Hi there! I'm new to this forum and fairly new to quilting. I started sewing in January of this year, have completely finished one quilt (and three other quilted blankets which I would not necessarily call quilts), and have three other quilts in various states of completion. The machine I have is a Singer touch-n-sew 603e that I inherited from my grandmother. I love it because it is vintage and for sentimental reasons obviously, and it is a great machine. It is, however, a little finicky. I've found that if I use anything but a walking foot for piecing the fabric will shift. And the machine tends to get "tired" (and becomes harder to use) if I use it too much in a day. Also it's pretty hard to control the speed, especially when it gets tired like that. Additionally, I'd like to be able to try fmq at some point, and I'm not sure my current machine would allow me to do that.
What I'd like to get at some point (and what I'd like recommendations for) is a decent quality machine, non-computerized, and easy to use, that is capable of free motion quilting, hopefully for $500 or less. I'm obviously still learning, and I don't think I'll ever be a very serious quilter, so I don't want to spend a fortune on a machine if a less expensive one will do.
Thanks so much for helping me out!
