by amyvillatoro 17 Apr 2018

Hi! I am new to this forum. I am looking into investing on a embroidery machine to embroider hats,onsies,etc. Does anybody have any suggestions? I'm leaning more towards the brother Brother PE770.

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by killiecrankie 22 Apr 2018

Another place to see different brands of embroidery machines all at once ,is at a Craft show.Machine specials occur around Christmas time ,Mothers Day & at the end of the financial year ,as well as at Craft shows.
Check on the length of the warranty.
Last year I casually looked at the multi needle embroidery machines ,what put me off was that they appeared to be large & heavy.My sewing room is upstairs & we are seniors ,so how would we move it ,if it had to go for servicing.Might just get another embroidery machine ,so I could have 2 machines going at once.

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by lbrow 21 Apr 2018

Well Amy you have had just a small taste of what wonderful people are here on Cute. You have had some really good advice. Me I am a Babylock . I wish you good luck in what you choose, Stay with us and you will be a member of a large caring family that will help in more ways than you could ever imagine. What one doesn't know another will. Ms. Veronika, the owner of this site along with many others is a wonderful person and the designs are fantastic. Join us, I promise you will never regret it. Welcome to Cute!! Lillian

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by pennyhal2 20 Apr 2018

I started out with a Bernina 180 16years ago. Loved it. Two years ago, I bought the Bernina 580 and hated it! I did not spend any time at the shop actually tryng to use the machine. I just "assumed" that I'd love it as much as the older machine. I could not stand flipping though all the screens and had trouble remembering what function was on which screen. So, 6 months later I exchanged it for a Bablylock Journey. It was the perfect machine for me...but it kept having issues. In hindsight, it clearly was a lemon. So then I upgraded to the Babylock Destiny which is so easy to use and is a dream to work with. However, you are getting into serious $$$ with these high end machines.

So, decide what your budget is first and tell the store what it is upfront. Stay within your budget. Try out the machine for at least a couple of hours yourself. Don't just watch the sales person demo for you. I like the Babylock machines because they are so easy to use, and the thread cutter is to die for.

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by sdrise 18 Apr 2018

Welcome to Cute. I am a Babylock girl. I have a 10 needle Enterprise the serger Triumph and the Elissimo. They are user friendly and work horses.

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by pennifold 18 Apr 2018

Welcome Amy, I've got a Brother Quattro ll Innovis Eye 6700D (Disney characters included) with a large hoop of 30cm x20cm and it sews beautifully. I also have an Husqvarna Designer SE and LOVE it, but I agree with everyone else re comments about dealers etc. You really need to have a great mechanic on hand or close by. And also see if you can get the best deal with the largest hoop. I'm sure once you've tried a few out you'll know which one suits you. Love and blessings Chris, Newcastle, Australia.

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by stock 18 Apr 2018

I have pe770 it is very good, 5 x 7" hoop, I also have a NV800E which has a sewing area 6 x 10", there is not much difference in price, so I would recommend the 800.......wendy

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by graceandham 17 Apr 2018

Have had two Brothers and can highly recommend the product. Do buy through a (Brother) dealer who offers repairs and support (classes). It is a false savings to buy other ways, such as online. Who ya gonna call? Be aware that maintenance on a six needle is very expensive per hour, so you want a dealership that sells a lot of the brand you want, and repairs as needed. I have found Brother and Janome to be low repair. Do ask your sales people to have the repair guy show you how to clean little threads out of your machine, oil if needed, and clean out the bobbin case. Doing these things goes a long way toward eliminating repairs. Have a blast.

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by sewdeb 17 Apr 2018

I see you have received all sorts of help, so, I'll just welcome you to Cute! We're glad you're here! You're going to love your new hobby!

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by KCowden 17 Apr 2018

Love my PE770!!!

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by crafter2243 Moderator 17 Apr 2018

You have already gotten some great advise. Just want to welcome you to Cute.

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by gramsbear 17 Apr 2018

Welcome To Cute!!! I have a PE770 and it is my favorite machine, of the 3 I have... It has a usb port, which is important, because earlier machines have a Card Reader, which is more expense, but sometimes confusing. I hope you check around a bit before you commit to buy!!! Embroidery is addictive!!! Haha! hugs, Judy

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amyvillatoro by amyvillatoro 17 Apr 2018

Can I create my own designs and upload them? Have you ever tried embroidering hats? I have done several projects with vinyl so far it has turned out great. I want to take it to the next level :)

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by basketkase 17 Apr 2018

If you are going to be doing hats, just make sure the machine you pick has a great and fairly easy hat hoop so that your hats turn out great..... also when doing hats you much make sure your design is digitized for a hat, the sequence is different than on a flat garment......good luck and welcome to Cute!

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amyvillatoro by amyvillatoro 17 Apr 2018

Awesome. I am so excited to take my hobby to the next level. Any suggestions for a beginner? :)

basketkase by basketkase 18 Apr 2018

So much depends on whether you are going with a single or multi needle machine.......I have the 16 needle Melco and love it.....it has the 360 degree wide angle frame so I can basically stitch anywhere on a cap...as I mentioned previously, to get a great hat stitchout, the sequencing must be done correctly.....

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by dragonflyer 17 Apr 2018

Hi and Welcome to Cute! I agree with Spendlove...investigate all that you can...get the largest hoop sizes your budget can accommodate...make sure you get excellent dealer support...look for a demo machine from the dealer as they are greatly reduced in price...test drive all the machines you are interested in...good luck and keep us posted!

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amyvillatoro by amyvillatoro 17 Apr 2018

Awesome I am very nervous and excited.

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by spendlove Moderator 17 Apr 2018

Welcome!
Everyone will recommend their own favourite machine.
My advice would be to decide on your budget and visit a dealer who has lots of machines to see and try. Be prepared to increase your budget because you will grow out of your first machine quite quickly and it will be cheaper in the long run to buy a better one!

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amyvillatoro by amyvillatoro 17 Apr 2018

Awesome. I am very nervous to invest in a machine and not wanting it to do what I want but I am very excited to start this new hobby.

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