Sewing Machines

I’ve been sewing since I was eleven years old, and I started sewing on a treadle machine. So you can imagine, my dear readers, how impressed I was a couple of years later when the Home Economics teacher Mrs. Sullivan assigned me to an electric sewing machine. Wow! It could go very fast. In fact, the teacher told me to slow down.

At age twenty-two I was finally able to purchase my first sewing machine. It was a brand new slant needle Singer and it cost me $150. I loved it and sewed on it for years as we raised four children. That’s lots of pajamas and many Christmas gifts for children and relatives. Finally, I gave it to my married son and it still works just fine.

While I still owned that slant needle machine I decided I wanted a machine that zigzagged, and a friend told me exactly where to find it. She took me to a used Singer store. I bought the machine for $100 and began zigzagging every opportunity I had. The machine was used and worked very well. I used it for years and then gave that to my daughter and it still works.

Time to buy another machine. I walked into a dealer of Bernina sewing machines. The salesperson told me I could buy a $1600. machine for $1000. And truth to tell, the former owner had barely used it. There is no doubt but that it was new, new. Someone had decided to buy it and then immediately bought a higher model. I took the machine home and it was great. It still works.

My point is this: if you need a sewing machine, it doesn’t have to be brand new. Save yourself several hundreds of dollars by buying a machine that is slightly used. They are tough machines and they rarely break down.

I wish I could say the same thing about other machines, but I really don’t have the experience. But as for sewing machines…shop around. Save your dollars and get a good deal. Then enjoy!