nightgowns, slippers, and robes/housecoats! :D :( :shock:

I have been known to wear holes in the end of metal thimbles.

More things to get rid of:

Marking pencils that are impossible to sharpen. I swear the "lead" breaks every 1/4 inch. Why do I even try after the fifth break?

Dried up glue and/or glue sticks. I don't think I can rejuvenate them by spritzing them with water - can I?

Pens that are almost out of ink and barely write.

Scissors that have been dropped and the points are knocked off or the blades are gouged.

great to know about the oil, Never knew that could happen, the evaporation. Funny about the needles too. I only replace when it gets bent. I do a lot of hand sewing and use the same needle and when I loose it, I need a new one and of course, the old one was dull, but you never realize how dull till you get a new one out. I'm bad with rotary cutter blades too. put a new one in and the cat knocked it on the floor, and it got a ding. I wasn't going to let that stop me. I kept on using that dinged blade til I couldn't stand it any longer. stubbornness on my part.

Can't you sharpen pins and needles in one of those special pin cushion things with the metal powder/shavngs in it?

I have finally learned to throw out machine needles, frequently!

But hand needles have never thrown out, just lose them somewhere. Stuck in an old spool of thread or the bottom of a little what-not dish.

Pins! I hate bent pins (oooh I NEVER let them get under the machine needle when sewing hehehe! oops!) But recently I noticed those long stiff flat-plastic-flower-tip expensive ones I had to buy at the LQC for that Judy Neimier class have done discolored in places, look tarnished.

Mats - I accidently warped my favorite - got too close to iron. :(

Good topic - no one can make good progress with worn-out equipment!

You bring up some interesting points.
I never thought about rulers getting "bowed" etc.
The oil? I too have wondered if it goes bad but would forget
to look it up.
Surely didn't know it was made to evaporate. I have more than
one machine. That's GOOD info right there.
Fiskars makes a REALLY good, inexpensive scissor sharpening tool,
unless they have been sharpened a lot and the blades are getting
thin.
I learned about the product from a lady that cut fabric for a living.
She said she sharpened hers once a week.
I think we forget to do maintenance on some of our stuff sometimes.
Never thought about the bobbin "round". Thanks bear :)

This post has been very helpful to me. Thank you so much!

Interesting and useful information. I have machine oil.....but I have never oiled my machine. Really didn't know what to do there, so now I am going to how to and all later. Thanks for that tip!