madamekelly

I bought a package of "proxa brushes" (in the toothbrush aisle) to use for getting into little areas of the bobbin race to remove lint. They work great and do not "shed" like the smaller paint brushes I was using.

madamekelly

I just use the back of an antique silver tablespoon. Works great.

ArchaicArcane

This is the one that most people comment on when they step into my studio:

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It's a pot holder rack meant for the kitchen. No room in my house has ceilings high enough for it, but it works well over the cutting table because I don't have to walk under it. It's a little sword of damocles-ish though when I leave a rotary cutter open and hung up there.

mom-6

I use cinder blocks under each leg to raise my folding table to a comfortable cutting height.

SueSew

Years ago I gave my son a big long magnet with a sturdy plastic handle, for some science project. I now use it to scoop pins off the floor and the table.

tessagin

I got a small tool box to keep my tools such as all the above in one spot. If you have old razor blades and wrap one end you can use them instead of a seam ripper. Exacto knives work well also. Mechanics telescopic mirrors with the magnetic tips are great for picking p pins.

GingerK

ArchaicArcane I LOVE your 'tool holder' At first glance, it reminded me of the scene in Twister where they try to shelter in a barn but it is full of hanging (and swinging) scythes etc. I will try the Chapstick on thread. Hard to find Thread Heaven in Canada.

I use a long carpenter's tape measure to square up my quilts. If the diagonal dimensions are the same, the quilt is square. I use kids' colouring books for simple applique designs.

ArchaicArcane

LOL! I know that scene! I just had the wind (one of the first times I've been able to open the window this year!) make it start swaying. Good thing I have all those blocks in the way to amuse the wind before it gets to the sharp stabby things.

I find raising the humidity helps a lot with misbehaving threads. It dropped to 19% this winter and I had no end of trouble. I raised it (It took 2 humidifiers and a water fountain running!) to 40% and my problems went away. I suspect the low humidity sucks moisture from the thread and makes it brittle. I got a clue to that in an old Elna owner's manual. It said something to the effect of if your thread is breaking, put it in an open window over night and it will regain its strength overnight. I wasn't about to start leaving the window open but humidity is the main thing that would affect the thread. I don't own a bottle of thread conditioner of any kind, and I'm in the arid prairies.

lass

I use toilet paper and paper towel holders for freezer paper, patterns that I have enlarged or made. I had a dowel that broke on an angle. I smoothed it down, still angled and use it to press seams.

mirish2

I use a white plastic disposable teaspoon for threading my sewing machine. I hold it behind the needle and it helps me to see the eye.