New Toy: Brother DreamMaker Review

Crafting is expensive (especially in Aus!), and crafting toys even more so.

Finally got my hands on a Brother DreamMaker a.k.a. Innovis XE VE2200. Just released in Aus in October. So slow, about a year after USA/UK :X

This is my first embroidery machine.
I was originally considering the low-end Brother NV780D as a starter machine but i was totally sold on all the bells and whistles the DreamMaker came with.
I mean, what would i do with the starter machine when i was ready to move up? Or what if the lower machine, with its lack of features, destroys my dream of a great embroidery machine putting me off it forever? lol
But most importantly, the DreamMaker has a large large embroidery area! 18cm x 30cm! This was my first priority. Size matters!

The specs of the machine can be found on the internets so lets get to the all important embroidery.

I chose a practical built in design as the first run.
7 thread changes and 30 mins of stitching - fairly large piece for a starter (crazy!).

The design shown in the booklet.

The piece was embroidered on sheer silk organza with a washaway stabiliser.

The final result still in the large hoop:

 With flash:

It looks great from a distance but if you're pendantic or you pay particular attention to the fine details, its not perfect.
Close up of the top:
The top scallop shape doesnt quite meet the right border line nicely on the right side. It is slightly shifted abit far right. Whereas the scallop meets the left border perfectly.

Close up of the left bottom:
The original design in the booklet shows that there should be a small thin dashed line down the left side, however the machine starts off with the dash at the base but it stitches over that space as it moves up the design.

 The very neat back of the embroidery:

Close up of top corner:
There looks to be a small aneurysm of pink thread on the top of the butterfly wing, dont know what happened there - the front is not affected but there is a blob of thread.

The final product - all stitched up with a light cream cotton liner (as the back of the embroidery is quite hard and abit scratchy).
Do you know what it is yet? :P

Its a soft glasses case... for times when you really dont want to carry the ginormous hard case the sunnies come with.

Overall, a great machine. Not perfect, but cant expect it to be, its still excellent and im still in awe of it. :P
Its fairly quiet for a sewing machine, and its so easy to use.
Even when the thread broke twice (first time, i was careless in threading the top thread when i was changing colours and second time, the machine shredded the thread), it was very easy to resume where it stopped without any indication that anything went wrong.

The shredded thread!

That was my biggest fear - not being able to resume the embroidery properly and ruin the piece, or it obvious was joined somewhere!

Also, something totally superfluous and not important, its makes japanese sounds (reminds me of the tones used in the different japanese trains) whenever it wants attention. Totally cute... as cute as a machine can possibly be.


i have big dreams for this machine lol lets hope it lives up to its name!