New Tool Monday:Oh The Places You'll Sew

Oh, the Places You'll Sew

If you haven't heard, we are super excited at OTS about grandson Joshua's upcoming nuptials in the Czech Republic this July. With this being said, his mom Nanci is heading to Europe to celebrate. She is planning on taking a travel quilting/sewing kit with her, so we thought we'd let her share some of her favorite traveling tools today.

Thread Heaven- One of our favorite tools

The first tool is Thread Heaven although I just found out that the company is no longer making it. I would therefore be the first to tell you if you see this in a store, BUY IT!!! I never thought hand-sewing without a thread conditioner was a big deal, but after using this for four years, I must say I won't hand-sew without it. It keeps your thread from knotting, strengthens it and helps to make hand- sewing way easier.

I am so serious about this that on a trip I had everything I needed to work on an embroidery project, but I had left my Thread Heaven at home. I ended up not sewing as the frustration level would not have been worth it. I cannot recommend this enough, so be sure to get some when you can find it.

Makes threading sew much simpler!

The second item I want need to use is a needle threader. This one from Clover is available all over the place and works like magic. It works for regular thread as well as embroidery thread which is super helpful when your eyes aren't quite what they used to be.

Sew Many Colors!

I have to admit, I  am kind of a thread snob. I used to not care at all then I was introduced to Aurafil Thread. My attitude towards thread has totally changed after trying it. It is fine but strong and 100% cotton. It comes in a bunch of different colors and is what I used for almost all of my sewing and piecing.

As for needles, I have an assortment of different brands and sizes that I take with me. I don't have a particular brand that is my favorite, but I do like to have a variety of sizes to be ready for whatever I may have to sew. When we were on a recent trip to Virginia one of the suitcases busted a seam, so I just pulled out my travel kit and sewed it right up. I was thrilled to see it was still in place when we got back to Oregon!

A Snip Here, A Snip There

I generally don't take a large pair of scissors with me. What I do take are my Snip-A-Stitch Snip Scissors made by Havel's. I like them because they are lightweight, easy to pack and perfect for snipping all kinds of thread. I really think they are the perfect travel scissors.

And a place to store it all!

I love my travel bags! I've had these for a while as they were a gift from my oldest daughter when she worked at Greenbaum's Quilted Forest. I actually have a couple of sets. I use one for all of my toiletries and the large one of this set for my travel sewing kit. Called The Elephant and I, and designed by Jennifer Sampou, it's still available from C&T Publishing. It's big enough to hold all my supplies plus a project or two depending on what I am working on plus it is so bright and cheerful.

 Feel free to share with us as we are always looking to expand our collection of sewing goodies, gadgets and tools. We'd love to see what projects you like to take places as well! 

Monday- New Tool Review

With all the measuring and marking that goes on during quilting and sewing, it's important to have the "write" tools! I wanted to share a few of the tools that make it easier for us to do what we do.

A few inky helpers

The first are the water soluble/erasable markers. These have been around for a long time, but they still work well on finer fabrics as well as light colored fabrics. The only issue with these is that they tend to dry out quickly, so you need to be sure to keep the lid on when not using them.

Hi-Oh Silver Quilter's Pencil

This is the first official marking pencil I was given about 25 years ago. Jeanette used it on a wedding dress she was making last week, and it worked really well. I like to use it for embroidery as it gives a nice defined line that is easy to see on both light and dark fabric.

FriXion Pens don't cause us any friction

These FriXion pens are the newest marking tools in the arsenal. With a wide assortment of colors, they are great for any color of fabric. They come off with heat, so they're great for marking binding or other pieces that you'll be ironing when you're finished sewing.

Pressing with the Best (Press, that is)

Okay, so these are obviously not writing or marking tools, but I thought I'd give you a little bonus review. I know Jeanette's been using Mary Ellen's Best Press for a long time, but I hadn't tried them as I have been trying to finish my can of spray sizing that I have had for a long time. When my daughter, Carissima, went off to college, she left me her bottles of Best Press. I must admit as soon as I used it, my can of sizing was relegated to the back of the shelf. This is a wonderful item! It's great on everything from fine fabrics to quilts to embroidery. If you haven't tried it yet, be sure to get some today.

We're sew glad you stopped by OTS for our tool review today! Next week, I'll be sharing about the importance of thread and what we use here in the studio.

Flashback Friday- Vacation Edition

We got to spend Mother's Day
with some of the family in Grants Pass
before Jeanette headed out to California

                                  

Since Jeanette's down in California this week for Whitney's graduation from USC, I thought I'd do a little sharing of some projects I've been working on both at On The Stitch and in my own studio, Piccolo Di Luce. I promise next week we'll have more of what's been going on at OTS!

Some little embroidered animals

I like to do handwork as it gives me something to do while watching the latest BBC costume dramas. These adorable little animals are from Penguin & Fish. I'll be putting them onto baby bonnets for grand nieces soon as they are too cute not to use as part of a bigger project.

Log Cabin Linen Photo Pillow

And speaking of nieces, this is a linen photo pillow I designed as a gift for the most recent niece wedding. It's done in a variety of linen sewn in a log cabin pattern. I'm planning on doing some quilting on it before popping into the mail for the happy couple.

Embroidered Baby Quilt Label

I also made this baby quilt over the last few weeks to send back to Thomas More College in NH for a couple who are expecting their first baby. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson-Briggs are a very special couple who teach The Way of Beauty course to freshman including my daughter Mary, so I knew they needed a special baby quilt. I hand embroidered all the squares and then sashed them using vintage cotton strips that had been hand sewn. I finished with a mustard border, and more vintage strips for the binding. The label was the final touch, and I think it turned out really great.

So the last couple of things I wanted to share weren't made by me, but they are so fantastic I had to show you. If you haven't tried a craft or quilt swap, then you really must. These items were from my Narnia Craft Swap partner. She sent a plethora of Narnia-related items that are just wonderful. You can find all sorts of swaps online from aprons to crafts to quilts. Be sure to check them out!

Thanks for stopping by our Flashback Friday and for letting me share some things I've been working on. We'd love to see some of your creations too, so be sure to share with us in the comment section!