So this is the scenario…you’re stranded on a deserted
island that somehow has electricity and running water because coffee is a
must. What are the ten quilting
tools you must have to survive; given the fact that you’re fabric stash has
somehow made it to this deserted island with you?
That question was bandied about a few months ago on a
website that I frequent. And it caused
me to think hard about what I use most in my little quilting world. So, without further ado, here’s my list. And per usual, I couldn’t settle for ten, so
here’s eleven.
1. A Good
stiletto. I have a metal one and a
wooden one and I like the wooden one best.
It has more uses. It has a little
pressing aid on one end and the stiletto part is one the other. It can be used
for applique as well as for holding seams steady as you feed them through the
sewing machine.
2. Toothpicks. I cannot applique without them, whether I’m
doing needle turn or freezer paper, or Mylar applique, I have to have
them. And while we’re talking about
toothpicks, the ones from Cracker Barrel are my favorite. You can buy them at their restaurant stores,
as well as a handy-dandy case to put them in.
3. Titanium Sewing Machine Needles. These are fairly new in the sewing world and
they are more expensive but they are worth every extra penny. They last longer and sew better.
4. Roxanne Hand Sewing Needles. I’ve tried them all – John
James, Singer, etc., but I like Roxanne’s the best. The eye is big enough it can be threaded
fairly easily and they glide….glide…
through fabric. Plus the case they come
in is adorned with cute, little seashells.
5. Good Sewing Thread. This is a must, for both hand sewing and
machine sewing. In either case, it
doesn’t break, it makes a wonderful looking stitch, and it’s better for your machine. My favorite thread suppliers are Aurofil and
Superior, but always use long staple cotton thread. It doesn’t lint up your machine. As far as hand applique thread, there are
cotton threads and silk threads. My
favorite is cotton thread because it doesn’t slip out of the eye of the needle
as easy as silk thread, but I do use both, depending on the look I want with my
applique.
6. A Good
Sewing Machine. Notice
I didn’t say expensive, just good and dependable. Nothing is more frustrating than sitting down
to sew and having to spend half your time dealing with machine issues – skipped
stitches, obstinate bobbin cases, bad tension.
I strongly suggest that you purchase your machine from a local dealer
because if you do buy it from a big box store or from a dealer on line, guess
what? If you have issues with the
machine, you’re going to have to ship it somewhere to have it fixed. A local
dealer will have a technician that can service and repair your machine. That means you’ll have it back in your hands
in a week, verses a month or more. And
while yes, I do have a top of the line machine that I sunk good money in, and
it does hundreds of stitches, you don’t have to start that way. All you need is a good machine that has a
straight stitch and a zig zag stitch (for machine applique).
Once you have a good machine, be sure
to change the needle after eight hours of sewing (you can go longer with the
titanium needles) and clean it regularly.
7. Sharp
Scissors and Rotary Cutters and Rulers. Nothing is worse than a dull pair of
scissors or a rotary cutter. Buy good
quality ones. Use them only for cutting
fabric. Buy cheap scissors for cutting
paper. Change the blades in your rotary
cutter when they begin to skip or when they’re nicked. I also like to have a couple of different
sizes of each. Small scissor are great
for hand sewing and taking to class. Larger ones work better for cutting chunks
of fabric. The same goes with rotary
cutters. Ninety-five percent of the time
I use a 45 mm. rotary cutter, but I have found a smaller one works much better
cutting around templates.
Ditto with the rulers. By good quality rulers (and mats). I have a large rulers and a large mat that
stays on my cutting table at home and smaller rulers and mats that go with me
to class. They all take a beating, but
hold up well.
8. Good Quality Basting Glue. I honestly don’t hand baste much any
longer. Once I was introduced to basting
glue, it was an immediate love affair.
It’s faster and basting glue has come such a long way. My favorite is Quilter’s Choice. Once applied to fabric and pressed, the
material is not going to move. The
biggest plus about this product is that it dries soft.
9. Soft Fuse. I was introduced to this product two years
ago. Up to that point, I used another
fusible web, but had to do a great deal of “window paning” on my machine
applique projects in order to keep them pliable. Even after it’s pressed onto the applique
piece and the applique piece is pressed onto the background, the product lives
up to its name – it’s soft.
10. My Groups. I love my quilting buddies and couldn’t live
without them. I don’t have any sisters,
so these women have filled that void. We
have stitched together through good times and bad; gains and losses; projects
we’ve loved and projects that have not been so loved. They’ve been a great source of inspiration
and constructive criticism. I belong to
three bees and two guilds and in some cases these women overlap. These women have been a wonderful support
system and I couldn’t live without them.
So these women would have to be on that deserted island with me.
11. The Internet. Hey…the island has running
water and electricity, so why not at least an internet hot spot?
Years ago, in the mid-seventies when
quilting was enjoying a resurgence due to our country’s bicentennial, loose
groups began to form via the United States Postal Service. Newsletters were mimeographed and sent out.
Often times Round Robin types of patterns were established, with one quilter
starting a pattern and sending it to the next quilter, who would add their
comments and pass it along to the next.
By the eighties, one of these became a slick magazine called Quilters Newsletter, and was soon joined
by several other quilting magazines.
As the nineties began and technology
began to grow by leaps and bounds, these publications automatically began web
pages. Businesses that sold quilting
supplies developed on-line stores.
Quilters could purchase items on line and have them shipped out to them
the next day, verses filling out an order form and mailing it in and having to
wait weeks. Now you have on-line
quilting groups, blogs, patterns that are downloadable, and Pinterest. Sewing machines have groups and certain
quilts (like Dear Jane) have groups, and even certain techniques (such as
hexies) have groups.
And that’s not even counting Facebook,
which has connected quilters across the world.
If there’s a problem or question with a
machine or pattern or fabric or anything else quilting related, all it takes is
a few keystrokes, a click of a mouse, and it can be posted. Within hours (maybe even minutes), you can
have your answer.
How did we ever live without it?
In my opinion the internet is the
greatest tool quilters have.
So, this deserted island is now up for
grabs. What would you take?
Love and Stitches,
Sherri
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