I'd say go for it. Handmade is neat, anything hand made is expensive nowadays. And as for lasting, think on how long some old clothing and quilts have lasted over the years. Some from the early 1800s, well before sewing machines, much more from the 20s, some of the hand made laces and clothing made by nuns in convents in France were unbelievably expensive, but almost unavailable now.
I have a book of pictures of ladies in clothes from the early 1830s, from the time cameras were developed. Of course these clothes were hand made by their seamstresses, since sewing machines weren't on the scene yet. Lots of these clothes are still worthy of seeing, now on display in museums, here and in other countries.
That said, I'll have to admit that I would get very little finished without my two machines, a fairly new cheapie Brother and an old but not too old Singer.