Oooops, and as a footnote, I just checked SewingMachinesPlus and the Necchi Travel Mate TM8 is selling for $218 and only weighs 12 pounds.

I know absolutely nothing about this machine, except that it seems to be the one that Singer decided to put the true Pfaff IDT onto, which Singer calls "IEF". It's cute, it's called a "featherweight" and is used to retail for $600 or so, now $330 plus a $10 off coupon. I'm almost intrigued enough to consider getting one, being a Pfafffie for 30 years. People have said that it's the same as the Pfaff Passport.

No affil, of course, with Amazon, although I do wish I had some stock ;-). https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1

I recently bought a Brother machine at Walmart as a gift for a new young sewer, she'll be 11 next month. I've tested the machine and found it to be easy to use and has sufficient stitch choices for clothing and quilting. The machine was under 200 dollars and not overly heavy. I reviewed all the suggested machines when I asked a similar question last month and for the money, this one won out :)

I was going to spend time with great grands and they lived in North Pole, Alaska. I ordered a Brother for under 200. on line from walmart and had it shipped to their home. Amazon would do the same!!!! Have fun.

I have a Singer Heavy Duty that I bought at Walmart a few years ago. It was $100 regular price. I used it everyday and it is still going super great. It is the only working sewing machine I have and I made many, many, many quilts on it. Not fancy but just keeps stitching!

Brother is my choice. If you have access to dealer, now is the time to look at used machines. Brother and Bernina (and possibly Babylock) have just come out with their new machines so people are trading in. The tech should have gone through any trade ins to make sure they are in good shape. More bang for your buck.

And Craigslist and other on line sources can be very good for finding bargains.

I don't have that particular Brother, but have several that I use frequently. One in the house, one in the garage, and one at my sisters in NJ. Two are mechanical, very inexpensive.

I don't think you can go wrong with an inexpensive Brother machine for a beginning sewer.

Brother sewing machines have excellent user instruction manuals, and they are quality machines, especially for their price. If you are leaving the machine with your son and DIL, the user manual will make a big difference when the machine is used without your direct guidance. In my opinion, that is an important factor when buying a machine for a novice sewer.

The Brother Sewing and Quilting machine at WalMart for $199 is a nice machine. It comes with the 1/4" foot, walking foot, extension table, needle threader, and several decorative stitches. I teach beginning quilting and over the years have recommended it to my students who need a machine. So far about 20 have purchased them and all are pleased with it.

You can't beat the old, all-metal Singers. They are simple, stitch beautifully, and are usually pretty cheap to pick up. I found two Singer 301s in nice cabinets (and a bench seat!) at estate sales. $50 for one, and the second one I didn't need but couldn't leave it for $25. I keep a featherweight at my daughter's house, but those are more pricey.