SEWING MACHINE SHOPPING || What To Look For || Watch before you buy! 

This lady right here knows her stuff!👏 Some very good common sense to cut through all the flashy sales gimmicks out there when buying sewing machines.

Great video! I have 3 sewing machine and 1 serger and never thought I would have even one lol. First one I bought was a Eversewn sparrow. Great price point for me and has been a wonderful starter machine. Has spread control, great amount of stitches, button holes are a breeze and been a perfect one for me. Second one is a 401a Singer. I paid like $50 for it and it’s an amazing machine. There are no belts or plastic parts, the sound is heavenly and the stitch’s are beautiful and there is a ton of them to choose from. Down side is you better know how to sew button holes the old fashion way lol. My third one was just gifted to me when I bought my serger, and it’s the Quantum Stylist 9960. This machine sews so much differently then the other two it’s hard to explain. It has it all! My first one did not come with a cutter. it did have like this one the up/down, threader etc. I have not sewn much on it yet but I do love it to. My serger is the Brother 1034D. I think this is the most popular one out there and just lean to sew on it. I love having all the different machines because when one is in getting cleaned I can still sew, different fabrics take better to each one, I like having a modern computer one to a simple vintage work horse.

Everyone who ever buys a machine should watch this video. What a fine video, thank you. Everything you say about vintage machines is right on the money. The one caution is that sometime in the 1970's the major manufacturers like Singer started using plastic gears. So just because something is a bit older, doesn't mean there aren't key components that aren't plastic. I stand to be corrected but I believe that pretty much everything Singer made from their 500 line and before are solid steel, after the 500 line I'm not so sure. Your Kenmore 158 is a great example of one of the great machines. Solid steel components, precision engineering. A fabulous machine that you obviously know how to look after. There's no reason why that thing won't be sewing 100 years from now. Nothing with a computer in it will be. The one fault I have with the manual is that it's silent about the grease box under the hook. The hook driving gears are steel gears that are in a box full of grease. Most of these machines still have the grease that was put in at the factory 50 years ago. That grease isn't lubricating anything at this point. The manual doesn't tell anyone to unscrew the lid, clean out the old grease with something like 99% alcohol and replace the grease with new. I guess Kenmore never thought that their machines would still be sewing 50 years later, so they didn't mention it. Great advice in your video.

Hi Stephanie! My first sewing experience was sewing stamps” (grids of doted lines) on paper with my mom’s treadle machine. Must have dulled many a needle for her. I love listening to you explain things I’ve known for a long time but never bothered to put words to. And yes, while I have a new machine that makes many things easier I still have my original Singer Touch n Sew from the late ‘60s. I’m glad to hear that I’m not the only one! I found your channel while trying to figure out how to make the adjustment for a fuller bust but now I want to watch all your videos!! Great info and fun too! Your mom should be so proud! Thanks for doing this!

You are a wealth of information. I sew on a Singer Featherweight that I was gifted by my parents at age 12. Every now and then I’m tempted by the idea of a new machine largely because of newer fabric types. What I would love to learn is how to handle those fabrics with my simple straight stitch machine.

Thank you! I'm a beginner sewer and this was really informative and helpful.

squee! I just got a brand new Janome 3160 last week! It's pretty awesome. I leveled up from my $145 Kenmore that I bough new 20 years ago. I'm feeling like upgrading my machine will get me MUCH more excited about getting those unfinished projects done!

Nice video with good tips! Here's another tip. Bring the kind of fabric you like to work on with you to test the machine! I was struggling with getting a nice smooth stitch on slippery silk on my old machine when I went shopping. Would you believe that I couldn't get a 5 figure machine (Ok, it was a fancy sewing/embroidery machine) to sew silk perfectly!?!? I know the saleswoman was freaking out inside because I was ready to buy that day. But it couldn't get the tension right on fine silk. No problem with the 18 layers of denim, though. Needless to say, I had to shop another brand. So the point is, make sure the machine can do what you need it to do!

You’re so funny! Really enjoy this.

Very informative, great video. I learned something. Testing the entire machine and all its features is very important. That happened to me , the issue was fixed and works fantastic because I didn't wait too long.😊

If I recall, I think I saw that we have the same machine. I have always wondered where the presser foot pressure dial was too. I do not have a vintage machine though, so I use the walking foot a lot for my stretch fabrics. Good solid advice. Thanks.

😀