Today's Tip

Sometimes, it is the little things that can make all the difference.

For example - this is what I have stored my thread in for years:


It kept them all in one place, but there was one problem - I couldn't see what color the thread was without picking up the spool. I sorted them by color, so all the white and beige were groups together, etc., but still, I often had to pick up the thread and hold it up to the light to see if it was what I needed. Long story short, this system was not working for me.

I realized what I wanted was a container I could lay the thread in, on its side, so I could quickly see what color it was. I didn't really have anything that would fit into the drawer I keep the thread in, but being broke, I wasn't prepared to buy something. So I waited........

Last week, I was cleaning out my kitchen cupboard, and found I had a tin in there with a few tea bags in it. Cute tin, isn't it??




The tea bags were put in another container, and the tin? It found a new life as the holder of my spools of thread! The larger spools go in the tin; the smaller ones in the lid:




Lovely aren't they?

So how is my new system working? Well - I've been so busy sewing the dresses for Madeline's Christmas, that I haven't done anything else! I am sure once that project is complete, I'll be much happier with my new thread storage system.

So, today's tip is: if something isn't working right, if it is taking time rather than saving time, figure out what the problem is. What can be done to correct it? Are there materials around me that I can reuse instead of buying? Take care of the little things so you have more time for the big stuff!