There are so many different ways to store bobbins and one method that I prefer is to keep the bobbin with the spool of thread that I wound the bobbin from. I have mainly used two types of "bobbin keeps" if you will. (I'm not referring to all bobbin storage...just how I keep these bobbins with their spools.)
Handi-Bobs fit into the end of a spool of thread as shown. I like them because I can keep the bobbin on the spool and still put the spool of thread back on the wooden thread pegs I have to store my threads.
I also use Bobbin Mates. The Bobbin Mates are pushed into the end of the spool of thread and then the bobbin is placed on top of the blue peg.
My problem has been what do you do with spools of thread with larger holes in their spools?
As you can clearly see....not all thread spools have the same size holes in the spools. So now what???
The other day, I received a newsletter from Marci Baker at Alicia's Attic. The title was, Keeping Your Bobbins and Spools Together. I had to see how they were keeping their bobbins together so I clicked on the newsletter and I was pleasantly surprised by their idea.
They had used their Q-Tools Cutting Edge Strips as bobbin holders. I thought...what a GENIUS idea! (you can click on the link above to read the entire newsletter) This method works wonderfully in spools with openings that are narrower than the Cutting or Sewing Edge Strips.
In this photo you'll see I used one of Alicia's Attic's Sewing Edge Strips (because I had it handy) in a spool of Aurifil Thread and sure enough....it worked wonderfully. The Handi-Bobs and the Bobbin Mates don't fit the top of a large spool of Aurifil Thread.
But what about those spools with larger openings?
The Cutting Edge Strips and Sewing Edge Strips are too narrow for this cone and a number of other spools I have. Now what?
I walked around my sewing studio wondering what would expand into a spool of thread and still hold a bobbin. Then it hit me....a pipe cleaner would work. I took out a pipe cleaner (yes I had one...I keep tons of do-dah....I told you that before :) and attempted to get it to hold a bobbin and stay in the larger opening on this cone of thread.
I'm no engineer....just quickly wadded the pipe cleaner and put a bobbin on one end, then stuffed it into the opening in the thread cone.
My problem has been what do you do with spools of thread with larger holes in their spools?
The other day, I received a newsletter from Marci Baker at Alicia's Attic. The title was, Keeping Your Bobbins and Spools Together. I had to see how they were keeping their bobbins together so I clicked on the newsletter and I was pleasantly surprised by their idea.
They had used their Q-Tools Cutting Edge Strips as bobbin holders. I thought...what a GENIUS idea! (you can click on the link above to read the entire newsletter) This method works wonderfully in spools with openings that are narrower than the Cutting or Sewing Edge Strips.
In this photo you'll see I used one of Alicia's Attic's Sewing Edge Strips (because I had it handy) in a spool of Aurifil Thread and sure enough....it worked wonderfully. The Handi-Bobs and the Bobbin Mates don't fit the top of a large spool of Aurifil Thread.
But what about those spools with larger openings?
I walked around my sewing studio wondering what would expand into a spool of thread and still hold a bobbin. Then it hit me....a pipe cleaner would work. I took out a pipe cleaner (yes I had one...I keep tons of do-dah....I told you that before :) and attempted to get it to hold a bobbin and stay in the larger opening on this cone of thread.
The pipe cleaner method worked well in all the spools that had larger openings. How cool is that?
Then I wondered if the bobbin would hold if I tipped it upside down. You can see for yourself....it stayed in there just fine.
The next issue I had was wondering if the pipe cleaner would work with the thread rack I use. I can't just put the bobbin on top of the wooden dowel to keep the bobbin with the thread because the dowel is too wide for the holes in the bobbins I use. Will the pipe cleaner be compatible?
Once I put the spool of thread on the thread rack the pipe cleaner popped out and onto the floor. Darn....but wait....the pipe cleaner is flexible so I tried to put it on after the thread was on the dowel...
How do you keep your bobbins with your spools of thread? I just gotta know.
Smiles,
Kelly
great ideas. I have one of those donuts to hold my bobbins and all the big spool that match sit under my extension table.
ReplyDeleteWell a little more low tech here. I keep my thread in plastic shoe drawers. I have way too much to store on pegs, and when I did store on pegs, I spent way too much time trying to find the spool I'm hunting for. I use the pipe cleaner method for odd kinds of thread like 'Sunburst' thread or Glow in the Dark thread, or mono, or vanish, etc. I use the bobbin donut for my regular cotton sewing/pieceing threads and another for the specialty threads (bottom line, quilting, etc). Makes it easy to see what needs to be used up to free up a bobbin.....
