I finally fetched Bernette home yesterday.
Lad having been cajoled into the trip, I didn’t linger en route. And I deliberately avoided walking past any charity shops on the way to the sewing machine shop.
But whilst managing to avoid the temptations in other shops, I reckoned without the temptation lurking within the actual shop where Bernette was being repaired…
I blame lad. It was he who initially pointed out the prices on the sewing machines. Which launched me into an explanation of why some of them were more expensive than others.
Which made me look at them, and their fancy features. Which got my brain ticking over…
Bernette is elderly. And basic. And I use her a lot.
I don’t think she’ll last forever. Which means that eventually I will need a new machine.
If I were to invest in a new machine sooner, rather than later, Bernette could still be my back-up…
And then a temptress sales lady came over and I explained my ponderings, and her eyes shone momentarily red as she sensed a possible sale (or did I just imagine that bit?) and before I knew it she was offering me a deal and I was nodding and tucking brochures into the pocket in Bernette’s case…
If anyone owns a Husqvarna Sapphire or Opal machine, I’d love to hear from you.
The machine I’ve been offered a deal on is a Sapphire. Last one in the shop. But I’ve heard some good and some not-so-good things about them.
Fancy-dancey sewing machines are a lot of money, so I really want to get one that’s right for me, rather than the one the shop really wants to flog.
But I’m thinking that if modflowers is going to continue, and I really want it to, I need to invest in my future. So far, my only real investment has been a few bits of vintage fabric.
Well, ok, quite a lot of bits of vintage fabric…
If you have any other sewing machine recommendations, I’d also be glad to hear them. What do all you sewing mavens use? What are the features I should be looking for?
I know I don’t want a lot of embroidery stitches I’ll never use. But being able to free motion quilt (so having a decent length arm) and an automatic needle-down option would be nice.
And after all, Bernette has earned herself a bit of a rest.
I’m sure she’ll understand. ♥
Ooo! Well I’ve never owned a Viking at all, so no help there. Is the company continuing to make that model? I only ask because Pfaff redesigned their machines just a bit after I bought mine, and so when I had a problem they had to order parts from Germany because the new models no longer used the same part. (And then the first part they got was no good so I had to wait for yet another…) That may not even be an issue there, but you might want to see what other shops are asking for the same model. Maybe there’s a reason it’s the last one. It looks great though. Love all the space!
Oh, good point Erica! Yes, they are discontinuing that model, but only to update it with a touch-screen version (the one in the shop uses buttons) so I imagine most of the parts will remain the same. And it came with a 5 year warranty.
But I’m loathe to go ahead without checking what else is available. I’m thinking lifetime investment, so the discount isn’t a deal-clincher: my dad always described discounts as “a sprat to catch a mackerel”! He always did his research on big purchases and bought the best he could possibly afford and I think that’s going to be my approach too.
I’ve had a very basic Brother for about 20 years and just had it serviced for the first time – it’s been very reliable and was inexpensive to buy…
That’s kind of what I’ve got now Sarah, only mine’s a Bernina. My mum was told that Berninas are the best, but things have moved on a lot from the 1980s, and other machines may now offer more useful features.
I can’t help thinking that someone should set up a comparison site for sewing machines!
what about Which? Yes Berninas used to be the heroines of the sewing machine world…
I know how tempting it is … when my previous Husqvarna sewing machine was out of order I have changed it to the newer one – Husqvarna Viking. I am not so happy about it. It was broken almost the next day. It was ‘repaired’ but I still have issues. I am now looking around and I think I will buy either Bernina or Pfaff. But first I have to earn some money … they are so expencive.
What model of Husqvarna Viking do you have and how long have you had it? What sort of problems does it give you? I’d be really interested -and grateful – to know more.
I have Husqvarna Viking Emerald 203 – it is not so sophisticated as Sapphire … I have issue with thread tention which lead to looping. You may read more here – http://wp.me/p2yS5n-nb and here – http://wp.me/p2yS5n-Io. Check comments for more inforamtions. You may as well check the Pattern Review website – http://sewing.patternreview.com/, where yo may find reviews of sewing machines – very handy 🙂
SUCCESS 🙂
Thank you! I will check out those links forthwith!
🙂
I have a Husqvarna Lily – I’ve never had any problems in over 10 years!
My only gripe would be how fiddly putting the walking foot on is!!
Update: I have just phoned the shop and arranged a demo for tomorrow morning! I have also compiled a list of questions and done a bit of internet research on other makes and models with comparable features. The new Bernina 550QE looks great, but costs over twice as much! I’m unfamiliar with other brands…
I also found a great review site – http://www.sewinginsight.com/
The reviews are by an experienced stitcher and are unbiased, and they detail features etc. Might be useful to anyone else who finds themselves considering a new machine.
I have a viking, but it’s NOT a sapphire, or an opal BUT I definitely drooled over those machines, they are beautiful and so cpable of doing such incredible things! The one potential downside is like you said, it does a LOT of fancy things, lots of stitches (that you may, or may not use) AND I think it has several different fonts? Even if you aren’t sure you’ll use some features, they’re probably nice to have just in case. For me, ultimately the price was what kept me from doing it, but if you’re getting a deal I say go for it!
I’ve recently bought a Juki and I’m really pleased with it . I have 3 Berninas that are great work horses but the sewing machine man told me that new Berninas are no longer made in Switzerland and aren’t as good quality as the older ones that were. My Juki had needle up- down option and thread cutter which my Berninas don’t have. Good luck with choosing…… It’s not an easy task!
Thank you for taking the time to comment! I’ve never really come across a Juki before. I think Nottingham is a bit lacking in sewing machine dealers. The place I’m getting the demo of the Sapphire at tomorrow is a dealer only for Husqvarna and Pfaff. I don’t think other makes are well-represented hereabouts.