Blog Hop #9 Stitching Must Haves

It's that time again.  Time for another blog hop.  It's a good one.

What are your must-have stitching tools and aides? Other than your trusty scissors, of course. Is there a problem you have had when stitching that you created your own solution for, or have you purchased a tool that helped?

I thought about this question and to be truthful, there aren't a whole lot of tools that I absolutely must have when I stitch.  Oh, sure, a pair of scissors is nice and I do have quite a few of those.  But when it comes right down to it, I've decided there's only 3 things I absolutely must have when I stitch.  The first is my Daylight lamp that sits right next to my chair.  In fact, I can't stitch without it.  I really can't see well enough to stitch without proper lighting or magnification.  So that's a must have.

The next item is my lap stand of my floor stand.  I tend to use the lap stand much more often than any of my floor stands but I just got a new K's metal ball swivel stand and I may have a new favorite.  It makes it so much easier on my back and shoulders if I'm not holding my work in my hands and trying to stitch.  

The last item (and I'm not really sure this is a must have) is my Q-Snaps or scroll frame depending on how big the piece I'm working on is.  I have stitched in hand before but lately as I get older, my hands get stiffer and it becomes harder to hold the fabric and stitch.  I also find I get a better tension when the fabric is stretched more.  

I do have a lot of little tools and gadgets which I love, but I don't really consider them must haves.  They're fun and I do use them occasionally but do I need them to stitch?  Nope, not at all.

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