Hello!!!
I’m in California, and I’m very very new to everything. After deciding to teach myself to quilt (my local sewing shops aren’t offering any classes until September, and I want to get going NOW), I’ve been reading as much as I can online and watching videos etc. So glad to have found this board!
I bought a Janome Magnolia 7318 last month and have been setting up a sewing room. I’ve laid in a lot of basic supplies, including two extra Janome presser feet – a walking foot, and the clear presser foot with 2 metal flanges for ¼” and stitch-in-the-ditch seaming. My sweet husband helped me make a sewing table so my machine sits flush with the table top (an IKEA hack idea I found online).
I bought a quilt kit (60” x 60”), and have made it through the cutting, sewing, backing, sandwiching/pin basting stages without much trouble (yay – it’s so relaxing and fun!). I will mark it tonight, and will hopefully get it quilted this weekend.
I think I’m going to like quilting a lot. So much so that I’m already thinking ahead about upgrading to a better quilting machine. I really am impressed with my little Janome – so easy and intuitive to use, nice selection of included feet, nice stitches, etc. But I can see how helpful it would be to have some additional features like up/down needle positioning, a knee lifter bar, a start/stop button in addition to pedal control, and a decently-sized throat/harp. Adjustable presser foot pressure might be nice too. I don’t need lots of fancy stitches – heck, I think I’d be okay with just straight and zig-zag! Ideally I’d like a mechanical machine, and I’m quite happy to wait patiently for the right used / refurbished machine to appear. I’ve been researching about Berninas and Janomes, and though I’m really torn between the two, I’m kind of drawn to the Janome models because I really do like Janome’s up-top bobbin placement and because they are generally less pricey. But I’m having a hard time identifying a non-computerized model in either brand with the features I’m looking for. If anyone wants to suggest a good step-up model for me (older or current models) and/or trustworthy sources for such machines, I’m all ears.
Thanks for everything I’ve learned here already.