Pfelicity!
Yep...I've been scouring the internet looking at machines. I had my choices narrowed down to two brands: Juki and Pfaff. The reviews I read of both brands were good, and so I started looking at other considerations. When I realized that there were no Juki dealers listed in Oregon, I decided the Juki brand was out. And that left me looking at just one brand...the Pfaff. This morning I narrowed it down to one model, the Pfaff Passport 2.0. I liked it for its surprising number of features from my wish list, and for its compact size.
It's a cute little machine
The store where I went even had a promotion going on where I could get a free extension table and straight-stitch plate for the price of the machine...which was on sale. After spending some time sewing on it and redirecting the sales person to tell me about the machine rather than everything else under the sun (Oy!), I was prepared to buy it. He was going to have to get it from another store, and I wasn't going to be able to take possession until the next day.
Upon hearing that, I averted my gaze to some of the other machines that were available, because I'm nothing if not impulsive. I asked him to tell me about the "Ambition" line of machines. After spending some time looking at them, I ended up purchasing the Pfaff Ambition 1.0.
I realized I could get a much, much nicer machine for only $100 more. It wasn't significantly larger or heavier, and I'm reasonably certain I'm going to be happier with it. It had most of the items on my wish list. The only thing missing was the knee lift, but I decided I could live without that.
It has two storage compartments where I can store, tools, feet, and bobbins. And, bonus, it takes the same bobbins as my Janome, so I don't need any extras. Nevertheless, the salesman gave me 15 extra bobbins. I should have bobbins for life now.
It came with these five feet:
There was no 1/4-inch foot, but I just ordered a metal one off eBay for $10. I think I paid about five times that for my Bernina 1/4-inch foot, which was a big reason for avoiding the Bernina brand in this emergency back-up/travel machine. I love my Bernina, don't get me wrong. But it is an expensive and heavy sucker, and the parts are expensive as well. I was trying to get a second machine that would be reliable, have the features I liked, and wouldn't break the bank.
But to get back to the machine...it has 79 decorative stitches and alphabets, and the stitches can be programmed in sequence if you like.
And since this is a machine I plan to take to classes and in our trailer, I wanted a good hard carrying case for it. Check.
There was no promotion going on for this machine, and thus, no free extension table or straight-stitch plate. I just put on my sad face, set my lip to quivering, and prepared to throw a tantrum. That scared the salesman into giving me one of each. So here it is with its extension table.
And--cool--a straight stitch plate.
So it was such a pretty day, I decided to set it up at the dining room table while I read the manual and familiarized myself with its features. I took everything out of the box, discarded the styrofoam packing materials and plastic wrapping and then made myself a cup of espresso to go with my biscotti. I don't think it's possible to properly read an instruction manual without both. Wouldn't you agree?
And then I plugged in the power cord and foot pedal and turned it on.
Nothing exploded or caught fire, and so I figured I was on the right track.
And then I threaded the machine and the bobbin and...
activated my needle down feature (Cool!)...
And took my first stitches. The "chocolate" fabric was just a happy accident. Breathe deeply.
So...not a bad straight stitch, huh?
That's about as fancy as I want to get for now. I know enough to do some piecing, and so that is where I will start. Rainbow Scrap blocks, I'm looking at you.
Smitty thinks this is all pretty boring. If he can't eat it, he isn't interested.
So I guess I'll go set Pfelicity up on my sewing table and get to work doing some sewing. I'm not planning to try anything fancy until after I take my class a week from Wednesday. I'll just stick with straight-stitching for now and see what I come up with. And just in case, they did include a seam ripper with the rest of the accessories. Helpful, no?
Of course, by then I hope to have Big Bertha back, and I can go back to quilting the We are the World quilt. For now, I think I'm a happy camper. I'll report back later on how things are going between Pfelicity and me.
