by Gary Walker
It seems incredible that sewing machinery has been around since the early 1800’s and embroidery technology since 1964. This machinery started off as heavy, complex, incredibly expensive and mostly found in factories. Commercial machine embroidery for high volume orders replaced a much more tedious and painstaking process of stitching by hand. Yet the fundamental principle remains the same: a top and a bottom thread are stitched together over and over again to gradually produce a pattern.
We’ve all worn embroidered garments, we have embroidered articles throughout our homes, we decorate and identify ourselves with embroidery. Automated machine embroidery has influenced fashion and décor since its very inception.
Today, computer technology has put this automatic machine embroidery process within reach of everyone. You don’t even need sewing skills!
For a very affordable price everyone can now embroider or decorate virtually any item of apparel or home furnishings. Customize store-bought kids clothes, create your own bridal lace or even express your style at home with embroidered cushions. For the ultimate heartfelt present for any occasion, create unique gifts with a multitude of funky ready-to-embroider products that are widely available. That’s just the start – we could fill pages with ideas that would make a computerised home embroidery machine an essential appliance for any home.
For years the price and complexity meant this technology was limited to a small but dedicated group of sewing enthusiasts. Not anymore! We invite you to take a look at the diverse creative opportunities that an embroidery machine can deliver… without breaking the budget. As Australia’s premier retailer of embroidery machines, Echidna Sewing have the expertise to support what we know will be a rewarding addition to your lifestyle. But be warned that embroidery is infectious and late nights of creativity can be a serious side effect!
Embroider your world with Brother & Echidna
Nv950 Sewing & Embroidery Machine
Luxury features without a luxury price tag! The Brother NV950 gives you affordable sewing & embroidery with advanced features and is the ideal machine for hobbyists of all skill levels.
Brother Innov-is F440E Embroidery-Only Machine
The Brother F440E embroidery-only machine os jam packed with intuitive technology and impressive built-in designs. It has a wide range of versatile functions allowing you to add colour and design to almost any project. Built-in fonts means you can also monogram items with ease!
Brother Innovis NV800E Embroidery-Only Machine
Now you can embellish everything from home décor to clothing with one of the 138 built-in embroidery designs and a variety of lettering fonts. Including a maximum embroidery area of 160mm x 180mm. You’ll be sure to love the design editing features that give you the ability to resize, rotate, re-position and combine designs with ease.
Brother NS2750D Sewing & Embroidery
The Innov-is NS2750D is all purpose machine for those with a diverse interest, from sewing and quilting to embroidery and craft. Boasting 240 built-in stitches, 10 one-step button holes and 173 embroidery designs (including Disney).Packed with a wide range of automated features and superior quality, the Innov-is NS2750D allows you to save time and design with ease
Brother Dream Machine 2 – XV8550D Sewing & Embroidery
When Brother created THE Dream Machine, the most advanced machine ever, few believed it could be surpassed. However, the visionary designers at Brother never stop dreaming. Bringing you THE Dream Machine 2. Enhanced, fine-tuned and graced with refined new features to give serious enthusiasts an incomparable sewing, embroidery and quilting experience.
Echidna Sewing 
What an insult to everyone who hand-embroiders to call their craft tedious and painstaking and to insinuate that true embroidery must be automated! I did not expect this from Brother. Very disappointed.
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Hi Elena,
Thank you for your comment and we apologise if this article has offended you, that certainly was not our intention. Just to clarify that sentence was aimed at commercial or high use embroidery. We value all crafts, interests and hobbies and understand the desire for many people to continue old traditions and techniques, especially if it gives you joy. We will look at the article again and ensure that this message is much clearer.
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Thank you for your reply. I do not understand however what you mean by “automated embroidery was around since early 1800s”? The first ever working sewing machine was built in France in 1848 to sew soldier uniforms during the French revolution. The first commercial sewing machine was patented in 1851 in the USA, and neither of these could embroider! It was another 50 years before sewing machines became complex. Please give us an example of an industrial embroidery machine from early 1800s that you are referring to.
Furthermore, none of the modern machines you are showing, are industrial. These are all domestic machines. Modern industrial embroidery machines take up half a room and embroider with far more threads and on much larger areas. And yes, they are complex!
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Yes Elena, i will go with you, we have the technology around us and today’s time we can’t go with hand made designs on the fabrics. we will go for the computerized embroidery machines that made our design in few of minutes and well in manner.
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Automated embroidery was indeed around well before the first Singer was put to market in 1851. However this early embroidery was not created on sewing machines, they were big commercial looms and they produced amazing embroidery results. The Textile museum in St Gallen Switzerland has the most stunning examples of these early machine embroidered masterpieces and I had the privilege of a private tour several years ago. From the 1960’s when sewing machine technology allowed for it, industrial embroidery machines appeared and could produce beautiful embroidery using a two thread lock stitch. Then in the late 1980’s the first domestic variations were launched and used the same two thread lock stitch process and provided the machine is tensioned correctly it is very very difficult to see any difference in the final results compared to the commercial machine. Naturally commercial machines are bigger, faster and typically have more needles and automation but the essence of the story is that today’s technology does most definitely allow home users to produce exquisite genuine embroidery to the same standards as years gone by. Of course the final note on this is that now semi-commercial multi needle machines are widely available and very popular. They take up less space in a sewing room than a current top of the range domestic machine and are perfectly designed to be used in small home based embroidery business. Best of all, they are not complicated to use… My how the technology continues to evolve!
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