A Long Arm Quilting Machine? Seriously?
I know that a lot of you have encouraged me to see about getting one.
I’ve hemmed and hawed about it.
WHY?
Let me explain.
My first problem is space.
Our house isn’t particularly small. I mean…we raised 5 children here. But the rooms are not individually large.
I took the measurements for how long a long arm frame is that is big enough to do the typical 100” wide queen size quilt I like to make.
Hmm.
I checked out the room where I am currently keeping fabric - it was our sons’ room. Won’t fit.
The other room that was my daughters’ room where I have a lot of quilts. Won’t fit.
Hmm.
What if we tore out a wall and made one room bigger? Don’t want to do all that remodeling for a long arm as it makes those room less appealing for bedrooms.
Then I thought about a room we have in the basement where we have a lot of “junk”. Well, not necessarily “junk”, but stuff nonetheless.
We measured. I’ve thought. It would fit down there! OK. One problem solved.
(I just found this out yesterday - and my husband I discussed this today when I went down there with him and talked about it and looked at what was in the room.)
Now…what kind?
Here in Poland we don’t have a lot of choices as to brands. It actually makes making a decision a lot easier.
Bernina, Janome or Juki.
That’s all I’ve seen here.
I’ll keep looking.
BUT
Now that I can see where it could fit - I’m actually heartened. All I have to do is work on cleaning out the room this year - which is something I’ve been needing to do anyway. The money isn’t actually a problem anymore - well, at least not like it was. I hadn’t wanted to even attempt to do it before when our youngest son was in college due to college bills as we were helping him finish. I didn’t want to take on something “big” like a long arm when we were trying to help Daniel. There wasn’t enough $$.
The second problem is that here in Poland I am always living with the idea that I am a guest in this country.
Every 2 or 3 years I have to renew my residency permit. What happens if they reject it? My husband says, “Oh, they won’t”. And while I don’t see why they would - one can never be sure. I don’t think we can always understand the reasoning behind the governmental thinking or policies. My permit expires again this December. I had already decided that once I get my “ok” for the next 2 or 3 year (hopefully three year) permit, I would spring for a long arm. I had thought long and hard about it last time when my permit was renewed for three years, but at that time our son needed help monthly with college funds.
So, this is where I am on this issue. I can see that using my domestic is getting harder for me - as I grow older I am feeling the aches and pains more.
Maybe I exaggerate just a little.
I do think using a long arm might be easier on my body. At least it should be!
I would also hope that a long arm would hold up to the work that I’d put it through. I’m finding that domestic machines just aren’t holding up to quilting 150-180 quilts a year without major problems. Even expensive machines. I think this is what is pushing me over the top to actually seriously considering a long arm. My domestic machines can’t seem to handle the work load without breaking down and needing serious repair.
I’m still thinking.
If YOU have any advice about long arms - dos/don’ts or “wish I would have knowns” - please let me know in the comments!
Have a great day wherever you are reading this! Stay safe!
Be sure to check out what my sis has for you in the store here!
Here’s one of the beauties we have! This bundle is called “Cherry Lemonade”.
