end up with.

"violetaria" wrote:

Yes I *read* your message (no need to be rude).

I wan't being rude, I was just wondering, since the first thing I said
was "don't buy a cheap machine from a discount store", and you came
back with two cheap machines from a discount store.



--
Jenn Ridley :

"Jenn Ridley"

I wan't being rude, I was just wondering, since the first thing I
said
was "don't buy a cheap machine from a discount store", and you came
back with two cheap machines from a discount store.

Someone has got to defend the cheap discount store machine so it might
as
well be me. I bought a Brother for $159 at Walmart and see no reason
why a
beginner (as I was/am) would be turned off by it. The only reason it
was
that expensive was because of the one step buttonhole feature that I
wanted.

I have since bought a Singer 66 1912 vintage and a Singer 15/13 clone
vintage '55 on Ebay for $25 and $20 respectively. Neither worked when
received but I had fun getting them to work.

For straight stitching, the Commodore (clone) is a treasure and the
Brother
sits on the floor waiting to be needed for zig zaging or button holes.
If I
was not an engineer and fascinated by machines, I would be perfectly
happy
with the Brother and really think bashing these machines does a
dis-service
to beginners on a budget.

There may have been a time or there may be bad machines out there but
catagorically trashing all of them without firsthand knowledge of every
specific machine is simply not fair. The Brother is a nice sewing
machine
with nothing inherently wrong with it.

As a point of interest, my wife's Singer Touch and Sew has cheezy gears
that
have been replaced several times and the reason we switched to the
Brother
after the last failure. So there is a lot more to all this than the
purchase price.

js


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