Are you enjoying the Creative Spaces blog hop so far? I know I am! Scroll to the end for a list of all the stops on the hop and get motivated to organized your creative space! This week, 16 of us are sharing our favorite tools. It’s fun to see the ones we all love as well as picking up ideas for new things to try!
For my post, I thought I’d do a roundup of some previous blog posts when I shared about some of my favorite notions and tools. I did a series of “favorite tools” several years ago and it is surprising to see how many of them are still at the top of my list. Click the link below each image to read more about why it’s (still) my favorite:
My Favorite Tools for Quilting
Batting Shears
Tri Recs Tools
Lint Roller
Painter’s Tape
My BERNINA – of course!!
(The link above is from 5 years ago when I got my first 7 series machine!! Little did I know then that it would lead to my national teaching career and becoming an ambassador. It’s a fun walk down memory lane….)
Cut n Press Mat
Starch and a Big Board
Color Catchers
My Design Wall
Other Machine Quilting Essentials (from a previous blog hop)
You can definitely go down a rabbit hole reading all the blog posts I’ve written about my favorite tools, and this barely scratches the surface! What are some of yours?
Blog Hop Stops
Remember to check out all of the stops on the hop each day through August 19th!
Mondays
Tuesdays
Wednesdays
- Kate Colleran of Seams Like a Dream
- Kris Poor of Poor House Quilt Designs
- Jessica Caldwell of Desert Bloom Quilting
Thursdays
Fridays
Saturdays
Sundays
Christa Quilts 
I’ve often thought about a pair of batting scissors; I think you’ve convinced me that they need to be in my inventory. My husband just made me a big board ironing board…I have to cover it – it’s that new. I’m sure I’ll love it as much as you do yours.
Great list of favorite tools! I love the press and cut board! Thanks for sharing!
I think my lint roller is one of my main tools as well… especially since I have cats.
I may have to get me some batting scissors.
Your favorites are so much fun to read about. Which Bernina are you using now? Thinking of upgrading my 440… love the larger throats. Just curious if it’s the 7- or 800 series.
Great tools! I love the batting shears! I need to get a pair too.
Thanks for sharing these awesome tools! I’ve made a design wall the same way but I have found that a lot of my projects don’t stick well to the flannel sheet. I wonder if I should have washed the flannel first?
I loved seeing all of the tools you use. Just curious— what do you use the painters’ tape for?
Love reading about your favorites! I couldn’t do without my Clover hera marker and seam ripper!
Congrats on a successful fabric line. I love it. The blog hop was really fun, you must be pleased. Thanks.
Janice.snell@gmail.com
I like your quilting tools and glad to see the use of starch in a can as it is reasonably priced.
Great Fandangle fabric line in warm & cool colors. One of my tool favs is the Frixion marking pen which comes in colors and irons off.
I have all your tools tools (except batting scissors, I use an old blade on my rotary cutter), but I didn’t see the trusty seam ripper! I also use a tool that I call a pointer with the other end used for flattening seams open before I iron them, I got mine free from an Eleanor Burns tent in Paducah and have since bought them on eBay. I do like the wide ironing board a great deal, my husband made mine. He also redesigned a table to be very high for my cutting table by adding 2×4 wood for legs.
I like the fuzzy blue sweater in your Batting Shears photo 😉 Thanks for sharing your favorite sewing tools. I find myself favoring many of the same.
I actually like a pattern that I can get in both digital and paper. I have many, many patterns saved on my computer in digital format. I don’t like the fact that I have to open each one in order to see the quilt. I am a very, very visual learner and I need to see the picture. Names of patterns can be meaniful to one person and not to another for what the quilt actually resembles. Also, I have lost my hard drive a number of times. Having been a computer programmer and website tester, you would think that I would backup, backup, backup. I guess I had to backup my files at work so much that I just got tired of doing it and needed them so infrequently that I just got lax. Also, with a digital pattern and being a visual person, I like the paper pattern for initial read of the pattern and for actually constructing the quilt. With a printout of the pattern, I can get the pages out of order in about two seconds. About three years ago, I had surgery on my eyes for double vision and I’ve just started having trouble again. I can’t get into the specialist in Oklahoma City (I live in the Tulsa area) until late November and reading on the computer is a nightmare sometimes even with one eye closed. So, paper is much better now. I know we are moving to the digital age, but …
i enjoyed seeing your favorite tools. I have entered quilts in one quilt show and knew they were not show quality quilts due to the quilting but did it for the experience. I had two cats in the house at the time and I used a lint roller and they were deemed to be show worthy in that category. So, I totally agree with you that a lint roller is a great tool. It’s not just hair but just plain old dust that collects, too. I bought the Tri-Recs ruler(s) for a specific quilt years ago and have never made the quilt. The ruler is packed away in the box with the kit. It’s up on a high shelf in my kit closet. Next time my son comes to visit, I’m going to put on his “honey do-list” to see if he can locate that kit and we’ll get that ruler out of the box. I’m seeing more and more posts about this ruler set. Thanks for participating in this hop.
I had already seen about the launch of your new fabric collection. I really like it. I’m telling everyone that I would make my step granddaughter a quilt for her graduation in May 2019. She is a budding artist and she wants to be an art therapist. I’m going to applique (fusible) her name on the back. I feel that she’ll have less chance of it being stolen if she takes it to college with her. It’s awful when we have to think about that, isn’t it. I am enjoying the quilts made with your beautiful fabric. I’ve been divorced from my adult children’s father for 20 years. We used to go the lake each summer for a week with friends of his and their families. He and I taught many kids to water ski. I was a slave the entire week – helping with our boat; helping with the kids’ skiing – no other adults did that except us; helping with the kids at the cabin – we had all the boys and all the other families shared the girls; and my husband ordered me around all the time. It was no vacation for me. My kids now tell me they miss the boat – it was the best time they had and they hate that their children don’t get that experience. So, I’m learning to appreciate it as a positive – all in all. Your view is beautiful and the pictures you’ve snapped should be perfect. I hope I win some fabric to get me back to quilting. I haven’t quilted in over 5 years. It’s 5 years this month since my second husband died and it’s been quite a depressed time. I’m really getting the itch to quilt and I’m determined to make a graduation quilt. Seeing all the wonderful hints about quilting thus far and now this beautiful fabric just makes me more determined. I’m sure your fabric is going to be a hit. I’m amazed at the quilts that I have already seen with the fabric. They sure showcase the fabric beautifully. Good luck!