Peep Holes etc...

I am a gadget nut!!! I love to have and use every tool and gadget that I can get my hands on. I have to have multiples of some. I have several rotary cutters (after all they come in different styles, sizes and colors) and I have quite a collection of scissors ( I have a seldom seen buttonhole scissors and another designed especially to cut knit fabrics ). If someone sells a tool for quilting...I have to have one, (or more )!!!

As much as I love owning every tool I can find to do a particular job, I love even more to find tools that aren't meant to be quilting tools that are useful in some aspect of quilting. Here are a few of my favorites:

*Bed Risers. If your back is getting achy after spending time at your cutting table, perhaps your cutting surface is not at the correct height for you. Many, many quilters use their kitchen table to cut their quilting projects out. Try a set of bed risers. You can get them from mail order catalogs such as Walter Drake and Miles Kimble or at your neighborhood Walgreens. They come in a set of four for about twenty dollars and are made to be put under each leg of a bed frame to raise the bed. If you put one under each leg of your table, they raise it to a more comfortable height for cutting. If you're more comfortable, more cutting can be accomplished!!!

*Tool Bowls. I was with my husband shopping in a tool store and I spotted a metal bowl with a strong magnet in it. These are used in garages or shops to hold nuts, bolts, screws and small tools so they don't scatter. I bought two different sizes. One is two and a half inches in diameter and the other is four inches in diameter. These make the best pin holders!! Just be careful not to get them too close to a computer or computerized sewing machine.

*Peep Holes. You're going to love this one! Go to your local hardware store and buy a peep hole. Yes, a peep hole that you would put in a door so you could see who is there without opening the door. If you look at your quilt or quilt project through the peep hole you can view your whole quilt without having to be a mile away!!!

Have fun with your new gadgets and as always,

Happy Quilting!

Laurel