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I have a thingamajig...

I have a thingamajig...

Written by: 
cnelson
Published: 
Jun 9 2017 - 06:26

I've already used "I have a notion..." as the title for a blog post and of all the words listed as synonyms for "notion", this is the one I liked best.  I know.  You're shocked by that.

This was the United Notions booth at Spring Market in St. Louis.  It was a kitchen with a refrigerator and a stove!  As it probably is for some quilters, both were filled with quilty-stuff.  (Any candy and snacks were stashed elsewhere.)

As you already know, one of the perks of being here at Moda is getting to see and play with some of the new notions that United Notions carries.  The idea is that by using them, we know what works and what doesn't, what we like and what we think is really awesome - those things that you simply must know about!  It doesn't hurt that most of us do like thingamajigs, especially those that make some aspect of making quilts easier or more enjoyable.

Like binding.  I love hand-stitching down bindings.  I can't speak for everyone but I am picky about my needles.  Very picky.  So when I heard that Lisa Bongean of Primitive Gatherings was coming out with a line of needles, I was interested... but pretty sure I wouldn't be swayed.

I was wrong.  (It's not uncommon territory.) . These are Lisa's Binding Needles - they're about the length of a straw needle, have just a wee bit of bend and are probably somewhere around a Size 9.  In other words, they're perfect for binding.  Easy to thread, very sharp and just the right length - they worked beautifully for both double-fold and single-fold binding.

I'm not entirely sure what the basting needles are for... but if I ever need one, I'll get some of Lisa's.

I do know what the big-stitch quilting needles are for and since a small big-stitch quilting project is on my to do list...

I suppose there are some who really do need a dozen different sizes of needles but I'm not one of them.  These are perfect.  Thank you Lisa!

Speaking of binding, that age-thing means that more, better lighting is increasingly important.  I've tried a variety of lighting options and have yet to find the a solution that really works when I'm sitting in my favorite chair stitching.  So I was very interested to see this new hands-free lights.  Have you ever tried one?  This is the one that caught my attention - the Beam n Read.

I like the idea of it but I'm not sure about the idea of wearing this around my neck while trying to stitch.  Are they easy to use?  I do like that this one comes with filters to block "blue light", and has multiple settings for brightness.  But does it get in the way - that's what I'm really trying to figure out.  What do you think?

Do you use magnetic pincushions or pinbowls?  I confess to having and using both.  And I don't just use them in my sewing room, I have two on my desk right now, one with paperclips and the other t-pins for the bulletin board.  So I grabbed these new Mini Grabbits when I saw them!

And guess what?  They've already disappeared.  Someone grabbed my Grabbits!

I've been waiting for a couple of new rulers to arrive - more on them when they do - but it occurred to me that I never shared with you what some of the Moda designers use.  A few months back, I asked them what their favorite ruler was - size and type-brand, if they had a preference.  Here is what each replied:

Me?  I love my Olfa Frosted rulers, I have at least one in every size.  I use the 6.5" x 6.5" and 4.5" x 4.5" the most, followed closely by the 6" x 12".

Do you have a favorite - one that is always out on the cutting table... one that you probably have more than one... including a "just in case" spare?

Do you see that bottle on top of the refrigerator - to the right of the CHEF sign?

It's really cool - I love that it's red.  Sweet Theresa brought one over to me and :::poof::: it's disappeared.  So I'm issuing a BOLO for this Stainless Steel Quilter's Water bottle -

Or I'll just wait until there are more in the warehouse.

That's it for today - Friday.  It's a very rainy morning here in Dallas so it might be a good day to stay inside and bind a quilt work.  I have Cake Mix recipes to finish - more about the new Cake Mixes and Cupcakes soon.

Have a good weekend!

Posted in: 
Notions
Tagged: 
Notions, Olfa Frosted, Patchwork, Quilt, quilting, ruler, Sewing

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