Tools a beginner might not think of

[gypsylakat]

Hi everyone,
I posted about using makeshift tools for eyelet creation in another thread since I lack an awl. This comment made me think- I wonder what other tools I'm missing that would make everything so much easier? The sewing tools and notions aisles are always a little mystical/overwhelming and I was wondering what tools were game changers for more experienced stitchers that a newbie might not know about or have considered?

[Trillium]

Seam ripper, rotary cutter and mat (life saver for slippery fabrics!), soft measuring tape.  My stepmom has a nifty little thing that is an open circle that is just wide enough to store your bobbins in.  They won't roll around and unroll the thread and get tangled but you can easily see what colors you have and store empty ones.  I definitely want one!  if you can get a seam ripper with a bigger handle it will be helpful when you have a lot to remove.  You won't get as much hand cramping.

(I don't have an awl either, need one at some point.  I use the tip of my seamripper to make a hole and a chopstick to widen holes.)

[gypsylakat]

Seam ripper, rotary cutter and mat (life saver for slippery fabrics!), soft measuring tape.  My stepmom has a nifty little thing that is an open circle that is just wide enough to store your bobbins in.  They won't roll around and unroll the thread and get tangled but you can easily see what colors you have and store empty ones.  I definitely want one!  if you can get a seam ripper with a bigger handle it will be helpful when you have a lot to remove.  You won't get as much hand cramping.

(I don't have an awl either, need one at some point.  I use the tip of my seamripper to make a hole and a chopstick to widen holes.)

I actually have most of those things!
I never use the little bobbin thingy because I don't have enough bobbins to use it- I just throw them in the little tray on my machine.
The fancy seam ripper I picked up over the weekend and it was an AMAZING experience- it has a little jelly handle and is twice as sharp as the one that came with my hand me down machine.
Rotary cutter and mat is on my list of things to get as well- I am AWFUL at cutting fabric in nice straight lines, I don't really understand how it is possible with scissors.

Random thing I would add?
APRON with a pocket.
I am AWFUL about putting my scissors down and covering them in fabric or pattern pieces, same with my measuring tape. I came across a gardening apron in my stash of aprons (I mostly have hostess aprons) and made a conscious effort to put both items in my pocket while not in use. I only lost my tape TWICE- that's a new record!

[isabelladangelo]

I actually have one those shelves with hooks in my sewing room.  Mine is from Ikea.  I keep most of the trim in boxes up on the shelf part and put the scissors on the hooks.  The way my shelf is, I also run a dowel across the hooks that holds a lot of different ribbons.   Another good thing - one of those thread spool holders that you can screw into a wall.  Very, very helpful since you have all the thread out but organized.  My nephews love that I have a rainbow of thread.  :-)

For actual tools, the only thing I might suggest is a big eye needle for beading.  I always lose mine but they aren't expensive and they work really well for spazzy threads and fibers.   

Really, scissors, a needle, and cotton thread will get you through almost any project.

If you are just trying to cut straight lines, any even weave fabric is very easy to rip.  I do this for most linens and cottons - just make a small snip at the selvage and then tear across the grain.  This makes life easy for any chemises you need to cut out as those are all rectangles and squares. 

[Rowan MacD]

   A good Bodkin for elastic and waist band drawstring threading. A safety pin will do in a pinch, but it really helps to have the proper tool for the job.
   One of those long hooks with a handle for turning narrow tube projects; like straps and ties, and to pull drawstrings through very narrow channels.

[isabelladangelo]

   A good Bodkin for elastic and waist band drawstring threading. A safety pin will do in a pinch, but it really helps to have the proper tool for the job.
   

I use a drinking straw.  :-)  Cut it to about 4", slide the ribbon through the straw, pin it to the straw, and just push the straw through.  Cheap and it works much better than the safety pin. 

[Rowan MacD]

Noting that for the next time I'm stuck on the road with no bodkin!

[gem]

Get yourself an awl (it should be much wider at the base than the point). You will find ENDLESS uses for it. I have at least three. They're not hard to find, although I haven't gotten around to picking up a wooden or bone one yet.

My favorite new "how did I live without this?" notion is a scalpel-type seam ripper. It is a GAZILLION times faster than a traditional seam ripper (although the blade is not as strong; it slices rather than snaps the threads). If you do any kind of re-fashioning (not just sewing from scratch) or serge any of your seams, you will LOVE this thing!

I also have a lot of different varieties of pins and (hand-sewing) needles. Silk pins with glass heads are long and sharp and can pin tricky fabrics like velvet without leaving a mark. Short thick pins with colored-ball heads are sturdy enough to pin through canvas without bending. Quilt pins are good for holding long layers together. I prefer tiny, thin sharp needles for hand-sewing, but some applications call for something a little larger and sturdier... and it's nice to have a heavy, blunt tapestry needle on hand for things like sewing yourself up into mockups or threading ribbons into things... just stuff.

I also HIGHLY recommend learning how to use a thimble (it goes on the middle finger of your dominant hand, to push the blunt end of the needle through thick layers). You *really* don't want to stab yourself with that blunt end! I use a leather full thimble with a metal pad inside the tip, but there are gads of varieties--you just need to experiment with what's comfortable and fits you.

Here's more of a trick than a notion... I just discovered that I can pin directly into my carpeted floor, making pattern/fabric cutting a lot easier. I don't have a cutting table, and it's hard to use a rotary cutter to good effect on carpet (you really need a flat, solid surface), but pinning right into the floor leaves no marks in the carpet, holds both layers securely, and avoids the distortion possible with scissors.

