jackie o.

I do this also. Saw it on TV (I think it was Mark Lipinkski's idea??). It definitely works. You don't have to bend over your maching to see where you're going. Best dollar I've spent, and you can adjust the height to suit your needs.

jackie o.

Has anyone actually used the blades from Harbor Freight? I've read on other forums that they don't cut very well. Even new out the package, most users claim they cut as though they're used (such things as skipping, etc.).

Just wondering if anyone's had experience (good or bad) using these to cut fabric.

littlehud

What great tips. I'm loving this thread.

GrammaNan

I use a telescoping magnet, purchased at an auto parts store for $2.99, and use it to pick up pins, safety pins and metal bobbins. This way I don't have to get up from my chair and bend down or crawl under to pick them up. Also, if I am pinning or sewing on carpet, I sweep the area with the magnet to find any lost pins so that my husband doesn't find them with his bare feet.

Yarn or Fabric

I use chopsticks for my corner pokers - not too sharp, not too rounded, just right :D

I also use Altoid tins to keep my bobbins in - perfect height for them.. I also use the Altoid tins for lots of other things - pins, safety pins, etc.

A piece of vinyl material on the floor to keep my pedal from scooting.

A kiddie coat/hat rack to hang my scissors from.

I'll have to think of the other oddities I use that aren't sold in the craft store lol.

brushandthimble

keep the ideas coming:)

ever have your spool jump off the top of your machine?
Cut a straw so that it sticks out past your spool, no more runaway spools.

tooMuchFabric

Now if we could just harness the creative energies in this board, we'd be to the moon already, and no cancer anywhere!!

BKrenning

My cutting table is a kitchen island with a tile top. It is just a little larger than 36" square on top. I laid an old cutting mat over the tile and under my newer mat so I don't feel the grooves when I cut on my newer mat. The 36" size is just perfect to be able to reach what I'm working on from all 4 sides without having to move my material or blocks around on the mat. Also, the drawers are perfect for storing rotary cutters, blades and smaller templates. Below the drawers are regular cabinet doors where my scrap fabric, scrap batting, and orphan blocks are hidden. There might be a UFO or 2 in there also. It's my perfect cutting table & it cost $0. It was a rescue from a kitchen remodel.

Painters Tape works wonderfully for marking qrid lines & crosshatching for quilting lines.

deedum

Love the idea of the worm! How cleaver!Thanks for sharing,as soon as I think of one I will post!

grannyQ

My DH purchased PVC pipe and cut four pieces and put the end caps on them and inserted them into a 6' long table legs for me to make it the right height for me to use as a cutting table. No more back aches when I'm cutting fabric.

toomuchfabric--I really like the doiley you have for you avitiar. Where did you get the pattern?