Originally Posted by
Notwendy
This might seem off the wall but have you considered looking on craigslist or similar for an older machine in good working order (i.e. Won't need any real service and has been in recent use)? I found three heavy duty Kenmores from the 60s in cabinets with plenty of extras and haven't paid more than $80 (2 were under $50).
That's what I was thinking. I learned to sew on an old Singer Genie 353 (from the early 70's) and it was/is great. Only does straight, zigzag & darning stitch, but it does them really well, and Singer parts are relatively cheap and easily attainable. It had been sitting in my mother's closet pretty much since the day she bought it so it needed a tune-up, but after that I was good to go ... pillows, clothes, home dec, quilting ... it pretty much does everything. I even sewed a custom vinyl shower curtain on it & turned jeans into jean shorts. It's hard to even find such a versatile machine like that these days unless you're willing to spend quite a fortune.