I have had three Janomes and really love them. This is just something to think about. Several of my friends have recently purchased Kenmores to use for a second machine to carry to classes. Janome makes Kenmore as I understand. They LOVE them and the price was very reasonable. One of my friends has almost exclusively been using the Kenmore because it is so user friendly etc. The hard part is finding a Sears store which still carries sewing machines so you can try the various models. Donna