Brother sewing machine $90, orig $150 - any feedback from sewers out there!?!

[sewarsh]

I've been thinking about getting a sewing machine for some time now. i am a complete beginner so want an easy to use machine without too many complexities!

Any feedback??? Are Brother's good machines? Is this one in particular a good machine? Thanks!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Brother-XL2600I-25-Stitch-Free-Arm-Functions/dp/B000F7DPEQ/ref=sr_1_36?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1263743867&sr=1-36

[jerigirl]

In general Brothers get mixed reviews at best. I am not personally familiar with this machine, but in a quick google search it seems to get positive reviews. Some did say that it has difficulty with thicker/several layers of material. What types of projects do you think that you will be doing?

[sewarsh]

definately hemming pants (i'm 5'0''). would like to make felt food, puppets, etc. fix Teddy whose foot is hanging by some stuffing. eventually would love to make curtains, but who know when that will be. things like that i suppose...

[canada]

There's also a $10 magazine rebate, bringing the total to $80.

[sewarsh]

There's also a $10 magazine rebate, bringing the total to $80.


wow! thanks for pointing that out!

[Andi98989]

It's a step up from the Brother machine that I have. I love mine - very easy to use and I haven't had any issues with it. I've used it to sew all sorts of things - felt halloween costumes, curtains, hemming, etc..

[maiaann]

I'm 5'0" as well so I understand your need to hem pants! I don't have this particular machine (I have a baby lock), but IME if you're going to be hemming jeans, the most important thing is to find a machine that will stitch denim easily. Part of that is in the size of the needle, but I had an older machine that used to break needles if you stitched anything thicker than super soft cotton. Very frustrating!

[youngmommy]

Here's a link to some reviews:

http://www.consumersearch.com/search/reviews/sewing+machine

[LBW]

There are some great prices on overstock.com for Brother and Janome sewing machines. It looks like they also have the Brother that you are looking at, and it has gotten good reviews.

[brigeet]

I have that exact machine. I took beginning sewing over the summer through the city and then bought that machine for $89 from Costco.com. Then I took another sewing class using the new machine. As an entry level machine it's great. I'm 5'1 so I bought it for hemming and have no problem with hemming my jeans. I don't know how to do a blind hem for slacks. As I have gotten more into sewing projects I wish it had more decorative stitches and extras, but I'm happy enough. So far I've made a few baby blankets, nursing cover ups, tons of pillows (using the automatic button-holer, which is a nice feature) and hemmed all of my maternity jeans and pj bottoms! The only problem I have had with it is not realizing I had to clean it out (vacuum inside the base) between major projects. After that minky fabric for the baby blanket it needed a good cleaning. I'm a beginner so I'm learning as I go along. If you have any specific questions about the machine, pm me!

[sewarsh]

I have that exact machine. I took beginning sewing over the summer through the city and then bought that machine for $89 from Costco.com. Then I took another sewing class using the new machine. As an entry level machine it's great. I'm 5'1 so I bought it for hemming and have no problem with hemming my jeans. I don't know how to do a blind hem for slacks. As I have gotten more into sewing projects I wish it had more decorative stitches and extras, but I'm happy enough. So far I've made a few baby blankets, nursing cover ups, tons of pillows (using the automatic button-holer, which is a nice feature) and hemmed all of my maternity jeans and pj bottoms! The only problem I have had with it is not realizing I had to clean it out (vacuum inside the base) between major projects. After that minky fabric for the baby blanket it needed a good cleaning. I'm a beginner so I'm learning as I go along. If you have any specific questions about the machine, pm me!


thanks for the insight!

[MoeJoe]

I have that machine too (two of them, bec. I give classes) and it works okay for my purposes. Occasionally, we've had problems with the tension whenever (as pp said) the machine hadn't gone cleaned in a while after lots of projects. I find that it has to be cleaned more often than my 'real' machine. Oh- and it is not the quietest machine I've had...

But, for a basic inexpensive machine, for here and there work, it is a good buy.