Bernina embroidery sewing machines

Hi there. I'm new to this message board and new to machine embroidery in general. This seems like a friendly place to ask questions. Hopefully I'll get some response. Sooo, my hubby agreed to finally buy me my first ever embroidery machine. I know there are embroidery only machines out there, but Im leaning towards more of the embroidery and sewing machine combination. They're more costly but I think they're worth it because of the multifunctionality. I've been comparing Brother embroidery machines vs Bernina machines online and I think I MIGHT go ahead with Berninas. Does anybody have experience with both Bernina and Brother embroidery sewing machines that can provide some info so that I can finally make up my mind? How about Singer embroidery sewing machines of even Janome embroidery sewing machines? Thank you so much for your help!

My wife had a home embroidery machine before we decided to upgrade to a commercial one. It took her weeks and weeks before she decided! No kidding. Both her selections were also embroidery and sewing combination. Her top two brands were Bernina and Brother. She also researched and demoed plenty of other brands like Singer, Janome, Kenmore, and so forth, but she stuck with Bernina and Brother. In the end, she chose the Bernina Artista 200E which cost a bundle and was MUCH more than our initial budget. She was the one making the decision and her reason for choosing was that she felt "better" with the Artista 200E than the Brother one. Good luck!

Thanks for the feddback Nicholas! Good to know my instinct is in check :) Come on people I need more feedback, I know you're all reading this but not responding! Help out a gal that can't make up her mind :p

I guess it's all about individual preference. Now Rennie I know you'd like to hear another vote for Bernina, but unfortunately Brother gets my vote! :p

I was in your shoes 2 years ago too, I also checked out Bernina machines as well machines by Janome and Singer. I ended up buying the Brother ULT-2003D (Disney). Very satisfied since!