Best beginner machine????
 

I am looking to buy a new machine, mostly for quilting and some crafts. I have my grandmother's older Necchi which is in ok shape but want to get MY very own first machine! I need all the necessities for a beginner (not even sure what all that is)!! I've made a few quilt tops, costumes and crafty things so I know very little, unfortunately my dear grandmother is no longer here to guide me through every stitch! I'm wanting to stay below $1500. All the online info is just confusing me more...Please HELP a girl out!!!

Newer computerized machines are not reliable like the old mechanical machines.
Be sure that you have a dealer close by to get maintenance done.
My Viking is being stubborn so Im using my old $89 Brother to sew on. The Viking was $1100.
One of the things I liked about the Viking was when you stopped sewing the foot will lift just enough to slip a piece of fabric under it. My old Brother you have to lift the lever to lift the foot.
I also love having the drop in bobbin instead of under the machine kind.
Get as large of a throat as you can. Its much easier to shove the quilt thru if you are using it to quilt a quilt.

It seems like you have done some sewing -

What is "enough" for one person, may or may not be "enough" for another person.

Way back when - before sewing machines were invented - people did lovely needlework with just a needle and thread (and fabric).

Have you gone into a sewing machine dealer yet? Try stopping by a shop or two and take some time playing with a few machines. That will help you more than anything else.

Welcome to the board. Everyone is an individual, so there really isn't a single best machine for everyone.
You can get a pretty advanced machine for the money you want to spend, so I would take it slowly. With the number of items you've made, it sounds like you are selling yourself short as to not having much experience. I would start by listing the things you wish your current machine would do: Better lighting? Self threading? Built in thread cutter? Auto Pivot/knee lift? Do you wish you had more room to stuff your project thru the machine arm? Want to do machine embroidery? What projects do you want to do in the future that you think you won't be able to accomplish with your Necchi?
If you have good sales resistance (if not bring a friend who does), take your list and go to a couple of dealers. Sometimes a machine purchase has more to do with the dealer and continuing education and support than the machine itself. If possible try different brands.
Finally, Necchi's are well built great machines. Make sure you keep it for a backup!

I've been sold on Janome machines since I sat to help someone sew on a Janome Gem Gold. It was noisy, nowhere near as quiet as the old Singer 301 straight stitch that I love to piece with, but I was favorably impressed. I decided I wanted the Gem Platinum for the needle down feature, but at that time it could only be bought from a dealer, and as most of my machines come from thrift stores, the price was a big OUCH. Since then I have picked up two of the Janome's, one given to me and one online from Shopgoodwill.com. At the price you have earmarked to spend, you could get more bells & whistles. Put some strips of fabric and thread in a quart bag and keep it in your purse or the car so that you can sew test samples when the urge strikes you. I would not tell the sales person how much you have to spend, let them work on making you a deal that you cannot refuse. For a long time Janome made the Kenmore machines and I have some of those, good machines.

Good suggestion to bring your own fabrics to test sew on.

The "sample" stuff the dealers use makes almost any stitching look good.

The vintage machines are reliable and great to have. Of course you want a new machine that is all you. I couldn't wait to start sewing on a new machine. There are so many different ones to choose from now. First the features I found I have to have on any new machine are:
Needle up/down
Needle position changeable
automatic thread cutter
knee lift
Adjustable speed control
Excellent Blanket stitch
Assortment of decorative stitches plus Fonts
Drop in bobbin

My favorite machine is a Brother pc 420 which has all these features. It cost me $250. I have Bernina, two Janomes, and a Brother 1500. I use the Brother 1500 for quilting. With your budget you can get two great machines.

Love my Brother from Wal Mart! Have had it 8 years for about $350.

I'm a Kenmore girl, they don't make them anymore but Jenome's are made by the same people. Insides are all metal, no plastics. Paid $250. for it new in 2014. I don't need a big throat because I have a HQ 16 to quilt my tops. For your budget you could get a very good machine with some whistles. Sometimes your are paying for the brand name.