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness you are so clever, Kelly! Great use of using what you have. I don't keep my bobbins with my thread - I have one of those doughnut bobbin savers.
ReplyDeletei had some leftover molding when i redid my craft room that i cut in 18 inch pieces, drilled holes in them an inch and a half apart, cut some inch and a half quarter inch round stobs for the holes, stuck some double-sided tape on the back of it and stuck it to the wall under the shelves, loaded my thread on the stobs, put a matching threaded bobbin on a golf tee and stuck it in the spool hole. similar to what you've done with your thread holder.
ReplyDeleteI keep my bobbins on mini dowels attached to the inside of my sewing desk drawer. They slide on, the thread is visible, and a little wooden plug keeps the bobbins from sliding off the dowel. This method doesn't keep the bobbin with their comparable thread spool, but it works for me!
ReplyDeleteNow this has me spinning...what a great thread...( what we use to call posts..) gosh I hate to explain things that make me feel old lol
ReplyDeleteI don't store my thread on a rack, but I use a golf tee and a rubber band, as you can see in these two pictures, http://www.flickr.com/photos/pursesbykp/7139764449/in/photostream
ReplyDeletehttp://www.flickr.com/photos/pursesbykp/6993678248/in/photostream
then toss them in a drawer. Messy, but at least the bobbins stay with the matching spool. Golf tees come in different lengths, and you need the extra long ones - at least 4".
I have all the fancy bobbin keepers but I revert back to this method. I keep a roll of Scotch Tape next to my machine and when I pull the bobbin out to change threads, I just tape the bobbin to the top of the corresponding spool..works for me..cheap too!
ReplyDeleteWow! Great idea, Kelly! I like Linda's golf tee solution, too. I still store my bobbins separately from their respective spool and then I have to guess if I have the right bobbin when I want to match the top and bottom threads. I may have to change now!
ReplyDeleteGreat idea! I love the handi-bobs, but had the same problem with some spools. Now where are those pipe cleaners? I know they're in here somewhere.
ReplyDeleteWhat a genuine idea, pipe cleaners, would never have thought of that. Great article too.
ReplyDeleteI had a chance to grab two sets of those handi-bobs for 49 cents a piece, so I did get them....and to tell the truth, they sat & sat until just the other day - I tell ya, they're like my Wonder Clips - how on earth did I survive all this time without 'em??
ReplyDeleteBut, two sets of two is only 4, soooooo...what to do with the others? Well that round donut thing doesn't work well for me - they bobbins don't fit tightly until I'm ready to get them out, then they are so tight, they don't come out...
But, I found a little clear plastic box that has these little half-round compartments - one for each bobbin. Yeah, they don't stay with the originating spool of thread, but I can usually figure out which belongs with which.
But, for large projects, I keep the thread on the 10-spool stand that attaches to the back of my machine...and those spindles are long enough to go thru the thread spool & stick out, so I just plop the bobbin down on top of the thread. Does that even make sense?
I do like your ideas tho - and seems like pipe cleaners always show up at yard sales :)
Neat idea Kelly! I would of never thought of using a pipecleaner.
ReplyDeleteI use a rubber band and a safety pin. The rubber band slides down the hole in both the spool and bobbin, and the safety pin holds the two ends of the rubber band.
ReplyDeleteYou are always thinking, Kelly! Thanks for all the bobbiny help!
ReplyDeleteI am just like you...I want the bobbin with the thread spool that I wound it from. I don't understand the keepers that have them seperate from their parent. I finally found Bobbin mates at a local show. Love them. I used pipe cleaners since the beginning (read about that idea in a magazine) and like that idea too but I want to put all my spools on a rack so the Bobbin Mates were definitely needed. I just wish they weren't so hard to find around here.
ReplyDeleteThis is inspired! My Singer bobbins wind in place, so no centre hole. But I can wrap the pipe cleaner around the thread on the bobbin and through the thread spool similar to your last picture. Thanks Kelly!
ReplyDeleteJ'aime beaucoup votre idée. Regardé sur mon blog mon idée pour les épingles pour retenir 3 epaisseur de tissus pour le piquage. Merci pour votre idée.
ReplyDelete