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What is a good sewing & embroidery machine for a beginner?

November 11th, 2012 Leave a comment Go to comments

I would also like to know what embroidery software I can use for different sewing machines as well.
Well, I do not want to spend over $1000.00. My husband might have a heart attack if he knew that I said that, but I really want a good one that will sew and embroider.
It is so hard for me to choose a Best Answer because you have all been so helpful.

I have the Brother 270d. It is a little work horse. It does bother embroidery and sewing. It comes with a set of built in designs, including some Disney patterns. You will want to get the PE Basic so you can embroidery patterns that you download offline. You can find some sites with nice free ones – they are samples to entice you to buy their sets. I really like www.bunnycup.com (sorry for the tangent).

You do not need embroidery software to use the Brother 270d. You can begin embroidering and sewing right away.

You will want to get other necessities (stabilizer, thread, and maybe some more needles). The machine comes with a set of needles to get you going though.

The types of stabilizer and thread you use does not matter, though some are easier to work with than others. Do not let the price shock you – I use discount coupons from Jo Ann’s and Hobby Lobby to get mine. The spending in this department will be high initially! Again, this is why for a beginner I recommend the Brother 270d.

Costco has it on sale for $389.99 and it comes with the PE Basic. Wal-Mart sells this machine for $350. I got mine from my local Brother dealer for $500, but they threw in 1 year in store maintenance and free classes for life.

I hope this helps. True the other machines can do more, but you are paying more than double to price (and some of them do not sew). For a beginner, this is the best machine at the best price! Good luck!

  1. Toffy
    November 11th, 2012 at 20:06 | #1

    What price range are you looking into….because the vary by thousands…$$$$.
    References :

  2. farmerswife
    November 11th, 2012 at 20:40 | #2

    I would go with a Bernina, they have a variety of machines that have various capabilities, depending what you want. They are engineered wonderfully, so many capabilities, you will find them easy to use. Some Bernina models have the capability to add an embroidery module if/when you are ready for it. But, check out many different makes and actually sew on them, see what feels right for you and fits your budget.
    References :

  3. jette
    November 11th, 2012 at 21:12 | #3

    You have to know that the machine is not the only purchase. You have to buy the computer downloading device and other embroidery cards. Then there are the designs that aren’t all free. Some are really expensive but most are reasonable
    References :

  4. Deb
    November 11th, 2012 at 21:43 | #4

    i do have to agree that bernina is a great machine. i’m afraid with your budget you might be better off with a brother. they are very easy to use. i have a ult2002d and still haven’t read all the owners manual. i’ve heard good things about the brother that wal-mart sells. it has a 5 x 7 embroidery field which is important. you might think a 4 x 4 is large enough but i’m sure you will want a larger field pretty quick. if you go with a brother machine you can get the ped-basic to transfer designs from your computer to your embroidery machine. it is somewhere around $130. that will be a good place to start. you will want to get comfortable before you get into digitizing. when you are ready to at least start modifying your designs you will want to look at http://www.embird.com the software is easy to use, there are many tutorials online for it and you can coustomize it when you are ready. i belong to many yahoo groups and the people there are sooooo helpful. go to http://www.yahoogroups.com and do a search for machine emboidery. if you would like for me to recommend a few groups to get you started just e-mail me from my profile. i would like to share a couple of my favorite emboidery sites with you.
    this one has a sale every week where she offers 10 of her collections for $3.00 each. she is one of the pioneers in digitizing and her work is beautiful.
    http://www.astitchahalf.com/index.html
    this one give away 49 free designs per day. the membership to their site is also very reasonable and you have a very wide selection of designs to chose from.
    http://www.designsbysick.com/amember/go.php?r=5647&i=l0">Designs by SiCK Embroidery Library

    good luck and as i said before please feel free to e-mail me from my profile.
    References :

  5. agm
    November 11th, 2012 at 21:52 | #5

    I have only ever had Bernina and Elna machines. I know that the Brother is a very good machine as well, and from what I have heard very good value for money. You need to consider all the other things that you may require. Some machines can connect directly with your computer so that you don’t need converters and special software etc. There is a very good website http://www.dekatzenembroidery.co.za who have an excellent tips page and also have a list of what embroidery formats are used by which machines. It also has a section on what questions to ask when you buy a machine. Remember that the cheapest is not always the best, as I know from experience being caught out by all the extras that I needed to purchase afterwards. The Artista range by Bernina are embroidery and sewing machine combo’s. I know that all the Husqvarna machines are also combo machines, but they are really expensive (although I am dying to get one for myself lol!) Good luck!
    References :

  6. Evelyn I
    November 11th, 2012 at 22:40 | #6

    go to a store that sells Bernina machines. the salespeople are usually really nice and can help you choose a machine to meet your needs. they also offer classes (at no cost to you if you buy your machine from them) in my area. They have machines in all price ranges.
    References :

  7. pumbla
    November 11th, 2012 at 23:05 | #7

    I have the Brother 270d. It is a little work horse. It does bother embroidery and sewing. It comes with a set of built in designs, including some Disney patterns. You will want to get the PE Basic so you can embroidery patterns that you download offline. You can find some sites with nice free ones – they are samples to entice you to buy their sets. I really like http://www.bunnycup.com (sorry for the tangent).

    You do not need embroidery software to use the Brother 270d. You can begin embroidering and sewing right away.

    You will want to get other necessities (stabilizer, thread, and maybe some more needles). The machine comes with a set of needles to get you going though.

    The types of stabilizer and thread you use does not matter, though some are easier to work with than others. Do not let the price shock you – I use discount coupons from Jo Ann’s and Hobby Lobby to get mine. The spending in this department will be high initially! Again, this is why for a beginner I recommend the Brother 270d.

    Costco has it on sale for $389.99 and it comes with the PE Basic. Wal-Mart sells this machine for $350. I got mine from my local Brother dealer for $500, but they threw in 1 year in store maintenance and free classes for life.

    I hope this helps. True the other machines can do more, but you are paying more than double to price (and some of them do not sew). For a beginner, this is the best machine at the best price! Good luck!
    References :

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