S F Seamsters

does anyone own a janome magnolia sewing machine?

I am a beginner who wants to learn the basic of clothing construction and some mending…my choices so far are the viking emerald 116, the janome magnolia and the kenmore 16221? Any suggestions out there…

I’m a Viking person myself, but Janomes are good machines, with lots of features per dollar. Some of the Kenmores are Janomes in disguise.

Have you test sewn on any of these machines? That’s the first big thing to try. Bring some truly miserable to sew fabrics like cheap cotton jersey and silky polyester as well as some nice wool, cotton twill or denim, and anything else you’d like to try. Walmart often has suitably difficult fabrics over on the $1 table, and the ladies in the fabric department often sew, so can help you pull out some good test fabrics.

I’d also send you to the sewing machine review section of patternreview: http://sewing.patternreview.com/SewingMachine/Reviews You may need to sign up for the free membership to read older reviews — I have had no problems with my membership in the several years I’ve been a member.

I really urge you to go shopping in a real sewing machine shop, and compare a number of different models, including those that are a few hundred up from where you are now. I’m NOT saying these are bad machines, but you need to know what good stitching looks like and how easy a machine can make things for you. You also need to try some of the adjustments that are not necessarily found on cheaper machines, like presser foot pressure. I’m not trying to upsell you, I just don’t want to see you frustrated, and since I don’t know these machines and sewed for many years on one that frustrated the daylights out of me, I’d like to see you skip that step.

The other reasons I’d like to see you try machines in a sewing machine store (typically a sew ‘n’ vac) are that you should get a decent demonstration of the abilities of each machine, you may learn some tricks while they’re being demonstrated (the slickest
waistband elastic application I’ve ever learned came from a lady demonstrating a machine), and they might just have a much better machine that they’ve taken in on trade, and would be in your price range. Oh, and sewing machine stores typically offer classes, including basic how to use your machine classes for free, and pay for it classes for special projects.

What you absolutely *need* to sew garments is a good straight stitch, a decent zigzag and a buttonhole method that doesn’t drive you bonkers. The other fancy stitches that many machines are crowded with are not needed for basic sewing, and rarely used by most folks, in my experience.

Two other suggestions:

http://www.cet.com/~pennys/faq/smfaq.htm

and Carol Ahles’ book Fine Machine Sewing, which you can probably find at the public library. Pay special attention to the first chapters on thread, needles, cleaning your machine, and on the last sections on choosing a machine. Pick it up again later when you need to do a machine blindhem. Carol’s a good teacher, and her work is impeccable, and the techniques are not all that difficult. (Yes, I know her; I sometimes help out in her booth at sewing shows; no, I don’t have any interest in her company.)

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