I don't have an opinion on the perfect machine, but I wonder if she might want to go around and test-drive different models if they would allow her to? It would be a shame if she spent all the money and found out it's not so much the machine but that she doesn't really like to quilt?? I've seen ads for the ones with the bigger throat areas for quilting but I bet they are costly.

Good advice from Rita!
Large throated machines are expensive and she might be better off sticking to piecing for now and paying a longarmer to do the quilting. My Juki was around $900 - that's enough to cover the long arm cost of 4 or 5 bed-size quilts.

If money is no object, maybe she would be happiest with a sit-down mid-arm like the HandiQuilter.

Good advice from Rita!
Large throated machines are expensive and she might be better off sticking to piecing for now and paying a longarmer to do the quilting. My Juki was around $900 - that's enough to cover the long arm cost of 4 or 5 bed-size quilts.

If money is no object, maybe she would be happiest with a sit-down mid-arm like the HandiQuilter.

I agree with Rita. Are there any quilt shows coming up in your area? The major machine companies are usually represented well at quilt shows.

If not, she should visit dealers in your area to find out what is available and what she is happy with. Does she want a sit-down machine or a frame setup? Sewing machines are like cars - they all do basically the same thing but some cost $500 and some cost $20,000!

That said, I have a Juki TL98Q on a Hinterberg frame. The Juki is straight-stitch only and has a 9" throat. It is a wonderful machine and I am happy with it, but I often find myself wishing for a bigger machine. I've decided that since quilting is a hobby (not a business) for me that I can't really justify a bigger, more expensive machine.

Donna

I have the same machine as Donna. It's a little bigger through the throat than most domestic machines and would do well either on a frame or stand-alone on a table.

I think a lot depends on what she wants to quilt. If it's smaller quilts (crib & lap) then a Juki (or its equivalents) would be fine. If she wants a frame and to do larger quilts, then she'll have to look in a whole different frame of reference.

With that said, a Juki might be a good place to start. That's where I started and Yes, at this point I'd really like a larger throat (think mid-arm), but then I've used this for 9+ years... I've learned a lot since I started. I do think it might be a good place to start until she determines what kind of quilting she wants to be doing (or none at all as the case may be)

Thanks to all .
I will pass along your suggestions.

~Geraldine