needle notes

sunday afternoon i walked into my sewing room to locate a new needle for handquilting "beauty for ashes" quilt. as i looked around the room i recently (but not completely) rearranged, i realized i was looking in the proverbial haystack for a new needle! i have no idea where the particular orange box containing my tulip betweens was hiding in that vast and convoluted space. so i grabbed some sashiko needles from the same maker and quickly shut the doors behind me.

i've been using the same needle for several of my handwork projects for months now and figured it was a good idea to replace it, like you do with the machine periodically. it wasn't giving me any trouble, but it just seemed long overdue since i've handquilted a few quilts and bound several others all on the same little needle. it's slightly bent after all it's use.

i had the sashiko needles around because last time i was at the sewing store they didn't have the sharps i wanted in stock. sashiko is a handwork tradition so i thought it might be a good bet for my handquilting. i know absolutely nothing about sashiko other than what i just said, so i knew nothing about it's needle's dimensions or properties.

well, the needle is larger and longer. it's easier to get a grip on than my tiny little sharp was. and the eye is more compatible to 12wt thread. but it didn't allow me to make my stitches as small as i was used to doing. and it was difficult to push and pull through the fabrics. i felt like i was punching holes in the fabrics. perhaps this is all my inexperience or because i'm using it in a way not intended. who knows? obviously i need to research that more.

either way, after struggling through one row of stitches, i located my warped old friend and got back to work. despite it's age and extensive use, it still slides through the fabrics quite easily and oh so daintily. yes, the eye is still a challenge to thread, but it's manageable (with my readers on and a little patience) and i feel like it leaves less of a mark behind than the large needle did.

i don't have time to trek over to the fabric store across town, but i did locate more of the needles i want online. until then, this trusty little fella is working for me just fine! i'm curious to see if a new one feels any different at all.

thread minding

keeping thread spools and the matching bobbins together is a concern for me. a few years ago i was excited to find out you could buy a type of pin to lock the two together while not in use.

unfortunately for me, the type i got (clover, i think) didn't fit my aurifil threads, which are the type i use most. i could get the bobbin to stay on the pin, but the pin didn't fit into the aurifil spool. i went ahead and used the ones i had by just placing them in the spools. they could get knocked off easily, but it sort of worked.

this weekend i was putting away fabric and noticed this funny little plastic contraption taped to on online order i received a while back. i wasn't sure what it was at first, then a lightbulb went off in my head and i tried it with my threads.

and hey presto, we have a fit. they hold together so well you can lift both by the end of the pin.

i found more on amazon (here) in a 40 pack. you can get more, but i found that amount to be sufficient. i don't know exactly what brand they are or what they're called as it was hard to identify that on amazon, there seemed to be several that looked the same but had different names, but the link will get you there. or search "bobbin thread holder clip". apparently you an also get them with some little clips that go around the bobbin to stop it from unwinding, but i didn't get those. i'm just really happy to have clips that work with my aurifils!