Friday, January 7, 2011

It Works for Me...Not Hurting Now!

January and the first few months of the New Year is my favorite time of year,  'cause I spend  most of my time sewing/piecing/quilting.    Right now I need to make things to re-stock my ETSY store after the Christmas selling season, and it calls for long hours at the sewing machine.


Since I am doing my  marathon sewing/piecing right now, I got out my slanted stand thingie my brother-in-law made for me years ago.  It was actually made for a different machine that was not quite as wide as this one, but it still works fine.  I can sew for longer periods of time without hunching over my machine and getting a sore neck & shoulders.
  

Yes, I know you can use those ugly rubber door stops at the back of your machine, but this "Janome baby" of mine is heavy and big (Janome 6500P) and I want it to stay safe and the weight evenly distributed.


If you have a handy man in your house (or you have your own "pink" tool set), maybe  you'd like to make one.  


Can you tell how easy it is to see where your stitching, instead of hunching over?  I can actually scoot my sewing chair up close enough and sit back in it to get some back support. 



Mine is long enough that I can keep my small clipping scissors or my ....(shall I say it??) ....seam ripper... on the RH side of the plexiglass.





Simple, yet very effective!  That's 1/4"  thick plexiglass and two pieces of hardwood, not quite 1 inch square and wood screws.   Knowing my brother in law, he used what he had in his shop.


















What are some of your sewing room gadgets that make your sewing easier and more enjoyable for you?


Thanks for visiting and leaving your comment.

13 comments:

  1. When you told me about this I had a hard time picturing it but now it makes sense....

    Thanks for showing.

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  2. That is a great idea, and glad it helps. I am not sure if it would help me. May have to try the door stopper thing first, but don't think it will work with my extended quilting table. That is one thing I really love using when piecing and machine quilting. I also love my thread rack, which I built with my dad.

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  3. Best design of this sort of gadget I've ever seen. Thanks for sharing.

    SewCalGal
    www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com

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  4. great idea! I'm glad it works. I like to put a scrap of shelf liner (the kind that is all rubber, NOT the one sided vinyl kind) under my foot pedal to keep it from sliding away from me. I don't like to have to chase it around and then have to drag it back! :D

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  5. Very cool! My fave gadget is my cone thread holder.

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  6. Oh how I wish I would have used mine yesterday..I didn't even think of it. I'm going in right now and get it under my machine. Mine is also home made by my former son in law with scrap wood.

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  7. Great idea! It would make it easier.

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  8. I use the ugly rubber doorstops....when I remember, that is. I do find in my sewing room with my particular chair, I don't get back problems but when I'm sewing at a class or retreat, the chair usually doesn't "fit" right and I do need the doorstops then. Your slanted board is really a good idea!

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  9. My favorite gadget? A standup sorter (the kind that office supply stores sell for envelopes, etc.) that I stand my plexiglas templates up in. Keeps them nice and organized, and right at hand!

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  10. I need to make one of those...or maybe find a "handy man" to do it for me.

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  11. When I'm piecing, I find my little Hobbico Pressing Iron to be really useful along with a small 5"x7" pressing pad I made. These can sit right beside me on my sewing cabinet. Marilyn in SA.

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  12. OMG! What an awesome idea... I've just shown my hubby and he will now have to make ME one too! Thanks for showing us.

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