Well, thank you all for your kind words of welcome. It sounds like y'all are accepting of new folks who don't know a darn thing about quilting - and that would be me!!
I took a few pics of my very first day (yesterday) getting to know my Bernina 350PE. What I did, was to just very methodically read through the user's guide/instruction manual until I felt confident enough to "break it out of the box" and get sewing. After I taught myself how to wind a bobbin, insert a bobbin case into the machine, thread the upper thread spool, and thread the needle I played around with some random programs.
The results: well, I was blown away! Not only was I able to quickly understand how to program built-in stitch patterns with ease, but I also figured out how to use the memory to program alphabetical text. Way fun - and way cool for a "newbie" like me - to experience some success, instead of "epic failure" on my first venture!
Just a few simple experiments with what my Bernina can do - and how to use the machine - and I felt the confidence which will definitely get me "hooked" on my pursuit of learning how to quilt. Way, way fun! I am very happy that my wife surprised me with my new sewing machine. (PS....she is a knitter - has not used a sewing machine, nor had an interest, since she was a kid in grade school. Although she and her sisters are awesome knitters in their own right, maybe I will finally have something in the crafts department I can do alongside/complimentary with their work!)
Take care.
Adam
[ATTACH=CONFIG]472245[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]472246[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]472247[/ATTACH]