Recommendations - sewing machine for an 11 year old (first time user)

[iwantavuvezela]

My DD loves making and creating things - and i was thinking of getting her a (cheapish) sewing machine for that event that is about to happen in December!

Does anyone have any recommendations for one for this age group? i cannot sew at all, so it will have to be user friendly, and easy(ish) to use.

I see that Argos has one that is meant to be child friendly for around £32 www.argos.co.uk/product/5569443?CMPID=BPLA01&_$ja=tsid:72553|acid:38002085|cid:91655325|agid:4458175360|tid:pla-4577954101199101|crid:11753321095|nw:search|dvc:c|st:best%20sweing%20machin%20children|mt:be|loc:&cmpid=BPLA01&msclkid=d802d505d4c61fb45bac8ed33d284904&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Sports%20%26%20Outdoors%7C%7CMed&utm_term=4577954101199101&utm_content=Sports%20%26%20Outdoors%7C%7CHobbies%20%26%20Crafts

and there is also one from John Lewis for around £40

Any recommendations much appreciated

The £49.99 machine is available at Argos and John Lewis would be suitable for a beginner. The Brother machine at £79.99 would last longer in terms of progression, it also comes with a 3 year guarantee so this would be the machine I would recommend if your budget could stretch that far. The £32.99 looks like a toy and might limit what your daughter wants to do in future.
With all of these machines you will have to learn to thread them, this can be daunting for a beginner, but with time and a few youtube clips it soon becomes second nature. Good luck.

Thank you BrazenHusky - the only good thing about the argos one was that it seemed to be already threaded - but i dont want something that breaks and then is just another thing to be recycled!
I will look at the £49.99 one - i would like something that lasts here, for whenever she might want to use it. I could always ask (pay) for someone in our neighbourhood to give her a sewing lesson, i am sure someone will have those skills that i can pay for.

Definitely get her a grown-up one, a bad machine will put her off.

And then if she loves it I think you can’t go wrong with the traditional metal mechanical Berninas - mine was my 18th birthday present from whole family clubbed together and is still going strong 13 years on with heavy use. It’s my favourite possession.

Thanks verbena87 thats a good point about a bad machine just putting someone off .....

Agree with the Verbena - a bad one will put her off. Don’t buy a cheap brand as they are often very temperamental and hard to use. I bought a cheap one in Lidl or Aldi once and the instructions were impossible to understand. Our local sewing machine shop won’t touch the cheap brands if they need repairing. Stick to the well known brands - Singer, Brother, Janome.