Tool Tuesday: Candle Lighter

I know what you are thinking. "Jamieson, that is NOT a crafting tool. That is a candle lighter." (A Bic Luminere Candle Lighter, to be exact.)

I'm going to have to disagree with you though. It is most certainly a craft tool, at least in my craft studio. I should begin by mentioning my extreme fear of matches. I can't light them. Never could. I've tried, both the book and box kind -- I am just no good at lighting matches. Which is probably because I think that you should never have a flame that close to your hand. I mean, seriously, who thought that a teeny tiny less-than-two-inch match was a good idea?

Which brings me to another fear. I am not really a fan of fire. I was a girl scout, for many years in fact. However, I never came to love the whole campfire thing. Just not my cup of tea.

That being said, this candle lighter is one of my favorite tools. Partly because it keeps the flame far, far away from my fingers.

But the main reason I love this candle lighter is because I looooooove ribbon. Its a mild obsession. Please see exhibits A, B, and C below for further proof.

Exhibit A: Ribbon organized on Ribbon Ring Tags. I found these nifty organizers after reading LollyChop's review on her blog. The ribbons are organized by color, of course. At the top you can also see my embroidery floss organized by color on rings.

Exhibit B: More ribbon on white plastic ribbon cards. All of my ribbon used to be on these cards... until I ran out of room and decided to use the ribbon ring tags. Now, I only store plain ribbon or ribbon that I have yards and yards of on these cards. They are organized by color in glass jars on a floating shelf. And clearly, I have a lot of buttons as well.

Exhibit C: The stash of unorganized ribbon in my closet in a box. This ribbon is just begging to be organized, which would be possible if I wasn't out of ribbon ring tags! Some of the plain stuff will going on the ribbon cards too.

So, there you have it. I clearly have a lot of ribbon. Polka dot, striped, gingham, grograin, floral, velvet, mmm... I love it all!!

The thing only thing I dislike about ribbon... is when the ends fray. *Cringe* It is horrible! You start out making this lovely 45 degree cut, or even a fancy V-cut in the end of a wider ribbon... and then the end starts to fray, ruining the whole thing. You can cut the end again, but inevitably it will start fraying again. *Sigh* What's a ribbon-obsessed crafter to do?!?!

This is where the candle lighter comes in. You can use the heat from the flame to seal/melt the end of the ribbon. Most of the ribbon I have works for this nifty trick. Ribbon that is all cotton or another natural material will not work (at least it doesn't work for me) -- so, most of my ribbon is synthetic stuff I guess!

Before we proceed... WARNING: Please read all warnings on the candle lighter you use before you try this nifty trick. Don't allow children to use the lighter and follow any other directions that come with your lighter. Thank you!!!

Hold your ribbon in one hand, with your fingers well away from the end (at least two to three inches. Light the lighter by pulling the trigger/button. Slowly bring the lighter closer to the end of the ribbon. I find that I have more control if I move the lighter, rather than the ribbon.

Bring the lighter near the end of the ribbon, but DO NOT touch the ribbon with the flame. We are trying to melt the end of the ribbon, not set the ribbon on fire!! It will only take a fraction of a second to melt the end of the ribbon, so please watch closely. Once you see it start to melt, move the flame away and release the trigger to turn off the flame. If you hold the flame near the ribbon end too long, it will singe/scorch and turn black. If you aren't happy with the results, cut off the melted end of the ribbon and try again.

Here is the sealed/melted end of the ribbon. Nifty, huh? And much better than messing around with that sticky ribbon sealer gluey-gooey stuff that you find a in a bottle, at least in my opinion. I've never had much luck with it. (By the way: The ducky pin snuck in the picture -- He was so proud of himself for holding the ribbon steady while I took the lighter photos! And, just for future reference, I do not recommend trying to photograph and use a lighter at the same time. Just not a good idea, folks.)

If you have any questions, feel free to ask! Remember, please be safe when trying this trick!

