So I have this old bodkin that I have been using for sequins and beading and the like. Now that I have a dancing daughter I find I am getting a lot more call for such things. I used to do them but seldom for there hasn't been much call for such fancies these last couple of decades. I should like to get another bodkin like the one I have as the current one is rather ancient and I fear some bit of it will become damaged. To give you an idea of how old it is, the handle is faux tortoise shell made of celluloid, so at least a hundred years or thereabouts.
The problem I have encountered is I cannot find a new bodkin made like the old one. The old one is just a handle with a screw mechanism very much like you find at the needle of a sewing machine, so that you can just clamp a needle into it. Not only is it very useful to be able to change the size of your point at will, but what I have been doing is clamping a machine needle in and using it for a fine stitching awl. It is excellent for sequins and beading. It's faster than regular hand stitching, and allows finer control than machine stitching (plus no chance of hitting a bead, thus saving on needles).
I have come to the conclusion that if the thing is still available, it is called something else. If anyone has a clue as to what it might be called I will search for it. Otherwise I am thinking very hard of making one. One made to purpose could include features that would make it even easier to use, something to hold the thread right on it like a leather stitching awl springs immediately to mind... I own two leather stitching awls, there is no way on earth you could put a fine enough needle to do fancy work on light fabric in them. As an experiment I tried a line of sequins and a double row of seed beads on
8mm habotai with the smallest needle. Yeah that was eight kinds of disaster. It pretty much makes a small eyelet with every stitch, plus it really dislikes silk thread, and isn't much more fond of lighter cotton. Lets not even talk about the mess it made on a scrap of rayon with monofiliment.NightMist