To get it done right however you’re going to need equipment that will get it right the first time, won’t damage the material at all, and ideally won’t be too fiddly. To this end, your best bet is to go with either an embroidery machine or a computerised sewing machine.
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There are some really great machines out there on the market today, and we have reviewed 5 of the best top selling models for you. To help you in your decision we also have a buying guide for you, covering everything you might want to think about before purchasing.
In a hurry? This is our winner! Our rating: SINGER | Quantum Stylist 9960 Computerized Portable Sewing Machine with 600-Stitches Electronic Auto Pilot Mode, Extension Table and Bonus Accessories, Perfect for Customizing Projects SINGER COMPUTERIZED SEWING MACHINE: The SINGER Quantum Stylist 9960 portable sewing machine has loads of ease-of-use features to allow you to fulfill your creative dreams Has a large selection of stitches including basic, stretch and decorative stitches for fashion sewing, quilting, home decor and crafting There’s even a selection of fonts to personalize projects AUTOMATIC NEEDLE THREADER: Threading the machine is so easy that you can have the entire machine threaded, from the spool to the needle’s eye, in seconds The built-in needle threader threads the eye of the needle for you, eliminating eye strain and frustration BEST SEWING MACHINE: The SINGER Quantum Stylist 9960 sewing machine has 600 Built-In Stitches including 5 Alphanumeric Fonts and 13 built-in 1-Step Buttonholes with Exclusive Buttonhole Underplate It also has Mirror Imaging and Stitch Elongation providing even more creative possibilities HIGH-SPEED SEWING MACHINE: The SINGER Quantum Stylist 9960 sewing machine has a maximum sewing speed of 850 stitches-per-minute, projects can be sewn quickly SEWING MACHINE ACCESSORIES: A variety of presser feet are included with the sewing machine: All-Purpose Foot, Zipper Foot, Buttonhole Foot with Underplate, Button Sewing Foot, Blind Hem Foot, Satin Stitch Foot, Open Toe Foot, Overcasting Foot, Darning and Embroidery Foot, Rolled Hem Foot, Cording Foot, Straight Stitch/Quilting Foot, Even Feed / Walking Foot 110 volt machine designed for United States and Canadian use only Buy on Amazon
Best Sewing Machine with Monogramming – Comparison Table Preview Product SINGER | Quantum Stylist 9960 Computerized Portable Sewing Machine with 600-Stitches Electronic Auto... Buy on Amazon Brother SE600 Sewing and Embroidery Machine, 80 Designs, 103 Built-In Stitches, Computerized, 4" x... Buy on Amazon Brother SE400 Combination Computerized Sewing and 4x4 Embroidery Machine With 67 Built-in Stitches,... Buy on Amazon Brother PE535 Embroidery Machine, 80 Built-in Designs, 4" x 4" Hoop Area, Large 3.2" LCD... Buy on Amazon Brother PE800 Embroidery Machine, 138 Built-in Designs, 5" x 7" Hoop Area, Large 3.2" LCD... Buy on Amazon Best Sewing Machine with Monogramming – Reviews
Our Pick SINGER | Quantum Stylist 9960 Computerized Portable Sewing Machine with 600-Stitches Electronic Auto Pilot Mode, Extension Table and Bonus Accessories, Perfect for Customizing Projects Our rating: Buy on Amazon
We love this computerised sewing machine from Singer!
It has a whopping 600 stitches built in stitches, including that all important lettering for your monograms. If you look on the Amazon page and scroll down, you will find a photo with some of the stitches on there. They range from basic, interlacing and zigzag, right the way through to Aztec and floral. There are also some clearly identifiable motif stitches which are quite quaint.
It will also show you 5 different alphanumeric fonts for your monogramming altogether, including a beautiful cursive one, a greek alphabet, and 3D letters. All letters are available in both uppercase and lowercase.
We love that many of the stitches can be mirror-imaged and elongated – you can let your creative juices run riot!
It comes with all the basic features you’d expect from a Singer model of this price, including automatic needle threader, an easy to load drop in bobbin system, and an extension table for when you’re working on larger projects. There’s also an automatic thread cutter and an LED light so you can clearly see the work space. It also has a powerful motor for tackling those heavier fabrics.
We also like that there’s an adjustable speed control, to adapt to work on different fabrics, and that there are 13 built in perfectly sized buttonhole styles, which can be set up in one step.
Programming the stitches is easy, the eight most commonly used stitches are conveniently located on the front of the machine and for the rest, you just look up the stitches on the LCD screen.
There’s a chart of stitches inside the lid of the machine. And when you select a stitch, the machine will tell you which of the feet to use. There’s a wide variety of presser feet included in the price, and there’s a handy storage compartment for them too.
