When I went to the Spring Knitting and Stitching Show in March I mentioned I made a few purchases....some fabric....some magazines.....A NEW SEWING MACHINE
Mine had been making funny noises for a little while,and whilst my parents did manage to stop the jamming it was over 10 years old and was good at the basics but did nothing special.
I went to the show with the intention of having a look. I'd done some research before going so had an idea of what I wanted and my budget. I wasn't certain I was going to buy though.
Anyway, towards the end of the day we spotted a sewing machine stand and went for a chat. They were selling Husqvarna Viking machines. Neither my friend or I had experience of these but strangely both our mothers had mentioned them as good machines in the past few weeks so we were definitely interested. The sales lady from The Sewing Rooms (Putney, London) was lovely but it was fatal for our wallets as soon as we both sat down to try them.
The machine purred....it did 80 stitches + alphabet, more than we will ever need but hey we loved the....and there was an offer......
So yes we both got one and got a few bonus bits thrown in for buying 2, yippee. It took a few days to arrive and the bonus treats took a bit longer, but it's all here now
Here it is - my new Husqvarna Viking Opal 650
So today is the first time I've really had a chance to have a play
It purrs when you stitch which is lovely. The only negative I've found so far is that it would appear you HAVE to use the Husqvarna Viking bobbins. So all those bobbins I have filled over the years are redundant. I suppose it isn't a bad negative really, just wish it had been in neon flashing lights at the beginning of the manual as I wasted an hour in YouTube trying to figure out what I was doing wrong as my bobbin kept bird nesting! Grrrrr!
I'm looking forward to practicing my freehand machine sewing, leaving that for another day... Too manymore stitches to try
Mum will be down in a few weeks and I know she will want to have a play...might have to check her bags when she leaves ;)
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Hi Becca, I just purchased an Opal 670 yesterday. I've hardly as of yet had a chance to try it out as I had my baby grandson here with me all day today. He's gone home now and I'm too tired. Do you find yours simple and easy to use?
ReplyDeleteWell you are in for a treat. I really love the machine, it purrs when you sew, there are so many stitches I don't know what to do with myself, and think you have even more on the 670.
ReplyDeleteIt is really easy to use, the one piece of advice I have is that you can only use Husqvarna bobbins. I didn't know this and spent a rather frustrating hour trying to use one of my old bobbins which was full and getting totally confused at the birds nest which was always created. Other than this its a dream.
Enjoy, am sure you will have some wonderful creations.
That's some machine, it looks amazing. I'm still getting to grips with my Janome (I needed a lesson to help me out!).
ReplyDeleteI purchased my Viking Opal 650 about a week before yours! Like you I love the machine, I love everything about this machine. I am not new to sewing, but am to Viking machines and am very pleased with this machine. It ticked all the boxes. I wanted a machine that had a bit of manual control over it, such as tension and foot pressure. The stitch quality on this machine.....is just simply fabulous.
ReplyDeleteYou MUST use Viking bobbins in the machine, this goes for any brand of modern machine, you must use the ones made for your machine
Regards
Jan West Sussex
Jan,
ReplyDeletethanks for your comment - pleased you are enjoying your machine too.
I didnt realise that every machine now insisted you use their bobbins. My old Janome used to take the standard size, didnt appreciate the luxury, oh well will just have to buy some extra Viking bobbins at some point soon
just been looking at these machines at the festival of quilts today. Are you still pleased with it?
ReplyDeleteJust came across your blog when looking for reviews on the Opal. Did you try any of the cheaper machines when you were there? I tried the Emerald in a store and then saw the HClass Computerized one and wonder if they all purr the same. I am not near a store to try them out so may be ordering online. There is an Opal for $699 cdn - I wonder if this is a good price?
ReplyDeleteHi. I came across your blog when looking for reviews on the Opal. I have tried an Emerald and it also hummed but I would like a computerized machine so it is between the Opal at $699 or the HClass100 at $399. I don't live near a dealer so I am going to have to order online... any thoughts after trying them out? THANKS!
ReplyDelete