SandyQuilter

My strangest? A pap smear brush to clean out the hard-to-get- to places in my sewing machine.

Sandy

lillybeck

I use the containers that my testing strips come in for bobbins. Each one hold 6. You can have 6 ready in the same color and easy to find. I also use a piece of 4 by 4 that my hubby cut slanted for me to put my foot pedal against. Not only does it not go anywhere but, at the angle like that it relieves pressure on my hip and back. The difference was unbelievable.

BJ SewKkrazzy

Beads and charms from Bead stores.
Yarn from Yarn stores.
fishing threads from fly fishing stores.
trims from Scrapbooking stores.
Glue stick to hold down trims till I can sew them down.
Fishing tackle storage for all my buttons.
Water color pencils to add color on printed fabrics.
Computer to print pictures onto fabrics.
Stamps from scrapbooking stores, fun to imprint onto velvets.
I could probably come up with more...

marylynspr

I bought a small rectangular magnet about 1" wide, 1/4" thick and 3" long at Home Depot. It sticks to the face plate of the sewing machine, up tight against the presser foot and guides fabric right through the machine for perfect 1/4" seams. It also provides a place to stash pins as you remove them during sewing and picks up spilled pins all at once in a nano-second.

Hormel, Tyson and other brands of microwaveable beef tips, pot roast, etc. come in small plastic containers that are great for everything from needles to bobbins, scissors, seam rippers, pins, whatever. They're flat and rectangular and don't damage anything.

Two-gallon re-sealable plastic bags are great to store projects you will, one hopes. soon finish---you can see them and store pattern, fabrics, notions needed, etc. all in one place, ready to go when you are.

Foam-core poster board cuts easily with a box cutter, can usually be found at Dollar Stores and makes great core boards for wrapping long lengths of fabric just as the stores do but using less space than the 1/2" thick cardboard wrapping cores used in fabric stores.

I use a rectangular basket for small patterns and use a hanging sweater bag with five or six slots for freezer paper, fusible papers, template paper, bags of trim, projects waiting to be done, etc.

lynn7448

I use a eyebrow shaper blade as a stitch riper. You can get 2 of them in a package at the dollar store. They work great!

02ba quilter

coffe cup, Large heavy to hold pens, pencils, short ruler, scissors, awl, thang, anything else I want to grab when sewing.

QuiltingrandmafromMi

Empty plastic cold cut boxes to store bobbins

QuiltingrandmafromMi

A small magnet attached to my sewing machine, where I put my seam ripper, then it's always where I can find it!

Helenq

I use pipe cleaners to get the lint out of the bobbin case. Amazing what other things come out on it!!!!!!

crazythread

Needle nose pliers to pull needle thru when hand quilting