The one thing I am yearning for... a *really* long (at least 40") ruler that's actually straight, for hemming skirts. (I have a couple of cheap wooden yardsticks that, aside from being too short for my skirt length, are slightly warped.)

[Stuben]

The one thing I am yearning for... a *really* long (at least 40") ruler that's actually straight, for hemming skirts. (I have a couple of cheap wooden yardsticks that, aside from being too short for my skirt length, are slightly warped.)

Home Depot/Lowes usually carries flat aluminum strips that would work really well for that.

[Hoowil]

I don't remember where I got it, but I have a steel yard stick that I could not do without. Awls are worth their weight in gold. The one I found is about 4 inches of point, and is about half an inch around at the base, with a very sharp point.
As for the bobbin box, its worth it, especially when dealing with a bunch of different colors. I'd suggest getting one, and filling it with empties. I really dislike not being able to find the one for what I'm working on, or having to strip a full one to start a new color.
The odd random thing that helps me pretty often in a good pair of tweezers. Better than my fat fingers for changing needles, or for fixing the rather fowl prone auto-threader on my machine.

[gem]

The odd random thing that helps me pretty often in a good pair of tweezers. Better than my fat fingers for changing needles, or for fixing the rather fowl prone auto-threader on my machine.

ITA!! I have a pair of tweezers in EVERY ONE of my sewing and needlework boxes, plus the super-long angled ones that came with my serger (which have turned out to be more useful than the serger itself!). I also really like the locking forceps I picked up once for some reason I can't now recall.

***
Here's a DIY one that I use CONSTANTLY: Hemming templates. I took acid free cardstock and marked 1/2", 5/8", and other common hem depths all the way across. I just lay it atop whatever I'm trying to hem, fold up to match the marked line, and press. Infinitely faster than measuring & marking!  I like this method so much that when hemming the awkward curve on my English fitted gown, I made templates for pressing those, as well! (We just reorganized our bedroom, and the ironing station got moved around a bit. I made a deliberate point of showing Milord my cardstock hemming templates and explaining what they were and saying, "If you ever stumble across this, IT'S NOT TRASH. Don't accidentally recycle it!" LOL)

[stonebiscuit]

On the subject of rulers, my folding carpenter's ruler was a game-changer for me. I tend to live in shared spaces where crafting space is at a premium, so having a ruler that I can fold out to 9' for use and then store at 12" has been delightful.

[Rani Zemirah]

I never use the little bobbin thingy because I don't have enough bobbins to use it- I just throw them in the little tray on my machine.

Don't.. have.. enough... bobbins?       Well, there's your mistake, right there!  lol  I probably have 40-50 of the little beggers, and I usually still can't find the one I'm looking for!  I believe I need a few of those bobbin boxes for myself!  I do really like having lots of extra bobbins, though, because I can load more than one for a big project, and not have to take time away from the actual sewing to stop and reload one... and I can load all of the different colors I'll be using before I even start sewing, and that cuts down on the "fiddling around" time, as well. 

I also have one of the thread display boards that hang on the wall, but I don't have it mounted in my studio, yet.  It's second hand (as are many of my wonderful studio accessories), not very large, and 8 of the 69 dowel pegs have been broken off, but I believe I may be able to repair it if I can dig the ends out of the board.  I have tons of thread that a friend gave me after her mother passed... but it was stored in one of those clear plastic zippered comforter bags, and some of it has unraveled enough to create a good size snarl!  I've worked on about 1/3 of it, but I need to cut the rest free and see what's still salvageable.  I think it's going to take a whole drawer unit to store it so that I can find what I'm looking for, though... there are at least 300 spools, or more.  Some of it is older, and may no longer be usable...but some of it is very good thread, indeed, and should be stored where it can be easily used.  I don't have a lot of accessible wall space, though, so hanging it where it can all been seen at once isn't really an option.  I think I need something sort of like a revolving tie rack, only for thread.  Hmmmm... I might have to look into that! 

[Butch]

I no longer use my bobbin boxes; if they ever got spilled out (why that NEVER happens!) it was a mess.  I now have these doughnut-looking thingees that are made from either rubber or soft plastic.  I have red and blue (my older machines use a different sized bobbin than my more recent machines).  These doughnuts hold the bobbins securely, and one can readily see the thread color.  Get one of these and see what you think!

For my rotary cutter, I use a half sheet of masonite on the floor.  It's big and smooth, and gets put into our laundry room when not in use.  I also use it for pinning.

I recently went to a steel yardstick vice a wooden one for measuring and cutting.

Something I could use more of:  BRIGHT LIGHT!

[LadyStitch]

One thing that I got that I love is my tackle box.  Laugh if you will but I have gotten more use out of this tackle box.  What is different is that it is made of closeable diviable trays.  Not just open top containers.  I have a heavy duty pocket for sissors.  I have compartments for hook and eyes, buttons, tweesers,  pearls, paint brushes, ect.  If I was in a pinch, I can grab it, and my sewing machine and be out the door in 5 minutes if need be.  Another thing that is nice is that if I have to clean up quickly everything is in one thing.  It also keeps little hands from getting into things they shouldn't. 

As for bobins, there is a fishing tackle box tray that holds sinkers.  The little boxes in the tray are the right size to hold most bobbins.  Since it snaps closed you don't have to worry about them going flying if you knock the table, or if you have to throw them in your sewing kit quickly.