Pros 600 stitches built in stitches 5 different beautiful alphanumeric fonts Stitches can be mirror-imaged and elongated Suitable for beginners through to advanced sewers Automatic needle threader Easy to load drop in bobbin system Extension table Automatic thread cutter LED lit work space Powerful motor Adjustable speed control 13 built in perfectly sized buttonhole styles Loads of presser feet included Cons It’s relatively expensive for a computerised sewing machine, when you can get an embroidery machine for a similar amount of money You can’t hook it up to receive your own images to work from Check out reviews on Amazon
Brother Machine, SE600, 80 Designs, 103 Built Stitches, Computerized 4 Our rating: Buy on Amazon
Here’s another great embroidery machine from Brother.
It offers 103 built in sewing stitches, your basic utility stitches for everyday sewing and some great decorative stitches like greek key, scallops, feathers, hearts and stars.
For your monogramming, you’ve got 6 different built-in lettering fonts, including bold and outline. You can choose from capital letters, lower case, numeric and symbol characters. You can also choose the size, go for small, medium or large.
And if the built in stitches are not varied enough for you, you can import your own, thanks to the machine’s USB port. If you’re not confident to design your own fonts, don’t worry. Customers get exclusive access to 1000’s of embroidery designs on iBroidery.com.
It has a 3.2 inch touchscreen display, which lets you view your design in full color before you start.
The embroidery field measures 4 inches by 4 inches, which is usually more than enough for your monograms.
It has all those other features we know and love in a top quality sewing machine, such as an automatic needle threader, a bright LED-lit work area, and a jam resistant drop in bobbin system. There’s also a free arm for sewing cuffs.
In addition to the embroidery foot there are also 7 other sewing feet included in the price, including a special one for monogramming.
Brother demonstrate real confidence in their product, offering a 25 year warranty.
Pros 103 built in sewing stitches 6 different built-in lettering fonts in 3 different sizes Import your own images thanks to the machine’s USB port Exclusive access to 1000’s of embroidery designs on iBroidery.com Embroidery field is 4 inches by 4 inches, plenty big enough for your monograms Automatic needle threader Bright LED-lit work area Jam resistant drop in bobbin system Free arm for sewing cuffs 8 sewing feet, including a special one for monogramming 25 year warranty Cons Additional purchase is required for iBroidery.com designs Check out reviews on Amazon
Brother SE400 Combination Computerized Sewing and 4x4 Embroidery Machine With 67 Built-in Stitches, 70 Built-in Designs, 5 Lettering Fonts Our rating: Buy on Amazon
Here’s another great machine from Brother, a top seller that customers adore.
It combines computerised sewing and embroidery in one machine.
There are 67 Unique Sewing Stitches, 98 stitch functions and 70 Built in Embroidery Designs, with 120 frame pattern combinations, and 5 different built in Lettering Fonts.
And if that’s not enough design choice for you, you can hook the machine up directly to your computer, no more hunting forever to find a USB stick.
Furthermore, customers also get access to iBroidery.com, where you are met with thousands of designs you can buy, with a stunning selection of images inclusive of those licensed characters from Nickelodeon, Disney, and Disney-Pixar.
Besides all that it has plenty of other features which all come in handy at one point or another. There’s that automatic needle threader, which is a great time saver. You’ve also got a standard sized embroidery area, coming in at 4 by 4 inches, an LED lit workspace, and a jam resistant drop-in top bobbin system. We also love the 7 point feed dogs for feeding the fabric.
You get 7 feet included in the price, namely Buttonhole foot Overcasting foot, Zipper foot, Button fitting foot, Blind stitch foot, Embroidery foot, and a special Monogramming foot.
Pros Computerised sewing and embroidery in one machine 67 Unique Sewing Stitches 70 Built in Embroidery Designs 5 different built in Lettering Fonts Hook the machine up directly to your computer Access to iBroidery.com Automatic needle threader Embroidery area, coming in at 4 by 4 inches LED lit workspace Jam resistant drop-in top bobbin system 7 point feed dogs 7 different feet including a special Monogramming foot Cons The touchscreen display isn’t in color Check out reviews on Amazon
Brother Machine, PE535, 80 Built Designs 9 Font Styles, 4 Our rating: Buy on Amazon
Here’s another great embroidery machine from…you guessed it, Brother.
There are 80 high quality built-in embroidery designs, including floral, kids and holiday designs.
For your monogramming, you can personalize your work using one of 9 built in lettering fonts, including 6 in English and 3 in Japanese, which you can size in small, medium or large. You can also choose from uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbol characters.
Where this machine really comes into its own for your monogramming, is the different ways you can edit the lettering. You can align the text at an angle or in curves, increase and decrease the spacing between letters, or place text on multiple lines.
There’s also a USB port, so you can import your own monogram designs if you like. Or if you prefer having that hard work done for you, you get exclusive access to iBroidery.com for 1000’s of embroidery designs, where you can even find Disney, Disney-Pixar and Marvel designs.
The 4 inch by 4 inch square embroidery field gives you plenty of room to do your monogramming, and the included grid sheet is great for aligning your needle position to your design.
The 3.2 inch color touchscreen display lets you preview your design before you start.
The machine also has that all important automatic needle threader.
There’s a 25 year warranty, and free technical support for the life of the product.
