My advice to new sewists is to always buy the best machine you can afford. We were at my grandsons for Thanksgiving and he brought out a boat seat he had reupholstered. I asked what he was using for a machine and he had borrowed his sister's Brother, which was not particularly expensive, and it did a fine job, however keep in mind that they have lots of plastic parts and won't take the beating forever. I have actually worn out a couple of machines and I always tell the dealer up front that I will sew ANYTHING I can get under the foot. We have upholstered cars, furniture, etc. with my machines and later bought an upholstery machine for such jobs. If light sewing is all you plan to do you may get by with a Brother for quite a while but I wouldn't buy the cheapest one. It may be better to buy a good used one that has all metal parts. Good luck with your search.