Tool Tuesday: Rotary Cutter

It seems that I am loving my sewing tools again this week. I promise, I have plenty of other tools -- I've just been doing a lot of sewing lately, that's all!

This week my must-have tool is the nifty rotary cutter. If you cut a lot of straight lines, squares, or triangles, then you need this tool! I really don't remember my life before it. Oh wait, yes I do -- tediously measuring and cutting fabric. Well, no more for me. Many of the projects I do incorporate cutting straight lines, and it really was a big pain before. I remember measuring, marking with a disappearing ink pen, using a ruler to draw lines, slow cutting, blah blah blah. Those days are long gone. Now I have this handy Fiskers rotary cutter:
I am very loyal to my Gingher scissors, but when it comes to straight lines, I must use my rotary cutter. You can even replace the blade when it gets dull (which is about every month or two for me, but I cut a whole-lots-o-fabric). It is time to get a new blade when you start having fabric that doesn't cut all the way or you are having to apply too much pressure. **By the Way** Applying too much pressure = not a good idea (I'm lucky I only nicked a fingernail to learn this lesson, I have a friend in high school who had to have a few stitches, yikes!!!). So, when you get a rotary cutter, please make sure to replace the blade when needed!

*Sigh* I do love my rotary cutter... Almost as much as my thread nippers! Its going to be hard to find another tool next week that I love as much as them, but I will try!

P.S. Don't forget to check out Monday's post to enter the thumbtacks giveaway!

P.P.S. I didn't find my battery charger for my camera yet... but I did get a new camera!!! Thanks Dad! Please excuse my photos for a while, I'm still trying to figure out how to use this new guy -- Things I used to photograph in regular mode now need to be photographed in macro, or at least I think that is why the rotary cutter was fuzzy the first 57 times I photographed it! I'm still reading the manual to learn how to use all the functions! At least it is still the same brand (Canon) so some of the functions are the same as my dead-battery-no-charger-camera.

Tool Tuesday: Thread Nippers

I have dozens of beloved tools and such in my crafting arsenal, and every Tuesday I am going to share my favorites with you. Why? Because you need them, that is why. (Just don't tell your husband/significant other that I am the one who told you that you need them.)

When I started to think of my favorite tool of the moment, there was no hesitation. It was something that I didn't think I needed, but when I did splurge and buy it, I don't know how I ever lived without it. My tool-of-the-moment that I can't live without is my pair of thread nippers. (Just like scissors, these nippers are called "pairs" I believe -- never did quite understand that.)
Now, I know, someone out there is saying, "Jamieson, I can nip my threads with scissors, why do I need thread nippers?" You are going to have to trust me on this -- If you do any amount of sewing, especially with a sewing machine or serger, you need these. I really thought they were a luxury purchase, but once I bought them (erm, they weren't cheap, but I did use a fantastic 40% off coupon to soften the blow to the wallet), I couldn't imagine sewing without them. They are much, much easier to pick up and nip (or snip, if you prefer) a thread with. You can get close to the fabric with much more ease than I was able to do with scissors -- I had already tried using all three sizes of my sewing scissors before getting these handy nippers.
There are several varieties at stores like Jo-Ann's. I went this pair from Gingher -- all of my sewing scissors are from this company, and I like them to be all matchy-matchy. Plus, they all come in these nifty storage tins (see picture)! I tied a striped ribbon around the finger hole on my nippers so that I can find them when they are hiding under fabric while I am sewing.

If anyone else has thread nipper suggestions (other brands?) or, if you have any questions, let me know!

Also, don't forget to check Monday's post to enter the giveaway to win a Robot Pencil Cup!

(Goodness, I almost forgot to mention -- the cute pins in the photo are similar to the ones I saw on Heather Bailey's blog in this post (in the pear pincushion). I have been searching for them for months, and I finally found them at Jo-Ann's! I am working on a matching pincushion to put them in, so for now they are just scattered on my sewing/craft table.)