A Sharp Little Idea (get it?)

My pins and needles really take a beating, and I’ve noticed that they’re all dulling a bit. So I thought I’d try to make a pincushion that’s also a sharpener.

This is based on those little strawberry-things that dangle from the tomato pincushions. They’re filled with metal filings, and you poke your pins into them to sharpen.

I didn’t have one of these, but I did have some grade 00 steel wool. So I made up a pincushion (the adorable design from Joelle Hoverson’s book) and put this together.

Steel wool comes in pads, so first, I unrolled one…

…And tore it up a bit. (Makes a huge mess, as you can see.)

Then I stuffed my pincushion with it. I got two pads in there, and then had to stop. I probably could have used a half-pad more, but:

…I got worried about how much my raw edges were fraying. (Next time, I’d put some Fray-Check on them before stuffing.) Also, I got worried that my fingerprints were wearing off.

Anyway, then I finished off the pincushion. Yeah, it’s a little wonky.

But, I’ve been testing pins and needles, and it works great! Just a few passes in and out, and they’re nice and sharp again. Cool!

Obviously, this pincushion is way too large for such a project, but I needed an excuse to make it. (You definitely do not want to store your pins or needles in a cushion like this – they can rust.) What would be perfect, though, is those bottle cap pincushions!

Tagged as: fabric, tutorial