At last, a use for Facebook...

Via papersky, Pride and Prejudice by Facebook.

"Lydia Bennet became a fan of Officers."
"Charles Bingley created an event: Ball at Netherfield."

Sewing machine

Well, I've decided. Firstly that I want a sewing machine, and secondly that I want the Janome 525s.

After asking your advice, reading reviews, and speaking to local shops, it came down to equivalent models by Janome, Elna and Husqvarna. They all seem pretty similar, but after spending at least an hour in one shop being shown how to use the two models which were in stock, the Janome won on (in no particular order):

- two-speed foot control
- lower noise level
- drop-in bobbin
- less fiddly/more robust storage compartment and free arm extension
- clearer stitch selection
- needle threader (this wasn't on my wish list, but I'm long sighted and find threading needles difficult by the end of an evening, so it should be pretty handy)
- seemed to be easier to stop with the needle in the position that I wanted (not having the needle up/down facility*)
- being in stock

The shop I'm getting it from (in addition to spending a lot of time with me), have knocked ten pounds off the price, which isn't a huge discount but does seem to make them slightly cheaper than anywhere else.

*I now know what this is. On some machines, you can push a button to tell it that you want it to leave the needle down (or up) when you stop. I can see that this might be useful, but not enough to pay the extra for it. I can still either judge where to stop by eye or use the wheel on the side, as with my previous machine.