Can anyone recommend a good quality, basic sewing machine under £100

[Banjogurl]

Used to have an old fashioned singer which died sadly (RIP) since then have done lots of sewing by hand.

Will be using it to make clothes for me and baby out of light-medium weight fabrics.

Can't afford more than £100, but would rather have a quality machine that does less than something with more wizardry which is poor quality.

If anyone has any recommendations I'd be really grateful.

Have been looking at Jannome SMD 500. www.sewingmachines.co.uk/JanomeSMD500_info.htm

Cheers!

You may have to wait until Nov or December (not helpful I know) but around that time last year I bought a fantastic basic sewing machine from Lidl. It does numerous stitches, buttonholes, all the usual stuff, and was about £60. Branded under their own label - also came with a toolkit. The cover was a bit flimsy, but for that price you dont' care. The machine itself is robust and works very well, and I would heartily recommend for those of us on a budget - it's not plasticy or cheap looking and comes with a two year warranty anyway. Worth subscribing to Lidl's emails, so that you can spot when they are next on sale.

If you want a good quality machine I would suggest you do what I always do, and buy second hand, that way you can afford a much better quality machine.

I bought my current machine off a lady who had bought it but then nly used it twice in the four years she owned it before deciding sewing wasn't for her and selling it on Ebay for £30.

I got a Janome 500-something-series for £89 from this outfit. I've used it to make several things, now.

I second Lidl/Aldi's for buying one....they do only come out on offer once a year though so you'll have to keep your eyes peeled if you go with this option.

All the schools round us use Janomes - think they're a good reliable and robust make (am saving up for one myself - bought a cheap Lidl one years ago and the tension wobbles all over the place and is driving me nuts).

If you liked your old Singer, then I'd look for something similar secondhand. You could probably get a top of the range 'old' Singer well within budget, and have money left over to spend on gorgeous fabrics!

I have a toyota sewing machine. I use it occassionally and am only a beginner but am very happy with it. It never has any problems. It was £99. www.home-sewing.com/epages/homesewing.sf/en_GB/?ViewObjectID=9833

Thanks everyone for your suggestions so far.

I need something asap because I have 7 weeks of freedom to go before baby's arrival and want to use that time to do lots of sewing.

Have been looking for a while now on gumtree and ebay but they either get snapped up quickly or they aren't suitable... hence I thought it best to focus on finding a new one.

I second OMDBs advice,

get a good sturdy & reliable second hand one, Fristar & Rothman, Jones, old Singers, Pfaff etc are all good buys - you can probably pick up a reconditioned model, with a 6 month guarantee in a local sewing machine suppliers for well under £100

I got a Brother X-5 from Argos as a present - which is about £84 and is a fine, basic machine.