If you thought I was kidding the other day, I’m not. For the time being, Tuesdays are Tool Tuesdays.
The truth is, I’m really not a gadget person. I don’t own or use many tools or gadgets when I sew, so the tools that I have are important to me. And I know that when you’re a new sewist all those options at the store can be really overwhelming. So over the next month or two I’ll review one of my favorite tools every Tuesday. And we’re going to do our best to carry each of those tools, to make it really easy for you. (I’m still pretty proud of myself for tracking down that precious carbon paper, can you tell? I hope that was the most challenging item to locate!)
Let’s start with the basics, shall we? We’ve already talked about tracing wheels and waxy carbon tracing paper and other fun elements for cross-stitching and applique, but let’s go back to the very beginning: seam rippers!
I mean, let’s be honest; everyone makes mistakes. Need I say more? I reach for my seam ripper far more often than I care to admit. When you have a good seam ripper, it’s not quite as frustrating when you need to use it. And maybe you won’t mind fixing mistakes quite as much and you can allow those perfectionist tendencies to reveal themselves, since ripping isn’t quite so much of a chore. (Or that may just be wishful thinking, but that’s what I’m telling myself at least.)
Seam rippers come in all different forms, but they all basically do the same job: helping you tear out stitches. As long as your seam ripper has a slim metal foot with a sharp spot for cutting the thread, it will work for you.
I didn’t used to care much about seam rippers, but since discovering the Clover Bamboo Notions seam ripper I’ve become quite particular about the seam ripper I use. I like this one because it’s pretty, it’s made of bamboo (bamboo is soft to hold and it’s a sustainable resource), and it matches our fabulous bamboo tracing wheels. You probably have a few seam rippers lying around, but this one is different in that it’s slightly more pleasant to use (if using a seam ripper can ever be considered a pleasant experience). It’s a little luxury that decreases the pain of having to rip out a seam.
And, speaking of bamboo tools, I bet you didn’t know that I wrote this blog post on a bamboo computer. No joke. I use a bamboo computer. I guess I like bamboo tools even more than I realized!