Brother XV8500d Dream Machine
I have had my Brother XV8500d Dream Machine for about a year and a half, so I have had it long enough to give you a pretty good idea of what the machine is like and what it can do.
Sewing Features
What was your first impression of the Brother XV8500d Dream Machine? My first impression was "Oh, my, what a large screen full of images to click...will I learn all those features?" My fears weren't too overwhelming because my current embroidery machine was a Brother 1500d trade-in, so I was pretty comfortable using this machine once I sat down and played around on it.
Was the machine manual sufficient? Yes, it is. I was so excited to learn how to use my DM that I read about 1/3 of the manual the same night that I purchased it. The manual is straight forward and easy to understand. If I have a problem, I go straight to my manual before calling the owner of the store. What I like about the manual is the "Memos" and "Notes" provided. They are used to highlight important information at the end of each topic.
Did you buy any accessories? No, I did not.
Is this your primary Sewing Machine? No, but for embroidery it is. I also have and old Kennmore that I use as much as my DM...everyday.
Did you take classes for this machine? No, I have not taken any classes, although classes are offered. The interface is very intuitive. The owner did demonstrate and let me test it out before purchasing. The manual was sufficient once I got it home. I felt pretty comfortable learning on my own. Even as I type this, I still have not learned all of its features.
Was this a gift/preowned?
the model I purchased was a floor model...less than a year old.
How often do you use it? I use it every single day.
Would you recommend this machine? The machine is pretty expensive, so if you sew more apparel than you embroider or quilt, I would suggest a less expensive machine. I had my DM for sale not too long ago but decided to keep it. I think I would have regretted selling it. If I were to compare this machine to a vehicle, I would choose a top of-the-line Chevy Silverado. I can't compare it to other sewing/embroidery machines, but what I can say is it's a very solid machine.
Sewing Features
What was your first impression of the Brother XV8500d Dream Machine? My first impression was "Oh, my, what a large screen full of images to click...will I learn all those features?" My fears weren't too overwhelming because my current embroidery machine was a Brother 1500d trade-in, so I was pretty comfortable using this machine once I sat down and played around on it.
Was the machine manual sufficient? Yes, it is. I was so excited to learn how to use my DM that I read about 1/3 of the manual the same night that I purchased it. The manual is straight forward and easy to understand. If I have a problem, I go straight to my manual before calling the owner of the store. What I like about the manual is the "Memos" and "Notes" provided. They are used to highlight important information at the end of each topic.
Did you buy any accessories? No, I did not.
Is this your primary Sewing Machine? No, but for embroidery it is. I also have and old Kennmore that I use as much as my DM...everyday.
Did you take classes for this machine? No, I have not taken any classes, although classes are offered. The interface is very intuitive. The owner did demonstrate and let me test it out before purchasing. The manual was sufficient once I got it home. I felt pretty comfortable learning on my own. Even as I type this, I still have not learned all of its features.
Was this a gift/preowned?
the model I purchased was a floor model...less than a year old.
How often do you use it? I use it every single day.
Would you recommend this machine? The machine is pretty expensive, so if you sew more apparel than you embroider or quilt, I would suggest a less expensive machine. I had my DM for sale not too long ago but decided to keep it. I think I would have regretted selling it. If I were to compare this machine to a vehicle, I would choose a top of-the-line Chevy Silverado. I can't compare it to other sewing/embroidery machines, but what I can say is it's a very solid machine.
Embroidery Features
I don't use my embroidery as much as I sew garments, but I have used it enough to give you some basic information and my perspective.
I don't use my embroidery as much as I sew garments, but I have used it enough to give you some basic information and my perspective.
Most people know brother for its business machines. Can you believe they are using this same technology in their sewing machines? The Dream Machine has a built-in camera and scanner. I can see what my design will look like on the fabric before I embroider.
My favorite feature is being able to digitize an image. This image can be scanned by the camera or created by you in the My Design Center.
The fabric I used had several animals on it, so I wanted to embroider one of them onto the blanket I made. The pictures below show how I went from a scanned image to embroidering the giraffe on the blanket.
My favorite feature is being able to digitize an image. This image can be scanned by the camera or created by you in the My Design Center.
The fabric I used had several animals on it, so I wanted to embroider one of them onto the blanket I made. The pictures below show how I went from a scanned image to embroidering the giraffe on the blanket.
The LED Pointer is really convenient for pinpointing just where you want to start embroidering on your project. There is a light on the embroidery foot you can activate and then move to the starting point on your project. I use this feature more than I do the snowman stickers. For those of you who don't know what the snowman stickers are for: The snowman stickers are placed on the area you want the machine to begin embroidering. The camera then scans for the snowman and moves the foot to its positon, and now the machine knows where to begin.