I purchased a Deco 340 eight months ago and I really enjoy it. I had never used an embroidery machine before. This is user friendly and stitches beautifully. There are many machines to choose from so take some test "drives". I also purchased a Magic Box to download designs from the internet and CD's. I have embroidered a multitude of items with it with great results.

Alas! About 3 months too late. ;> Loving the machine, tho. After taking the class and getting comfortable with all the features I'm thinking about garment sewing again for the first time in 30 years. Gotta learn some tailoring first so that I can come up with clothes that fit an ....um... shall we say "atypical" body.

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Wow, Diana, you've got some great ideas in your photos. I especially like the clear box frames for holding small items - and I happen to have some of them available. My sewing room is medium size and crammed full! My house is old and so on the outside wall overlooking the backyard, I have two large windows butted up against each other with a built-in glass front shelf unit on each end of the window area. These built-in glass door shelves hold most of my fabric, one side for quilting and the other side for fashion sewing but the quilt stash has spilled over here too. My large, heavy folding table sits in the area directly in front of the windows. This table holds my Viking Quilt Designer and my Brother serger. At the table to the right of my desk chair on wheels, I have a set of plastic, rolling drawers (from Office Depot) and a trash can. On the left wall is a book case for books, magazines, mailing envelopes (love those swaps!), etc. To the right of this bookcase is an old oak sewing machine cabinet that actually belongs to my sister. On top of this is a portable radio/CD player and stacks of CDs. On the right wall is my design wall made with flannel backed vinyl tablecloth fabric from Wal-mart hung with saftey pins and nails in the wall. Just in front of the design wall is my ironing board, which stays up all the time. On the wall behind me as I sit at my sewing table is the door to the bedroom and a large 3 ft. by 5 ft. cutting table. This was a solid door I got for $10 dollars and friends helped me put saw horse legs on it. Under the table I have a plastic drawer unit to hold interfacing, fusible web, my collection of kitchen towel fabric, and works in progress. I also have a number of plastic, lidded, shoebox type storage boxes for more quilt fabric stash and works in progress (doesn't that sound better than UFOs?). There is another trash can at the cutting table, a ruler holder sits on top of the cutting table, and there are hooks for tape measures and rotarty cutters just under the cutting table. Computer paper boxes under the table hold my clothing patterns. There is a small closet in the room where I store bolts of curtain fabric, heavy white duck cloth, and freebie fabrics I can get where I work. But the closet has a window in it so I have to be careful what I store in there because of the light fading issue. As I type this, I'm thinking "what a neat and tidy room." But that is not the case because I have stacks of fabric in bags, various tote bags and wheeled totes, machine covers, and stacks of just plain "stuff" everywhere. Hey, I'm creative - I don't have to be tidy too! LOL! Here is a photo of my cutting table with storage underneath. This never looks as tidy as it is in this picture - LOL!