Our friend Joan would like an embroidery machine comparison.

She has been busy looking at quilting machines and has visited several dealers and has done her homework. She was introduced to embroidery machines along the way and before making a final decision she would like a comparison of the different types of embroidery machines that would be suitable for a quilter.

J:   Linda, I’ve been to a couple of dealers’ stores looking at quilting machines, and while I was there they showed me some home embroidery machines.

I’ve never seen a home embroidery machine and I can’t imagine that it would be useful for quilting although I was told they were quite popular. What do you think? Can you give me a comparison of machines that would be suitable for a quilter?

let’s get creative

L:   Joan, lots of women are discovering creative ways to use embroidery machine designs on their quilts, both traditional quilts and art quilts. Machine embroidery is also used a lot on garments, particularly jeans, jackets and dresses, as well as children’s clothing.

J:   The machine I saw looked a little different from a normal sewing machine and somewhat complicated.

L:   Joan, a home embroidery machine is really not all that complicated. It does have a learning curve but if you have a little knowledge of computers and their filing system, then it is a fairly simple transition to understand and embroidery machine.

Also when you buy an embroidery machine from your local dealer, they normally offer lessons so that you understand how to use the machine. So if you are thinking of buying an embroidery machine, here are some things to consider.

consider this

There are two main types of home embroidery machines and I’ve listed a comparison of the main pros and cons for you:

EMBROIDERY ONLY MACHINE

• Pro: Because embroidery is all it does, this allows you to sew on your quilting machine at the same time you are using the embroidery machine.
• Con: Space – having two machines, one for quilting and one for embroidery, takes up more space than a single machine.

COMBO EMBROIDERY AND SEWING MACHINE

• Pro: If space is an issue, then a combo embroidery and sewing machine would be the way to go.
• Con: A combo embroidery/sewing machine will not offer the special features of a quilting machine unless you are prepared to spend a lot of money.

decisions

So now you have a comparison to work with, you need to make a decision about what’s important in an embroidery machine:

• space saving with a combo embroidery and sewing machine
• or the benefits of having two machines – a quilting machine and an embroidery machine

Also the more expensive machines tend to have many great additional features and some top-of-the-line machines have features of a quilting machine as well as offering larger hoop sizes. So if money is not an issue, you could research embroidery machines further and look into it.

J:  Thanks Linda, that explains a lot however I don’t think I’m quite ready to go in that direction. Maybe later.

I do have another question though about small sewing machines. I’ve heard that they are a great machine for a quilter. Can you elaborate on that.