Pros 80 built-in embroidery designs 9 built in lettering fonts Variety of ways to edit the lettering USB port to use your own designs Exclusive access to iBroidery.com for 1000’s of embroidery designs, including Disney, and Marvel designs 4 inch by 4 inch embroidery field with grid sheet 3.2 inch color touchscreen display lets you preview your design Automatic needle threader There’s a 25 year warranty Free technical support Cons It’s not set up for other sewing tasks, just embroidery Check out reviews on Amazon
Brother PE800, 5x7 Embroidery Machine, One Size, White Our rating: Buy on Amazon
This embroidery machine from Brother files off the shelves, and is a huge hit with customers.
We love that it comes with 138 different built in embroidery designs, including scrollwork, floral designs, and some lovely quilt patterns, plus 10 frame shapes and 14 different border styles.
When it comes to monogramming and lettering there are 11 built in fonts. Seven of which are English, and there are 3 Japanese fonts and a Cyrillic font to boot. Of the built in fonts, there are outline, serif and san serif fonts to choose from.
If you wanted to use your own design rather than a pre programmed one, that’s not a problem with this beauty. There’s a USB port for you to import your own monograms and designs.
It has some great design editing features, including being able to rotate or mirror-image your designs, or increase and decrease the size of the image.
It’s super easy to use, with a large color touchscreen, which allows you to preview your designs before you start.
We love how you can watch step-by-step tutorials right on the LCD display, no more scrambling for your tablet or phone and relying on Youtube.
We love how it has a large embroidery field, measuring 5 inches by 7 inches, giving you plenty of space, and how the LED light is so bright you can even embroider your monograms in the dark if you wanted to.
It also has that all important automatic needle threader.
You can expect a long lifetime for the machine, since it has a 25 year warranty.
Pros 138 different built in embroidery designs 11 built in fonts, including outline, serif and san serif designs Rotate or mirror-image your designs Increase or decrease the size of the image It’s super easy to use Large color touchscreen Step-by-step tutorials right on the LCD display Large embroidery field, measuring 5 inches by 7 Bright LED light for workspace Automatic needle threader 25 year warranty Cons Designed for embroidery only, not general sewing Software not included Check out reviews on Amazon
Best Sewing Machine with Monogramming – Buyers Guide
What follows is a quick run down of things to consider when buying your machine. We hope it helps.
Cost
With so much variation in the cost of these machines, our recommendation is that once you have a feel for how much they cost, decide on your budget and aim to stick to it. The general idea is to buy one that has all the features you want now, plus any extra features you think you might want in the future, but at the same time getting good value for money.
Brand
When it comes to sewing machines, the brands that have been around longest, tend to still be amongst the very best. Specifically, you would do well to get a Singer machine or a Brother. They’ve both been around for decades and there’s good reason why they’re so well known.
The best thing about going for a good brand like Singer or Brother is the warranty. They tend to cover the machine for up to 25 years. And with sewing machine repair shops being so hard to come by, you’d be glad you chose a good well established brand when it comes getting parts for repairs.
Basic and Extra Features
If you’re reading this buying guide, you’re obviously looking for a machine that will do monogramming. But don’t make that your only concern. You must also ensure that your sewing machine also has the basic features such as an automatic needle threader, top drop-in bobbin, and a programmable needle up/down.
You may also be interested in a powerful motor if you’re going to be embroidering thick fabric like towels or terry cloth, a one step button-hole stitch, or a built in light to illuminate your work space. We also find adjustable speed control very handy, especially for thicker fabrics like denim or curtains. An extendable table area is a nice feature too.
Computerised Sewing Machine versus Embroidery Machine
Of course it is possible to embroider a monogram using a regular sewing machine, but in our view you can get a more perfect and more consistent image when you use a computerised sewing machine or an embroidery machine. And so perhaps your biggest decision will be whether to go for a computerised sewing machine or an embroidery machine.
Unlike a more basic sewing machine, a computerised sewing machine will let you select what stitch you want to go far, whether it be a zigzag stitch, or a letter or number, and you can simply program the machine to do that particular design. The job becomes instantly less tedious and becomes more consistent and automatic.
An embroidery machine on the other hand will generally include all of the features and options provided in a computerised sewing machine, but is much better suited for monogramming and, obviously, embroidery.
With a computerized sewing machine, you can get a wide array of preprogrammed stitches that you can select from for patterns and alphanumeric stitches for monograms. But with embroidery machines, you can embroider from any design and make it as unique or personal as you like.
We particularly like machines that are compatible with your computer. Rather than rely solely on patterns that are built into the machine’s memory, you can use unique designs from your computer that can then be transmitted to your machine by way of memory card, CD or data stick.
Thus an embroidery machine will allow you to choose from any font for your monogram, or even enable you to design your own.
The downside to embroidery machines however, is the extra cost. Whilst you can get some good computerised sewing machines for $100 to $200 dollars, you can generally expect to pay $300 to $400 dollars for a good embroidery machine.
Some machines are designed to be both computerized sewing machines and embroidery machines at the same time. Needless to say, it is these machines have the most versatility and offer the best value for money.
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