today's pondering
 

I start working on a quilt that will be all hand sewn and it's unbelievable how much my mind wanders on things while I'm doing this.

So while sewing today it dawned on me how all the pincushions today are made from all sorts of things, like batting, walnut shells, straw and all the many other things that go into them.

What is so strange is that over the many years (about 50) that I've been sewing, I have always hear that if your sewing needle gets a little dull you can poke it into a wad of extra fine steel wool and it will sharpen it. SO that got me to thinking.

Why aren't they made with the steel wool in them so you will be sharpening the needles every time you stick it in the pincushion?
I'm think about making one stuffed with the extra fine steel wool and see how it works out.
What's you thought on the subject?

Is it possible that the steel wool end may stick through the fabric? Worth a try though.

Do you really need to sharpen it every time you use it. I always thought that the little strawberry on top was the sharpener.

not sure but I won't know until I try I may have to use an extra layer of fabric that has a tighter weave to it maybe a scrap of silk lining or something similar

they use to be but now they are made out of the same stuff as the tomato, they use to have a fine sand in them.

They used to sell pin cushions shaped like tomatoes, with an attached little one shaped like a strawberry. The strawberry was for sharpening -- I'd guess it had steel wool or something similar, as you described.

Either the steel wool was too expensive to use for the big cushion, or maybe it doesn't hold the pins in place well?

I think I've tried every pincushion there is. From steel wool to emery and wool.
So far my favorite is wool. I can leave my pins in there and it won't rust plus
it seems to get more lubrication from the lanolin in the wool.
Emery is good for sharpening, so is steel wool but I won't leave my pins in there
all the time. I prefer emery to steel wool because it won't rust.
If there's some humidity the steel wool will probably rust.

Edit: Forgot to mention that those little strawberries they sell now are completely
useless. Like someone said before I think they put straw or something instead
of emery. Don't waste your money on those. If you want emery, buy it at the
hardware store or on Etsy.

The crushed walnut shells, though not as fine as emery, are used for basically the same thing, to smooth off little burrs from your pins and needles. You can find it at any pet store. I also make pincushions from bars of soap. Leave the paper wrapper on, then cut strips of fabric that are as wide as the widest point of the bar. Then wrap the strips around a couple times covering both the sides and the ends and tie with a pretty bow on the top. Pins and needles glide through fabric. I prefer the flat bars of soap, like Ivory or Dial and not the curved ones like Dove. Or if you have a soap that has a favorite fragrance, that works, too. As the pins and needles go into the soap, it will gradually break the bar into little pieces, but that takes a while.

I agree with EasyPeezy - wool is the way to go. Whenever I leave any pins in my large tomato cushion the pins rust so fast I have to discard them.

Pincushins HAVE been made with steel wool in them to sharpen needles. Go ahead and do it!