Sewing Machine Help

lenora

Hi all

I want to get my younger sister a sewing machine for christmas she's only 14 so nothing fabulous but she likes to make clothes so I want something thats not going to break down everything five minutes.

The only problem is I know absolutely nothing about sewing machines I was just looking for some advice reallly on what sort of price I should expect to pay and if there are any good features I should look out for

Any help would be appreciated, I know its still Christmas is still a month away but I want to order and and have it delivered by say a week before christmas.

Thanks
Lenora

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Argos!!! Not sure how much you want to pay but they have a good price range with Singer at 139.99 the most expensive. If you're near a John Lewis the assistants are very knowledgeable.

Lifesaver

Lidl have one coming up on the 28th Nov, looks really good for the price £39.99!

http://www.lidl.co.uk/gb/home.nsf/pages/c.o.20051128.p.Sewing_Machine

lenora

I was looking to keep it under £100 so the Lidl one is a good deal I suppose, but I havent had many positive experiences with Lidl or Aldi for that matter. You always have to get there at like three in the morning just to stand a chance at getting what you want.

I think I need to do some research into what all the features actually do, cos probably she doesnt need them and so the Lidl one would suffice.

Is Singer a good brand I found Toyota, Brother and Janome on the Argos website as well are any of them any good?

Thanks

Poppy9

Tesco have a selection for under £100

cc25

Cooper Sewing Machines Ltd have a very large choice, with lots of models under £100, including Brother and Toyota.

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Once upon a time when we were all wearing bustles Singer was the only make available! Seriously, Singer is an excellent brand, mine is still going strong after 40 years and does zips, buttonholes, embroidery, which are the things 2005 models do.
Argos cheapest is a Classic, which I've never heard of, at 89.99 so the Lidl machine is good value.
Personally I'd buy her an entry level model - less to go wrong with no electronics - and if she really gets into making things with it she'll find a way in a couple of years time to acquire an all singing all dancing model.
To be honest, the more technical things a machine is capable of the more things can go wrong with it and everything I use my machine for could be done on the first machine I had which was a Singer hand machine made in the 1890's!
You sound like the sister everyone should have so good luck tracking down something.

beautifulgorgeous_2

Make sure that the lidl machine is not one that only does chain stitch. Ease of doing buttonholes is important and I also like to be able to move the needle postion over for top stitching. If you can find a shop they will advise and you may be able to get a second hand bargain that someone has traded in. Our local shop also has lessons for new machine users to get the most from their new machine.