Needlebook pages

Mar 27, 2005 11 Replies

Ok, I am endeavoring on my largest needlebook yet (ok, so it's also only my second one, I am still making it big!) I have tons of needles that I want to keep together...quilting needles, crewel style needles, twin pointed needles, etc. Some of them I would like to have labels near so that I don't have to try to remember each and every type. Some are too obvious to need labels...like my near mammoth-sized needle with an eye big enough to fit and elephant through! (I mostly use it to weave yarn ends in sweaters that have come loose.)



What type of fabric do you suggest for the pages of my needlebook? I was thinking felt maybe. I think a tightly woven fabric, like a muslin, would wear way too fast and look terrible quickly. An eavenweave with a loose weave (like Jobelean) would be too loose and could drop needles, I think. Any recommendations?



I have taken some of my favorite batik fabric and made the cover by quilting, and soon will begin to put the inside portion together with some cardboard and muslin.....Hopefully I will be able to begin my needle collecting and sorting soon.



There's not that many needle types to keep the names straight. :-)

Some are too obvious to need

I'm guessing either a chenille or a skinny darner. :-)

Your project sounds fascinating. I hope you grace us with a picture when it's through!

Wool has natural oils which help to keep needles from rusting. Wool is also strong and takes abuse. Felt is dense enough to hold needles well, including burying the tip if you want to.

So, my two cents would recommend wool felt.

You can get several different colors, nice prices and sizes, at:

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Traditionally, needlebook pages are wool, either felt or melton. Wool-blend felt can be found at a lot of quilt shops, both brick-and- mortar and on-line

-- Jenn Ridley : snipped-for-privacy@chartermi.net WIP: Art Stitch Rose Trio, Emperor's Coat, Carousel, Romance Most recently Finished: Halloween Circle, Always be a Wildflower, FrankenFlora

Can someone point me in the direction of description of wool felt, felt and melton? Not familiar with the differences. Is wool felt heavier/nicer quality than the stuff you buy by the sheet in a craft store? Thanks for the info! Jeanine in Canada

Jenn Ridley wrote:

Sorry, I've never heard of melton. The felt you get in craft stores is inferior, thin, and used for . . . well, crafts. It's not wool.

Wool felt is wonderful. Tapestry needles have no problem - they slide in on the surface level. I just stuck several sizes in to see if there was difficulty. There is none.

Another choice is Australian wool doctor's flannel. A lovely woven wool that isn't like cotton flannel at all.

You can get all the wool you need from

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Jean> Can someone point me in the direction of description of wool felt, felt > and melton?

Wool melton is a coating weight wool (varsity jacket weight). It's thick, and most of the needlebooks that my mother has have pages made of melton. (Probably because they were made using the scraps left over after *her* mom made winter coats.)

Depending on where you are and what time of year it is, melton can be easier to find than wool felt.

-- Jenn Ridley : snipped-for-privacy@chartermi.net WIP: Art Stitch Rose Trio, Emperor's Coat, Carousel, Romance Most recently Finished: Halloween Circle, Always be a Wildflower, FrankenFlora

Melton; wasn't that what school coats were made of, when we were kids?

Gillian

If you contact Jan-Marie, ask her if she will send you some samples. I have some I'd send you, but the flannel keeps changing. This way you'd have an up-to-the-minute sampling. They don't make the doctors flannel like they did 10 years ago. Luckily, I had five lucious yards of it that I'm not parting with. Well, one piece got used for a baby blanket, jacket and matching hat. :-)

Dianne

Jean> Thanks and they are so close to me... time for a field trip over the > border! > :-)

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