I use an altoids tin -- very minimal and only what I need when mobile, which is: tiny scissors, a bobbin or two of thread, a lump of bee's wax, a wad of painter's tape, a needle book, a needle threader, the broken off business end of a seam ripper, 3 flat head pins, and a toothpick.
The handwork I do is pretty much bindings, applique, and and paper piecing, and those are my must-have items for those techniques. Otherwise I need my room full o' stuff and no mere sewing box will do.
bee3 -- curious about the small needle point pin cushion with star motif on left, center in your photo -- looks like handwork that we used to see in a shop in Jerusalem -- do you know the origins of yours?