I'd knew I'd outgrown my poor old little beginner machine (a Brother XL-3022) when I hemmed a tablecloth for my uncle and caught myself saying "that stitch quality is terrible!" It's been four years and lately I'd stopped sewing because I was getting so frustrated, I couldn't even get clear elastic onto anything with that machine. I'd been saving a bit so I started looking at machines (new and secondhand) in the $700-$1000 range. I went to the dealer all set to look at the Janome QC6260...and walked out with a Viking Interlude 445! I am in love...I've had Kates comments about her Lily and Husqvarna Viking ringing in my ears for months and had been keeping my eyes out for a secondhand but they were always _just_ out of my price range! But the Interlude is great, sewing advisor, some cute stitches, really solid parts. When I got it home I kept waving stitching samples in front my amused boyfriend and yelling "look how PERFECT the stitches are!" It's such a huge improvement, I attached clear elastic to a neckling the other day and the machine didn't miss a beat. I can now clearly see where *I* am going wrong, and where my old machine was making me think I was doing something wrong! I had to share, and a thanks to Kate for inadvertently putting the idea in my head, I couldn't be happier with my (solid) purchase!
Cheers, Katy