Lately, my social media feed has included posts about the new G+I blue and sable (gold) 50 stitch machines from Janome. These machines are available at Wayfair, Wal-Mart and similar retailers – meaning this is not a dealer exclusive model. Price point is $529.00 and includes an extension table. I thought the machine looked familiar, so I did a little research. This is a newer version of the retired DC1050 model. (FYI if you search Janome for the instruction book for the new and old models, it links to the same manual). A friend of mine absolutely loves her DC1050 and she travels extensively with it. This is certainly a contender for air travel as it measures just shy of 15″ wide and will fit in a 16″ wide underseat rolling bag.
If you prefer a more traditional white sewing machine, then consider a Janome 2030DC (current kmodel is G for garnet), which is about the same price point. It has fewer stitches, but offers a fold down accessory storage tray. It is also 15″ wide, so it should fit inside the same 16″ wide underseat rolling bag. You’ll need to purchase the wide table separately.
Lastly, don’t forget about the Elnita EC30 and the Elna 450 (both also made by Janome), which are right at 15″ wide and weight 11 pounds each. They do fit inside my Travel Pro 16″ wide underseat rolling tote with the accessory cover and spool pin holder removed.
Wish Janome would update and bring back the 3/4 size Jem Gold series. Increase the speed to 820 spm (instead of 650 spm), add a serpentine stitch, pin stitch (slimmer blanket stitch), plus some feather stitches would be really nice.
