When you realize your pine tree has dead branches that are a big as your car, it is time to get those “pine needles” out of your tree. I’ve seen many of these branches come down during heavy snow days. Now to HOPEFULLY keep that from happening this winter. Those dead branches had to come down!

What does that have to do with quilting? Well, not much other than it was fun to watch our tree get tended to from the front door. AND Pine NEEDLES worked right into my title!!! The height of our beloved tree is incredible when seeing how far the boom had to extend to get to the upper branches!

Anyone who has been around me, knows I say PIN and PEN the same. I try! But it just is the way it is! So with the needle title, I thought pins would fit right in. If teaching, I always say straight pin, then you know I’m not talking about an ink pen. Just a little secret, that isn’t a secret anymore. <grin>

In thinking about pins, I have many different brands, shapes, and sizes. I have the heavy duty ones for my longarm, to pin my quilt top and backing to my leaders. I have tiny applique pins, so they don’t interfere with catching thread as I stitch. I have glass head pins, because you can iron over them and they won’t melt. I have flat head pins, so they lay flat underneath a ruler when cutting. (NEVER cut or sew over a pin!…..they will nick your blade and could break a needle!) I made number pins to mark my rows when laying out a quilt. I have pins with decorative butterfly heads, because they are cute. I have Taylor Seville pins with new ridged tops for easy gripping. I have long fine pins, short fine pins, heart pins, pearl head pins…even fork pins.

WOW, that is a lot of pins. Why so many???? Each kind serves a purpose! How many pins to you have? Go take a look, I bet you have more than one kind. In thinking about all of these and the purpose they serve, I realized I could use my fork pins to put up blocks side by side on my design wall. No need for two separate pins, one fork pin will do. My fork pins are below and can be used to keep seam intersections in place when sewing. I sometimes use two pins instead.

Take a look in your pin cushion or magnetic pin bowl, how many different ones? Are they all mixed up or in a cute design?

#1 – Find a pin that best fits the USE you need it for.

#2 – You can never have too many pins!!!

in quilting,

Debbie