Sewing Machines for Beginners

Dear users, dear authors,
Which sewing machines are (not) suitable for beginners?

For a beginner, a simple, smaller machine with a few essential stitches like zigzag and buttonhole is enough—you really don’t need anything more. I myself sewed with a simple machine like that for well over 10 years and was able to make everything I wanted to sew on it. My “Moggele,” as I called it, even managed to sew a thick winter reversible coat made of pure wool and loden back then. :-)
The more technical features and who knows what else a machine has—they’re usually hardly ever used, or only very rarely. I see it with my own machine: my Pfaff Expression 3.2 has over 200 stitches. I’ve had it for 10 years now, and I’m still far from using—let alone trying out—everything the machine can do, simply because I don’t need it. A lot of people also buy all kinds of extra presser feet—in my opinion, that’s a waste of money. With a little practice, you don’t need most of them at all; you can do everything with the standard presser foot. I do have a zipper foot, but it’s just sitting idle in the box—I haven’t used it in years. It works just fine without it, since you can adjust the needle position on most sewing machines anyway, so I don’t bother with the zipper foot. The only foot I actually use is the blind stitch foot for hemming pants.
It always depends on what I want to sew, and then I choose a machine accordingly.

Best regards, Inge

Hi everyone,
it’s good to know that even a machine that will probably only cost a few hundred euros will do the trick. Starting next week, we’ll have painters in the house, and my sewing room will be renovated as well. I’ve been planning for a while now to buy a new sewing machine to use there. Some posts here—especially from Inge—have inspired me to take up sewing again. I learned how to sew in school more than 50 years ago, and I’m curious to see how much I still remember and how much I’ve forgotten—I used to be able to sew in zippers, too.
Thanks

Woolly regards
Irene

Irene, here’s one more tip, if possible and if you have the chance: test-sew the machine. It’s not a must, but I always say to test-sew and listen to what the machine is telling you. If you do that, you’ll be on the safe side, even with inexpensive machines.

Best regards, Inge

Thanks for the helpful tip. I’ll do that if possible.
Warm regards
Irene