Review: Brother PE500 Embroidery Machine

Hey Ya'll

Wow. First blog post down and 178 views!! I could not ask for more!

Today is going to be an out-of-the-box review! If you read my first post with my 25 random facts about me, you know I love all things monogrammed. I would monogram every article of clothing I had if I could. Buying monogrammed items can get expensive, especially if you want something different and out of the box. Well, for Christmas my parents decided to feed my obsession and purchase me the Brother PE500 embroidery machine so I could do it myself. I was so excited and I thought then that I had died and gone to Monogram Heaven. Before I get on to my review, keep reading for a hidden monogrammed towel giveaway at the bottom...

So this is the Brother PE500 Embroidery Machine..

It retails for around $268.00

It comes with a 4x4 hoop and includes over 70 designs and 5 fonts.

It also connects to your computer for easy design import.

Okay, now that I have the ever so boring details out of the way, let me give you my honest opinion.

First Impression: Holy Cow, there is a lot of stuff in here. In the box you get pretty much everything you would need to just open it up and start embroidering. HUGE PLUS. I hate buying one thing and having to buy 500 other things just to get started. Included is thread, stabilizer, needles galore, and tons of other miscellaneous items.

Being a newbie when it came to embroidering, I glanced over the instructions and it seemed easy enough so I basically just popped in some fabric and had a few test runs. 

I added the hoop and stabilizer, and tried one simple design from the ones that were built into the machine and they all worked without a hitch.

In my opinion, the built-in designs are a little outdated. Mostly things you would see embroidered on Great Grandma's pillow. It does give you a Brother endorsed website Ibroidery to purchase additional designs, but they are older, more outdated things as well. Tweety Bird was there..The 90's called. they want their designs back.

After I test the designs and they worked, I decided to try some monogramming. I did have to purchase my own monogramming alphabet, because the fonts included will only get about an 1.5 inches high even though they are in a 4x4 hoop. They are so small I can't even take it. I'll post a picture below of the design on a pair of pajama pants next to a quarter..

Really? SO small.

After I purchased my separate alphabet, I was VERY pleased with the result. I embroidered two pair of shorts for the summer and I instantly was hooked.

Now, don't be fooled. This machine has tons of options for designs, not just monograms. I have done numerous towels with designs I have purchased online, and customized them for others.

I have monogrammed blankets for my friends baby, scarves, shorts, pants, pocket tees, hats, baseball bat bags, purses, and towels. I have found so many awesome designs featuring anything you could ever want, dogs, cats, flowers, birds, houses, names, etc..

On to the Pros and Cons:

Pros:

Easy to use

Includes a lot of extras and accessories

Easy to connect to computer

Pretty fast at doing designs

Very tight and professional looking when finished

Cons:

Hoop is very small

Built-in Designs very outdated

Built-in Fonts very very very very small

All the good designs you have to buy (Prices range from free-$6-7 from what I have found)

Overall, I love my machine and wouldn't trade it for anything. I have no problem buying the designs I want because I know they are things I will use. I have used my monogram font I purchased so many times and it was only $2 for the entire thing. I do wished I could do a few bigger designs, but this is the perfect beginners machine and for non-commercial use. I would definitely repurchase or encourage my friends and family to purchase this product.

On to the giveaway!! 

I am so excited for this. 1 winner will win a custom monogrammed towel, handmade by yours truly!

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If you have any questions or comments about the review, let me know by commenting below or sending me an email. I will have a contact button on the sidebar.

Thank you so much for continuing to read this blog. I am hoping to start a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule starting this upcoming week. As always, I love hearing from ya'll and keeping this a very social blog. I love the comments and ideas ya'll send in so keep them coming. 

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