"Hi, I'm new, what machine should I buy?"

A fact of life on sewing forums is that at least once a week a newbie will stop in and ask That Question. Faced with three classes of machines (sewing, serger, coverstitch), a dozen families (Janome, Singer, Bernina, etc) and a million individual species their eyes glaze over and they cry out, "Which one??"

Inevitably in a single post. Their first one. Some even give a wish list, hoping desperately for someone to say "here, here is your machine."

It doesn't work, though. First off, the constraints are often a bit too high. You want a fantastic, reliable, user-friendly machine that can handle leather and all for less than $100? So would I, kid. So would I. But even when the asker is within reasonable bounds it's just not an answerable question. So many variables are in place, from what dealers are near-by, how good each dealer is, what machines do they have, and how has that changed since the sewing experts you're asking has last gone in all affect the advice. And even if askee has every machine available to them at a Mall of America's worth of fantastic dealerships then, even with all that open to them, there's still no easy answer.

Just like with cars, each person has a machine personality and a machine need. That's why there's minivans, SUVs, neons, corvettes, and miatas - because we're not a nation that would all be happy with just a civic. Some are, of course, but others (*cough* me) love our more excentric vehicles. In the same way not every beginning sew-er will be happy with this model Kenmore or that model Bernette. I finally passed on my own Bernette 55 because it annoyed me - so much plastic, so many little things I didn't like about it. My friend, it's new owner, absolutely adores every bit that frustrated me. Go figure. At the same time she thinks my metal beasts, the twin Rocketeers (I've decided to keep them both, btw, they're very happy sisters), are rather ugly and overpowered. And heavy. Ok, I agree on that last point. But they're perfect for me, everything I want in a machine. And so far from what another stitcher would. So please understand if, when you ask what machine you should get, I can't give you a straight answer. There simply isn't one ... there's simply no other way to find Your One then to dive on in and test drive as many as you can to find out your own machine personality and then finding the one that fits. Knowing that if this isn't The One then no worries, another will show up. Because that's the second truth of sewing machines - once you have two a third will show up, then a fourth. Like cats. :)

So what machines do you have and how do they fit your personality? What 'type' are you? I'm an in-control, solid metal, slightly steampunk girl and my babies follow that. :) What are you?

If it's not one thing...

I had this grand idea of whipping up a bunch of felt coasters (among other things) and opening a little shop on Etsy. Good way to make a few extra dollars (very much needed this semester) while keeping the flexible schedule I very much need. No problem, right?

Got the felt, got the thread, practiced a bit...

Realized in practice that, of my two machines, only the Bernette can do this. My viking's pressure foot is non-adjustable and stretches out the felt too much as it sews. That's ok, the Bernette needs to earn it's keep anyway.

It doesn't agree.

To get those nice, thick lines I need a size 3 zig-zag. Fine, the Bernette goes up to 5. But therein lies the problem. It not only goes up to 5, it really, really, REALLY wants to sew 5s. And only 5s. I set to 3, start sewing and suddenly the dial spins and we're at 5. Stop, reset to 3, try again... dial spins and we're back to huge zags. Arg!

Deep breaths. See this as an opportunity ... an opportunity to pull apart the dratted thing and see how it works on the inside. I like pulling things apart and seeing how they work inside. This is good.

Whoever designed the Bernette shell does not agree. Their previous employment? Puzzle boxes. The sort where you push here to slide this lever which opens that hatch... it's the only explination for the shell design.

A half-hour later (!!!) I finally get the back off. Woot. Look inside. See this:



See also that there's no way to tighten from this angle. And the front panel is NOT coming off without doing far more dismataling of internal parts than I'm comfortable with. Seriously, there are far better places to put the screws than where they did. It's a plot. An evil plot.

I did try to delay the inevitable by attempting to jury-rig the dial with tape and a rubber band for traction. It didn't work. No duct tape in the apartment so can't try that. Not sure what else to try.

Anyway, posted problem on PR and hoping that the machine geniuses will have an idea. Sigh. Until then the machine's in pieces, the sewing on hold, and I'm out of excuses to put off some research and reading. Ick.