I’ve been seeing all sorts of tutorials for tiny weights to use in place of pins when cutting out a pattern. I’d never heard of this before, so it sounded intriguing! Wanting to use items I already had on hand, a quick search yielded just what I needed: two-inch green felt circles left over from a Christmas wreath pillow I made last winter and a stash of pennies I keep around to go with my Pennies book when I do classroom author presentations. To make a pattern weight, I simply held two circles together, handstitched most of the way around the edges with a contrasting color of embroidery floss (all six strands), filled the tiny bag with ten pennies, then finished the last stitch or two and tied off the floss. Easy-peasie! Now, what shall I sew . . . . ♥
Jun7
I have never heard of this before either but will no doubt have to try this out
I wish us both luck! 🙂
This is definitely an interesting idea. Might give it a go soon.
I hope these are heavy enough . . . they’re a little smaller than some of the others I’ve seen . . . we’ll see! 🙂
Let me know if they are heavy enough or we need to put more in the little pouch or rethink.
awesome!! Yours are so little and cute! I like the felt–looks nice and sturdy. I think I need to make more because when cutting out a multi-piece pattern, I like to lay everything out at once, and I need more weights to keep it all in place 😉
Thank you! I plan to make LOTS more too . . . they only take about 5 minutes each and would be a good road trip/watching TV project. Plus I have tons more of these little circles! 🙂
This is a great idea to do with my teens! Great job! 🙂
Lon
Lons_Designs
Thank you! They’re so colorful and fun to make, too! Have fun! 🙂
Do you have a Twitter page? I’m pretty active there and would like to follow you.
Lon
Lons_Designs
http://lonsdesigns.wordpress.com
No, sorry . . . thank you for asking, though! 🙂
how clever! i’ve been using weights for a while now, but they’re so plastic and meh looking (and expensive) – i love the idea of hand-made ones 🙂
I’m glad to hear of someone who uses and likes them since I haven’t actually field-tested mine yet! 🙂 Thank you for stopping by!
they work really well if you use a rotary cutter, but may not work so well if you’re lifting a bit to cut with scissors.
That makes sense . . . good to know! Thank you for the tip! 🙂
Pingback: Sometimes It’s the Little Things . . . « PILLOWS A-LA-MODE
Love it! Now if it would cool down so I could get back to sewing.
Thank you, and I hope you get to sew soon! 🙂
ave never seen this but I like the sound of it. Might have to give it a go if I ever get around to sewing again!
Thanks for finding me and Im liking your blog a lot!
Thank you! It sounds like you miss sewing. 🙂 And your blog is LOVELY! 🙂
Awesome! I’m so doing this. Do you think 10 pennies will be enough for heavier fabrics like denim?
You might want to make them a little bigger . . . I might make some larger ones, too. And I’ve seen some filled with things like rice or metal washers. Pinterest has a ton of cute ones! 🙂
I never thought of this. I’ve been making pattern pieces for 12 camper cushions I’m recovering and these might come in handy…thanks
You’re very welcome! I hope your cushion covers are coming along nicely! 🙂
This is a VERY cool idea. Thanks again!!!
Thank you! 🙂 I’m still waiting for a block of time to try them out on a new dress pattern! Can’t wait! 🙂
These are cute! I have used espresso cups in the past(as I don’t drink coffee anyway) but these are way more compact! Might have to put a stone in mine though as I prefer lining paper/card to the onion skin pattern paper. It drives me mad!!
Jenny x
Stones are a great idea! I saw some on Pinterest that had dry beans or rice, but I decided I didn’t want to use food! 🙂 But . . . coffee cup is a brilliant solution, too! Oh, and I enjoy your clever blog! 🙂
Lovely idea. I have been using paper weights but to be honest they are a bit too heavy and if I slide them along they have a tendency to rip the tissue. This sounds like a better plan. thank you for sharing 🙂
You’re very welcome! I use them often and love them! 🙂 Oh, and here’s a link to the jar I made to store them in! 🙂 https://pillowsalamode.wordpress.com/2012/06/09/sometimes-its-the-little-things/
Pingback: Crafty Corner « PILLOWS A-LA-MODE