It's such a personal choice depending on what the sewer wants to create with it. Her best choice is to 'test-drive' some machines and see what it can do. Many feel that a relationship with a dealer is a must when buying. They often give free introductory classes that will teach you what the machine can do. Also, if there are problems or the need to upgrade they are there. As Teresa stated, the best way I think is to have that list of 'must haves' and even a list of 'nice to haves' and go from there. One thought is to stay away from machines that serve more than one purpose (embroidery, piecing, quilting) because if one part breaks, you loose all functions while it's at the repair shop. good lucK! (Not having a budget helps a lot)

I have a White "Jeans" Machine that I've had for many years. Sturdy and uncomplicated to use. Called "Jeans" because it will sew denim without any trouble. A little more expensive but a good little work horse.I also have several other machines. One of which is an old Singer clone straight stitch which sews the most beautiful straight stitch. I haul it out for any top stitching. I'm sure it can be found cheaper than this price. Here is a link that might be useful: Jeans Machine

22 years ago, when my daughter was a baby, I wanted to dress her in the beautiful hand smocked clothes that are so popular for little girls in my city (Charleston, SC). My husband and I were living on one salary, and it wasn't a big one, so buying those clothes was out of the question. I learned to smock myself, and then needed to learn to sew so that I could put together the dresses I had smocked. My sweet husband bought me a Montgomery Ward sewing machine for Christmas and I began to learn so sew. Honestly, I can't believe I didn't quit right away, because that sewing machine was the worst piece of junk ever made. The stitches were terrible, and wouldn't hold any adjustments, because the machine was mostly made of plastic. I loved the smocking but I was a terribly frustrated sewer because that machine made the simplest task difficult. After a couple of years of that we spent our entire tax return ($700.00 - a tremendous amount of money for us at the time) on a new Viking machine. What a difference! I couldn't believe how reliable and easy to use that Viking was. I still have that machine and will never get rid of it, unless it is to let my own daughter use it if she wants to. I've recently bought a new Viking that has more capabilities, but it was quite expensive, so I doubt you want to start there for your daughter. I would check out your local sewing or quilting shops and see what they have available. Personally I would stick with a Viking, Elna, or Bernina and I would probably go with the brand that has the most supportive dealer. I would buy a used machine in one of these brands, as the quality will be much higher than if you buy a new machine of lesser quality. I think it is really important to buy from a place that can help her learn to work with her machine, versus a big box store where there will be no support available at all.

The machine my sister has would be perfect, but it has been discontinued and last time I looked, even the refurbished ones were sold out. If you can find a Janome TS100Q, it is a relatively inexpensive machine, but not cheap (refurbished machines going around $299 where you can get machines at Walmart under $100). It has a free arm, feed dogs that drop, comes with a walking foot (helps with quilting as well as trickier fabrics), a number of stitches to inspire creativity and I believe a needle threader and it's a solid workhorse. My sister hadn't sewn since high school as far as I know, but she expressed an interest in trying to sew some masks. I had the machine and was deciding whether to keep it as a back-up or return it, so I loaned it to her and she later bought it from me. She has been sewing hours most days for months and even opened an Etsy shop. I had it as a back-up for quilting (it would piece and quilt smaller quilts - probably up tp a throw size) and thread painting, so it is a versatile little machine. You might find a similar newer model. One thing I would consider -- buying a machine that is a step or two above the very inexpensive ones you will see in Target or Walmart will not only likely last longer, but it will probably be easier to have good results with so she will want to continue using it. It will have more stitches -- maybe encourage her to think creatively. It may also have features that allow the machine to grow with her interest. If you buy from a dealer, she may get one or more classes with it to teacher her how to get started. They can also help you find a good balance between entry value and enough quality and features for longevity. I also thought about a Craftsy or similar subscription. Craftsy is the one I am familiar with, but it was recently bought by a new company and is still in transition. They are offering new subscriptions for as little as $2. I have some reservations about how Craftsy is going to do going forward, but there are a lot of sewing classes and quilting classes -- even some thread painting. I believe they also have some getting started in sewing/getting to know your machine videos -- one just talking about presser feet. There are traditional and contemporary quilts as well as small projects for learning and variety. A subscription allows her to watch any class she want during that time period as many times as she wants. She can easily get a great deal out of the subscription -- just remember to deal with the auto-renewal if you don't want to be paying a lot more for renewals. I originally joined Craftsy for baking and cooking classes, but I'm now using the quilting and sewing classes the most. Creativebug is another place to try, but I have not used it. Hope that helps.