caliquocat

Mine was from Montgomery Ward, a portable. I bought it with my first paycheck. I was 18.

Michellesews

Thank you everyone! I cannot tell you how much I have enjoyed reading all your posts about your first sewing machine. I have always told my mother she created a monster when she bought me that Singer at age 12...but I would not take anything for my love of sewing....what a fantastic, diversified world we have with our loved and not-so-loved machines! Thanks again everyone!
Michelle G.
El Paso, Texas

mhansen6

I used my mother's Singer, it was the ugliest green you ever saw but worked great. Then I babysat and other odd jobs until I saved enough money to buy a Bernina. That was 40 years ago. It cost $500 at the time. That was an absolute fortune. After I got married and started having kids, I was talked into trading it in for a Viking. The biggest mistake I ever made. What a horrible machine. After just a few years I traded that machine for my Pfaff. I still have that Pfaff and it works beautifully. When my mother-in-law passed away I inherited her newer fancier Pfaff. I used that machine for 20 years before I finally litteraly blew up the motor. Smoke and all. I went out and bought a new Pfaff Creative 4.0 to replace it. This new machine and I have been having a love affair since I brought it home. I love, love the 11 inch throat, the thread cutter and many of the other features. The only problem is that this thing is a monster. Really big. It is hard to carry to classes and such.

Annya

My first sewing machine was a toy which was given to me for my 10th birthday. I don't remember much about what I made probably dolls clothes with my mothers' help.

drgranny

Mine was a Bell. made in weatern Germany and it was green. I was 16 and had just gotten married. It was the first thing we bought on time other than the car. It was $6. a month. That was in 1956.

Barbshobbies

I had my first job @ 17, first thing I bought was a Pfaff 362.It was 1957 it still works wonderful. Second one 1980 a Brother LS-1217. I think I paid $89.99. After DGM passed
they gave me her Singer. Can`t find the age on it, but she passed 1971 @ age 80. Then MDM_IN_L gave me her MOM`S. I can`t find the age but she passed 1956 @ age 79. I love each one and hope one of childern will too.

jdavis

My first machine was an Adler, which I inherited from a great aunt. I was 13, if memory serves. It had a cabinet, which is more than my mother had for her own machine. It was prettier than Mom's, too. I don't know the vintage of the machine, but the cabinet may have been 1950's, possibly later. When I moved "up" to a zig zag machine, I handed the Adler down to the daughter of a firend, whom I knew would appreciate it. I wanted to make a gift of it, the same way it came to me. Now that I see all the beauties you all have collected, I sort of miss the old girl, but I simply don't have the space for multiple machines.

laurac

we (my two sisters and i) thought we were deprived by having to share our mother's machine with her and usually and aunt or two. we sewed all our clothes, sometimes even coats and swimsuits. we made our own drapes. i remember a boyfriend telling us he had fun just watching how fast we sewed and seeing us practically sitting in line to get to the machine!
i didn't have my own until i was pregnant with my first baby.

whinnytoo

Mine was a Singer toy machine, hand crank, I was 5 yrs old and used that machine till I was 18!

quiltwoman

I bought a Brother machine in 1990 with my first ever bonus from work. I was in my early 20's and I wanted to make clothes for work :thumbup:
(I had to have my mom come for a visit to show me how to work it, and how to pin a pattern on fabric)