I have one of the giant tomato pincushions sitting next to the right side of my sewing machine. I use pins more often while sewing clothing, but I still need it there while piecing. A big pincushion is preferred so I can find it without looking-- just jab the pin in the cushion without slowing down the machine. The magnetic pin dishes never worked as well for me, sometimes the pins would fall off or I would miss it altogether.
My newest pin-tomato is extra large, but isn't very flat on the the bottom, so I started resting it on a china ramekin dish. I fill the dish with extra pins and my tailor's chalk.