Stick To It!

It's been a long time since I sat, evening after evening, devoting focused hours to hand quilting. It's extremely therapeutic, being caught up in nothing more than the rocking rhythm of the needle in my hand and the thimble on my finger. Once I settle in and get under the hooped quilt, with my steaming hot cup of blueberry tea beside me, the last thing I want to do is jump up to retrieve some forgotten item. It's taken some time, but finally I have defined exactly what I find necessary and contained it into one small basket to keep beside my chair. The obvious items are thread, needle, thimble, scissors and marking tools. The needle threader and the beeswax candle (I shove the needle into it from time to time to reduce drag) make the task so much easier; but, a short strip of double-sided tape attached to one side of the basket has proved to be the handiest item of all! Those pesky little thread ends and, sometimes, even a bent or broken needle are placed onto the sticky surface and held there to be disposed of later. I can clean off the tape for several evenings in a row before the tape loses its adhesive properties and needs replacing. Whatever your handwork is, and however you keep your tools, consider adding a strip of double-sided tape to your area to work more cleanly and effectively. It's a simple little trick that makes a big difference... just stick to it!!

Life is Good!