Lightweight sewing machine

twopenny

Is there such a thing?

My sewing machine is an old and much loved Singer from the 30s with hand crank and set in a table.
I'm old and injured plus now in a small bungalow so every inch counts plus I only need to do straight line stitching and that's very little.

I've seen some random ones in charity shops but they are still heavy and no idea if they will work efficiently.
I'd like a small one I can keep in store until I need it but never needed to know about evolving types so hoping for some help and experience.

Also where is a likely place to buy one please 🥺 

Brie

@Florenceem
you seem to know about sewing machines.  any advice available here??

Rodders53

Pop along to a John Lewis - they have machines on display and maybe even on demo?

https://www.johnlewis.com/browse/sport-leisure/haberdashery/sewing-machines/_/N-enx?

Lightweight machines will only do lighter weight material so if wanting to sew heavy weight fabrics you may need to look for a more robust machine...

Lightest seem to be around the 6 kg (13 lb) mark, six bags of sugar, 4 bags of flour.  (Or a bucket with 6 litres of water in).

twopenny

Sheesh Rodders, I may have to stick to hand sewing 🪡 
But thanks for the comparison in a way I can relate to.

I wasn't planning on stitching any heavy stuff but you know that as soon as you say that you will want to.

It may be worth me tacking stuff and taking it to one of our repair cafes for stitching. But I'm not overly patient these days.
I did that once and it was great having someone fight with a tricky seam while I had tea and cake 🍰 

(Sorry about all the emojis, I've only just got a tablet that does them and I'm still playing.)

DullGreyGuy

twopenny said:

Sheesh Rodders, I may have to stick to hand sewing 🪡 
But thanks for the comparison in a way I can relate to.

I wasn't planning on stitching any heavy stuff but you know that as soon as you say that you will want to.

It may be worth me tacking stuff and taking it to one of our repair cafes for stitching. But I'm not overly patient these days.
I did that once and it was great having someone fight with a tricky seam while I had tea and cake 🍰 

(Sorry about all the emojis, I've only just got a tablet that does them and I'm still playing.)

6kg is about the minimum for a proper sewing machine from a reasonable brand. 

There are "mini-sewing machines" like https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/hobbycraft-12s-sewing-machine/6670161000.html which are considerably lighter, the linked one is just 2kg, but a fair few corners have been cut to get them down to the weight and price point. The reviews say it all really but even if you get a good one out the box I wouldnt expect it to last a long time (or at least not functioning well for a long time)

button_box

Not sure if this handheld machine would be good or not. Maybe someone on this Forum has experience of it.https://www.argos.co.uk/product/2203984

It is for a JML handheld  Magic stitch, £7.00. Varying reviews online! It is battery powered, certainly light weight and won't take up much room. Limited use I would think.

Someone gave my Mum a hand stictcher a few years ago which was not powered but her hands were too arthritic to use it. It would do straight line stitching for small repairs.

twopenny

Thank you for the idea Button box. I'd forgotten about those.
It might be a contender for mending. Would be quick.
I'm not sure I could keep it straight for curtains and pillow cases and the like 

Saw some of the current machines in a sewing shop and they have now got even bigger and more complex.
I gave the base and case away for my old one when I put it in a table. If only we could see into the future so we didn't do this 😐

PipneyJane

As well as not being able to handle heavy-weight fabrics - even denim can be a problem - lightweight sewing machines tend to bounce around a lot more, which may cause its own problems.

Since you already house a sewing machine that's built into a table, may I suggest replacing it with a drop fronted desk and housing a regular machine inside it?  That's what I did.  When I wanted to sew, I'd pull the top drawers out part-way - for extra support - and pull my sewing machine forwards; finished sewing, pushed everything back.  (I got mine at iKEA.)

HTH

- Pip

twopenny

That sounds like a great idea.
Only problem is I'm in a tiny bungalow and space at a premium. 
But between this thread and searching it looks like I'm going to be hand sewing. I used to love that in my youth but more impatient now 😊

Savvy_Sue

I know it won't fix everything, but iron on tape is marvellous stuff for hemming.