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How To Make the Choice on an Embroidery Machine

By Lizzsews
 This article is brought to you by Lizzsews.

Can't decide on a machine? Are there too many to choose from? Here's an awesome way to help narrow down the machine! 

Recommended read: 10 things you need to start machine embroidery today


Do you want an only embroidery machine?
Or a 2 in 1 sewing and embroidery combo machine? 
Or do you want a multi-needle embroidery machine?

Pros for combo machines
 
   - Takes up less space than 2 machines 

   - Has lots of sewing features

   - Has lots of embroidery features

   - Nice big machine

   - Most of the time you can “get more bang for your buck”

Recommended read: Brother se600 review -the 'se' is for sewing/embroidery 😉

Pros for an only embroidery machine:

   - Lots of embroidery features

   - Cheaper if you don’t need the sewing features

   - Can get bigger hoop sizes for cheaper- compared to going up in hoop sizes on a combo machine

   - Nice big machine

Pros for a multi-needle embroidery machine:

   - Less rethreading

   - Faster

   - Can embroider structured hats- with a hat hoop

   - Can embroider harder to hoop places- you don't have to worry about trying to get everything away from under the hoop with a free arm machine.

Cons for a combo machine:

   - Can be annoying changing from embroidery to sewing- easy to forget to change the needle and/or threads from sewing to embroidery or vice versa

   - As you go up in hoop sizes, they get expensive- compared to going up in hoop sizes on an only embroidery machine

Cons for an only embroidery machine:

   - If you need sewing, you’ll have to buy another machine or do it by hand

   - Takes up more space if you need two machines 


Cons for a multi-needle embroidery machine:

   - Much more expensive

   - Not as beginner-friendly


Picking an embroidery machine brand

Remember that the brand of the embroidery machine that you're purchasing from is important. Here is what to check for from the brand:

The costs

What are the costs for similar machines among competitors? 

Is the brand offering better or worse prices than its competitors?

What does the brand offer you compared to other brands?

Which brand is better liked?

Research the brand and see what others are saying, look at the reviews. Join Facebook groups and see what others are saying there too.


How is their customer service?

What do they offer for customer service? 

What do others say about this brand? 

Does the machine include an option for a USB?

Having a USB port on the machine is really important, you want to be able to put designs that you purchase online from places like Etsy or Creative Fabrica onto the machine. 


Can more than one embroidery design be combined?

Check if the machine has an option for combining more than one embroidery design on the screen. 

This might seem unimportant, but later on, you may want to combine a name with a design, but you might not want to purchase digitizing software. 


What is the hoop size?

What is the biggest hoop size that the machine can do? 

The hoop size is so important. A 4 x 4 embroidery hoop is very small and you will soon outgrow it, but if this is all you can afford, you will still have beautiful creations.

Get the largest hoop size that you can afford in your budget, but make sure to leave room in your budget for supplies and blanks. 

What is an embroidery machine without something to embroider on?

Recommended read: What are blanks?

What hoops are included with the machine?

If you’re going to purchase a machine with a hoop larger than 4 x 4, how many hoops are going to come with your machine?


Will the hoop sizes 4 x 4, 5 x 7, and 6 x 10 come with the machine?

Are there hoops available that you can purchase for your machine?

Does it come with a hat hoop? Does it come with a border/embellishment hoop? Does it come with a magnetic hoop? Does it come with a sock hoop? Does it come with a circle hoop? Does it come with any other hoops? (Not all of these hoops are compatible with all machines)

If they aren’t going to come with your machine, how much would they cost to purchase separately?

Does the machine have a touch screen?

Most modern-day embroidery machines have a touch screen. If you’re getting an embroidery machine, you should definitely make sure that it has a touch screen. 

Is the touch screen black and white or does it have colour?

I definitely suggest making sure that the touch screen has colour, you’re going to want to see what the design will look like before you stitch it out. If it’s black and white, you won’t be able to preview the design before you stitch it out. 


Also, if you have black and white you won’t be able to see the colours of the thread for when you need to do a thread change, you’ll only see the number or name. 


How many built-in designs does the machine have?

It's good to start learning your machine with the built-in designs. That way, if any problems occur, you know that you're doing something wrong and it's not the fault of the design.


How many fonts are built-in?

Fonts are probably the hardest to purchase online. If you don’t want software, you’ll have to manually do each letter at a time- if can combine more than one embroidery design, this is where it would be very helpful.

To save you from the struggle, check how many fonts are built into the machine and if you like them or not. Learn how to use purchased designs later, learn your machine now 😉


Is the machine new or used?

It’s a good idea to get a new machine if your budget can afford it. The machine will have a warranty, you know that there's nothing wrong with it, and you know that it will come with all of the correct supplies.


If there are any more things that you do/did when you pick/picked out an embroidery machine, let me know by leaving a comment! And don't forget to subscribe to get notified for my next blog post!
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