Date: 8 November 2014. Sewing Kit Saves Time.
All of us have probably developed some tricks for saving time and
making minor things easier to handle. For me, one is a simple little sewing
kit I made up a while back. I have found it quite useful over the span
of years. It's not fancy. It's not perfect but it is definitely good
enough. And mine is handy.
My kit is small so it fits into a drawer.
Because it is convenient to access I am far more likely to use it
than if I had to drag out my full blown sewing supplies. By being
handy, quite often it's tucked into my laundry bag when heading for dirt to
wash clothes. When folding my shirts often I spot a loose button or
some such issue that can be resolved immediately.
Years ago I'd stack stuff aside
for these mammoth repair sessions. They were always dreaded and
weighed on my mind because I knew it was "one more thing" undone. I
hated that! And now I don't have to worry about which white shirt
has a loose button. The problem has already been solved.

As a long-time worker with needles and thread
there are some specific pieces of advice passed down through our
family. The list includes:
-
Always buy good thread. The cheap
two-bit stuff breaks and if you're spending time to repair something
make sure it lasts. Definition of "good thread" would be something
along the lines of Coats and Clark.
-
Above, you'll note a spot of red
nail polish on the spool of thread. That shows me where the thread
notch is. I'm older than dirt and seeking that little spot
where the thread end resides was
always a pain in the transom. Now it's easy to find.
-
Also, I have one end of an old
shoe lace attached to my little orange kit. The other end feeds
through the spool of thread, is knotted and then I add another
safety pin so the spool won't slip out. That way always the thread is
right there and it won't walk away.
That process was started back when my darling daughter started sewing and for
some reason my supplies grew legs and somehow (?!?) turned up in her
sewing basket. This way I cannot misplace the spool of thread.
-
A couple of needles (I use
embroidery needles because
they have bigger eyes) along with a folding pair of scissors and I'm
all set for any emergency fabric repair.
Needle
Information |
Embroidery needles have a sharp point while needlepoint
needles have a blunt end to poke through the holes in
needlepoint fabrics. Both have a much larger eye than the
standard sewing version.
|
Regular needles have a very small eye to poke your thread
through. Quilting needles are shorter but otherwise the same
as regular ones.
|
You'd definitely want
embroidery needles
for hand sewing unless your
eyes are a lot more cooperative than mine. They are not
expensive.
Embroidery
needles are much easier to thread when the boat rocks too! |
Because this kit is compact I can
tuck it into my purse when going to the laundry ashore. An open seam (cheesecake is a
weakness) can be repaired immediately rather than set aside for
sewing time.
Fixing what I have saves money
too. It only takes a few moments when the necessary tools (needle
and thread) are so handy. I keep my kit in the top drawer of my
bookcase when not in use. By being available at a moment's notice
that loose button is fixed before it's lost. And something that
simple is always a good thing.
Aboard Seaweed fixing things as
they come up mean I don't get too overwhelmed. Frankly with all the
turmoil engine swaps entail, the ability to have some degree of
organization in my life helps enormously. And there is good news on
the engine swap front:
Last week the motor
mount mock-ups were taken into Tallahassee.
They have been built and soon enough will be seating my beautiful
Kubota.
The decision to go with a tractor motor and change it into a
marine engine is a complicated one. Transformation is not for
the faint-of-heart but it is possible, and economical. I'll be
sharing information on that process in a series of articles.
If you'd like to see where my 18hp Kubota came from visit
Yanmar Tractor Parts. They ship everywhere, so you don't
have to be a local -- in case you wondered.
|
Life continues and I'll let you in
on a secret: There's an enormous amount of pleasure one can get
sticking a sharp needle into cloth. I took it up (quilting
actually) back when my son turned into a teenager. I cannot describe
to you how very good it felt to poke a piece of fabric... but that's
another story for one of these days.
Are you a sewing basket kind of person, a sewing kit
character, or both?!?
Do you also have a sewing machine? I've got a
Singer Featherweight that I love.
COMMENTS:
Categories:
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Aphorism Alert: When told the reason for daylight
saving time the Old Indian said, "Only the Federal Government would
believe that you could cut a foot off the top of a blanket, sew it to the
bottom, and have a longer blanket." |