Hi Patricia - I have a short arm on a frame, and I have had the same question lots of times. I have found that I can do a little backstitch or two, cut the thread and move to the next block. That way I don't have a lot of cleanup of hanging threads after I am done. Just move backward over a couple of stitches to secure your stitching, then cut. My machine has a thread cutter button, and it cuts top and bottom both. It's really convenient. If you don't have that, you can just pull the bobbin thread up again and cut them both before moving on. Easy!!