Sewing Machine Needle Storage

What type of needle have I got in my machine? Well frankly I can’t remember. I certainly can’t read the tiny engraved code on the needle.

Where are my spare needles? They’re in a tin , a gorgeous Kaffe Fassett tin, that I bought many years ago in Bath, when Kaffe ran a shop there. Inside the tin, is a jumble of needle cases to sort through every time. Surely there must be a better way?

Yes there is! Make a fabric case, with little plastic pockets, to neatly store needle cases. Brilliant idea – I’ll be able to see at a glance what needles I have, no more rummaging. So yesterday I made myself a storage case, and I’m super pleased with the results.

To make your own case you’ll need:

Two rectangles of quilting cotton, and wadding to go in the middle of the sandwich.

Bias binding tape long enough to go around the perimeter (I like making my own).

Some clear PVC plastic for making the clear pockets – you’ll have something at home that you can upcycle, the sort of thing that bedding is often sold in.

To sew, I used my trusty Bernina 440QE. I recently purchased a ‘Jeans’ presser foot #8, and this seemed the ideal project to try it out. The foot enables you to stitch easily through various layers. Very pleased with the results, as it stitched effortlessly through the layers of binding. If only the straight stitch plate I’d also ordered had arrived, I might have got even better quality stitching.

Old worn needles need chucking out safely after each project. I’ve read that a needle is good for 7 hours stitching. Some needles, are hardly worn, so now I have a place to return them, and a system to know what type it is. Never put a needle or pin in your mouth. That’s a topic for another blog, but the friend who swallowed a needle is thankfully alive to tell the tale, following surgery!

Handmade Revolution?

Third time lucky?  Newbie blogger here, getting to grips with how to avoid loosing my posts!

Yesterday I drove north up the M5 to a Holiday Inn for an audition for a TV show pilot.  A few weeks ago I had come across the following on the BBC website:

Are you passionate about your craft? Would you like a chance to present your work to some of Britain’s most discerning masters and makers?  Paul Martin’s Handmade Revolution needs you!  The producers of BBC Two’s hit show Flog It! are on the hunt for hidden talent. We’re searching for the brightest and best British designer-makers to take part in our new BBC Two series.  We’re looking for amateur designer-makers to take part in this brand new TV series.

What was I thinking?  I have no desire to be on TV.  I had grown up with tales of how my grandmother had appeared on an American TV Show in the 1960s, when she was living in New York (called ‘Say When’).  She had a winning streak, and along with winning the likes of a fur coat, a yacht, and a puppy, she also won a large quantity of nappies (diapers) and tins of ham, which we were still eating years later!  But I digress.  I had no desire to be on TV.  Oddly as I drove north, I listened to a CD of the late, great, Alistair Cooke, talking in the 1950s about early day time TV.  An omen?

I found my way to an unpromising, modern, out of town hotel, and struggled to the door with my three craft items for inspection.  A surreal scene, as I seemed to the onlooker to be gate-crashing a wedding reception, with men loitering by the entrance looking very uncomfortable in hired morning suits.  Things looked up once I found the others taking part.  We soon got chatting as we waited, and the common thread seemed to be that none of us wanted to be on TV!

What a great day.  A chance to meet other like-minded crafters.  From the vegan taxidermist, to the steam punks, knitting kits, crochet and carvings.  Lovely tales from all about the calming effect we get from pursuing our passions.  Tales of difficulties overcome,  inspiration to keep going when life throws you a curved ball.  A humbling experience, and much food for thought, one such being to get on with the blog I’ve vaguely thought about doing!  What a lovely crowd of people.  We were all told we had done well to get this far.  I think one in six of us will go through to filming, and I for one have no concerns whether I do or don’t.

I do think there is a Handmade Revolution quietly going on.  The internet is making it so much easier to share skills and ideas.  Times are hard for many, but much enjoyment can be had from making your own, and it doesn’t have to cost much except your time.  Thankfully daytime TV is better than Alistair Cooke’s 1950s description, and Paul Martin’s Hademade Revolution will hit our screens this autumn.

Thanks for reading, and let me know of other blogs I might like.

Hello world!

Ok here goes!  I’ve taken the plunge and decided to go for it.  Blogging here I come.  My brother would have been proud.

This will be my out-pourings about my adventures in textiles, with occasional diversions into music etc.

My daughter thinks I’m a bit mad, there is currently wool everywhere, bags with fleece, a first for them but not me.  Wool in the freezer even!  Makes a change from all the patchwork & quilting stuff which they are used to already.  I have dithered about bloggin for some time, but yesterday I decided to go for it.  Yesterday was worth blogging about, so more on that later …..