DIY - Drop Spindle

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Directions on how to make a drop spindle with a CD can be found on this Interweave post

Make a Drop Spindle

Sewing Machine Needles

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It’s amazing how something as small as a needle can make such a huge impact on your sewing project! 

The right needle for your sewing project can create perfectly even and beautifully made stitches. The wrong needle (even a worn or damaged needle) can create all kinds of headaches—like skipped stitches, crooked stitches, frayed and broken threads, and holes or tears in your fabric. 

So how do you make sure you are choosing the right needle for the sewing project you’re making? And how would you know if the needle is worn or damaged? 

For the answers to those and other questions, read We All Sew's article on sewing machine needles. 

Be sure to download the free BERNINA PDF Needle Brochure as a handy reference.

Quilt Borders

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Bonnie Hunter shares tips, tricks, and hints on adding borders to a larger quilt. Here's how she measures the borders:

Lay out the quilt on the floor, smoothing as you go so it is straight and flat, but do not stretch...just let it lay flat. Now take your border strip and lay it down the CENTER of the quilt, top to bottom, just smoothing it out. DO NOT STRETCH, just smooth, smooth. Trim it off at the bottom of the end of the quilt. I lay my quilt out on carpet, so I also like to anchor the beginning end of the borders with a couple of long pins stuck into the carpet. It keeps that one border end from creeping as I smooth. Cut the second strip the same way.

It is really important to cut your border strips straight across, or you can compound the problem if that angle is off from 45 degrees. If the angle is too wide, your next border will flare up at the corners. If it is too narrow, it is going to pull the top/bottom border down and your side border will be too short. Keep those angles square when you trim!

If you are doing a square quilt with 4 cornerstones in the corners, you can cut all 4 pieces at the same time.
If you are doing a rectangular quilt with 4 cornerstones, also cut your top and bottom borders across the width of the quilt, measuring through the center before sewing on the side borders.

This has ALWAYS worked for me, because when you are dealing with measuring tapes, they dont drape and lay the way your fabric does....your border fabric is your 'measuring tape' and as you smooth it across the center of the quilt top it will lay the same way as the quilt center with no tension on it. (copied from Bonnie Hunter's Border Hints post)

Bonnie's other border tips and hints can be found here

Diamond Trellis Stitch - crochet

Scrappy Mitts

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Looking for a pattern to use some odd bits of yarn?

Donna Herron's pattern Stash-o-motastic Fingerless Mitts or Gloves fits the bill

Half-Hitch for Spindle

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Whether you’re spinning on a Turkish spindle or on a simple toy wheel spindle, there will come a time in your spindle spinning life when you need to make a half-hitch. You may have done so by making a loop and placing it upside-down on the spindle, but there is a much faster way, one that Abby Franquemont illustrates in this Interweave post. 

How to Make a Half-Hitch on Your Spindle

Scottish Spindle

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According to Interweave, modern spinners are rediscovering the traditional Scottish spindle, believed lost for generations. With its whorl-less, cone-shaped body and crossing grooves cut into the bottom, the Scottish spindle, also called a dealgan (pronounced jal-a-gen), is as strong, practical, and dependable as the culture that created it. Want to learn how to spin on a Scottish spindle? 

Check out this photo tutorial provided by Interweave