In praise of the Singer Start

[Sewot]

I got bored on holiday last week and I simply had to do something.
So I went to the sewing shop and bought all the fabric , scissors, pins, brown paper for making patterns, etc etc and ....erm  ..... a Singer Start sewing machine!
Oh dear another SM to the collection.
Well what a machine!!!
I had often passed them by and wondered what they were like.....well now I know.
I made a warm coat with with felt wadding and lining with it.
Its quite cold in Oz right now.
It cost $99 Australian dollars which is about £55 quid over your side.
I was amazed how this little thing sewed some really thick seams reaching 5 layers of heavyish material.
It has three straight stitches,four zig zags, a fancy stitch and 4 step button hole.
The acid test for a modern machine is...
Can it do a decent button hole?
A huge resounding YES to that one.
I have a photo of it I was so impressed.  [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]    [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]  
Wall shattering applause to Singer for coming out with this one.
It is a little cutey.
Yep...its a featherweight with zig zag and does a mean button hole.
Normally one side of the hole is zig zagged to differing lengths.
This little baby has it right.
And people ask....whats the best machine for a beginner.
Heres your answer.
Cheers
Pete

[Sara-S]

It’s great that you have a new machine you love!

[Sewot]

Well to be honest when it comes to love then my Singer 201 gets the most.
I only bought this little gem as a quick fix to get me sewing.
Its just that it exceeded all expetations.

[Sewot]

Heres a few pics of the coat I made with this tiny machine.
There are no button holes or zips.
I designed it myself and drew up the patterns on brown paper.
All was made in a shed in the middle of the ulu.
It is designed to be loose fitting, warm and easy to put on.
The body part is fleece lined and the arms lined with thin silky lining material so as to slide on easily over a shirt.
The pockets are designed so that my mobile phone and wallet cannot fall out unless I do a head stand.
I am near 70 so the colours worry me a bit.
But I love the fabric.
Pete

[Sewot]

Another view

[Sewot]

An example of my hand stitched lining.
The stitching was easy but getting the lining to fit so that it didnt pull the outer layer out of shape or too loose was a pig!
Pete

[Sewot]

Oh dear....
It looks hellish wide but I am just a Whisp figure wise.
Lets say......
It is loose fitting without being a potato sack.
That said....
I have seen some nice potato sacks.
Pete

[Acorn]

That's lovely - great stripe matching!  And it's the sort of garment that looks fine when it's a little over-sized.   :thumbsup:

[Sewot]

I was going to make a carry bag for the little Singer Start and then noticed a bag tucked under my work bench that I recycled from the girl next door about to bin it.
Well I'll be........
Singer have made this machine so it fits perfectly into a padded zip up freezer bag!!!!
Its the little things like that that keep me happy!

[Esme866]

Love the tote! And keeping your new baby warm in the winter!

Thanks for the review. It's nice to add another budget machine to the list of recommended  "first" machines. As much as I love the reliability of vintage machines, I think learning to sew while also learning to care for a vintage at the same time could be a bit much for most newcomers to the sewing world. Especially so, when many literally know no one to receive guidance from as the craft mostly skipped an entire generation.

Good sewing to you!

[Sewot]

Love the tote! And keeping your new baby warm in the winter!

Thanks for the review. It's nice to add another budget machine to the list of recommended  "first" machines. As much as I love the reliability of vintage machines, I think learning to sew while also learning to care for a vintage at the same time could be a bit much for most newcomers to the sewing world. Especially so, when many literally know no one to receive guidance from as the craft mostly skipped an entire generation.

Good sewing to you!

Thank you Esme866.
I much prefer my vintages as I know how to repair, upkeep and service them apart from sewing on a piece of history that is silent in operation.
As you say, complete newbies do not know the first thing about machines.
I have watched you tubes of newbies even with the above machine making a total Horlix of threading it and assuming the button hole symbols were special stitches in their own right!!!
Also that there are Two threads!!!
( thank you Alias Howe) who invented the lock stitch and was a pain in the side to Issac M Singer who used the idea ( very expensively).
Oh dear....it was painful but bless them they just did not know.
I think machine manuals should be more comprehensive and standardised to help them.
Ie....and including linked videos.
Where and when to use straight stitch.
How to sew a basic hem.
When to use zig zag and why.
Clear instructions  on how to sew a button hole.
They assume the newbies know.
For the price the machine is excellent and not too much of an outlay if sewing is not their forte.
Pete

[Catllar]

As I am currently with one machine in hospital and the other one on its way I thought I'd have a look at this one - cheap and cheerful sounds great as I've got a dress cut and half stitched -For that price can't be bad as a stop gap. Here in Euroland it's 150 euros plus delivery - I think I'll just wait and put that money to my repairs!