faigin@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Daniel P Faigin) (10/27/85)
[I am posting this article for my wife, who works for a company
that is not connected to USENET. They know not what they miss]
Okay, ladies and germs -- THE GREAT SEWING MACHINE ROUND-UP
Having used a variety of sewing machines in my life -- a quick
roundup:
1) Before buying a machine, assess your needs(Problem Definition)
* What kind of sewing will you be doing?
a) mending on woven cottons/blends
b) simple patterns
c) suits or "Vogue" stuff
d) knits and woolens
e) crafts
f) light-weight fabrics (tricot, batiste, etc)
* How much will you be sewing?
a) very occasionally
b) some
c) lots
* How must are you willing to spend?
2) Picking a machine:
* If you are going to do simple stuff on "easy" fabrics
(medium weight woven) *any* machine will work okay if you
are willing to play with it a little and reset tensions.
* On Singers -- any Singer is fine as long as the head
enclosure is painted *black* (e.g., the *old* ones).
* Viking makes a basic model - the 100 - for a couple
hundred bucks, and it is a good, sturdy basic machine.
* Kenmores - I have one, top of the line, circa 1980. I
have one comment -- Yecch! After ~100 hours on a Viking
this summary, I don't even want to take the d*mn Kenmore
out of its case!
* Elna, Pfaff, Bernina, Viking: All good machines, in
several price ranges. I have friends who swear by each
brand.
3) Buying your machine:
* Bring samples of things you intend to sew, and get on the
machine *yourself*. (My samples will range from batiste
to denim). See how easy it is to set up each fabric.
* Thread the machine yourself. Can you do it?
* Free-arms are invaluable. Even the cheapies have them
today. Get one.
* The more you will use your machine, the more you should
be willing to spend.
* The more complex your sewing, and the more difficult the
fabrics you intend to use, the more money you should be
prepared to spend for your machine. Don't ruin $25/yd
woolens, $10 Vogue patterns, and countless hours on a
cheap machine. If you intend to seq cuteriere (sp?), by a
*good* machine.
* Remember -- You gets what you pays for!
Karen M. Davis (on the account of Daniel Faigin)
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