First of all – a short note: this publication is written back in the year 2015 and the brands and models have not been updated with the current ones.
There are a lot of sewing machine brands out on the market. The first sewing machine that I used back in 2007th and before that was the brand Lucznik. It was indeed long ago.
When I had to choose my new hobby sewing machine back in 2009th, I chose Janome. I bought it with additional foot for zippers, for buttonholes and a free motion foot for quilting. One of the benefits of this model was that it had a button for positioning the needle in down position, which was very important for me. Because it is convenient and because it saves time. Other than that – I sometimes prefer the manual rather than the electronic options for changing the stitch and the stitch settings. But this one is convenient as well.
I do not have and have not ordered or used the additional settings for a bigger working table area, which is available for some sewing machines and looks useful and convenient.
I used this sewing machine around two years for everything – from patchwork quilts to rag dolls. And we did have a small local shop, so I used it constantly for many hours a day.
Here are the factors that I considered when I chose this particular machine:
– I bought it from a local shop (in Bulgaria)(one of the biggest companies here that offers sewing machines тях), I wouldn’t buy such specific item from a shopping center that is not specialized in sewing machines. The reason for always choosing a specialized shop for buying the sewing equipment is that they usually have a service for further servicing the equipment. And usually sewing machines need servicing from time to time. It is always better to have someone that knows better how to service them.
– I needed a machine that have a special decorative stitch that I was going to use for textile appliques and this machine has beautiful decorative stitches. The specific one that I liked was number 28 of my Janome IT1030. There are usually too many types of stitches that I do not use, but I do look for some beautiful decorative stitches. I also use the zig-zag stitch for finishing some areas instead of overlog.
– this machine has a button (easy to use) for easy auto-lock stitch feature, up and down needle button. The new versions also have the cutting thread button.
– the electronic display was easy to use and intuitive
– the machine looked stable
– before choosing I also checked youtube videos with reviews of people trying and working with the machine. It is always helpful.
And this is how so many years ago I chose this one:
The gifts below include a small manual sewing machines (I had the same when I was little) that were gifts for the blog readeds here in Bulgaria. The gifts also include materials for creating textile candy decorations.
Below are instructions of how to prepare similar do-it-yourself sets:
1. Prepare the boxes with labels showing what is inside. The combination of colorful paper label together with eco brown box usually look very well. I also prepared the instrucitons for how to make those textile candies decoration: тук.
2. I printed the prepared instructions of how to make those textile candies and put them in the box.
3. In each box I added:
– one manual sewing machine as a gift
– fabric for around 10 textile candies
– buttons, lace and ribbons for decoration
– silicone filling for the candies
– the step-by-step instructions of how to make them
And I decorated the boxes with ribbon.
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I hope the information was helpful 🙂