Slippery thimbles

Dear Mary,

I have been sewing since I was nine, and have never used a thimble. I'll be seventy in February, so I guess I'll never learn. However, there is a thimble I think would solve your problem. It's made of leather, and it doesn't depend on fitting over the tip of your finger; it wraps around.

I, too, love handwork, and have developed a very hard callous on my middle finger--the one I use for pushing the needle. I keep a pair of hemostats and a small pliers nearby when I'm going through multiple layers, so I don't have to worry about stabbing myself.

Teri

"Mary Fisher" wrote in news:474c4701$0$770$ snipped-for-privacy@master.news.zetnet.net:

i have always had a hard time with metal thimbles. i gave up & use leather ones now. i have a couple with metal on the top, made like a regular thimble & a couple all leather ones that are longer & have a bit of elastic in one side seam. the only problem with leather thimbles is the cats *will* steal them to play with & if the dog gets them, they're gone. lee

Mary,

The fact that your finger isn't sweaty may be part of the problem. Try blowing your breath into a metal thimble that fits your finger, enough to create a little moisture, and see if that doesn't help the thimble stay on. It works for me.

Doreen in Alabama

Ah! Of course - thanks :-)

Spouse makes them for mediaeval seamstresses, why didn't I think of that?

Thanks, Teri,

Mary

See above. But we have no cats or dogs and the hens rarely come in the house :-)

Mary

I did wonder about that ... but think I'll go with the leather solution. Thanks anyway,

Mary

Right. No point wasting 15 seconds trying out a suggestion...

Doreen in Alabama

I was thinking the same thing. ;-) I usually stick my thimble finger in my mouth to dampen it, makes the thimble "stick" just fine.

Beverly

I sure hope this picture I posted works. Anyway, this is the one I like to use. But I never thought of moistening my finger before putting a thimble on, but I think my problem was the fingernail. But I'm always looking for tips!

...

LOL! I did try it as it happens but the thimble still fell off. By the time I thought about making a paste or a dab of Cow Gum or the like Spouse had made me a leather thimble. I'm pleased to say that worked!

I do appreciate suggestions :-)

Mary

I "egg" my steel thimbles -- take a nice thimble, slightly too small, and squeeze the sides of the thimble with a vise or a pair of pliers, to flatten the shape to more of an ellipse.

Kay

I'd already done that, it used to work.

Mary

Have you tried stepping on it ever so slightly, to make it the same shape as the end of your finger?

This is easier with a vice; squeeze it between two pieces of scrap wood until it fits, then back off the vice and let it spring back, then squeeze a little more. Don't try to do it all in one squash, because un-squeezing is almost impossible.

Joy Beeson

I've used a leather thimble. made it myself from Deer hide. However, sometimes you can push the back of the needle right through the deer hide.

A "hemostat" which the craft world uses for Holding stuff firmly and pulling needles is a God send in a real difficult situation. It is a scissor like instrument which the medical profession uses to tie off blood vessels quickly til they can tie it off with a thread or til they are ready to stitch it up again. it has a lock jaw. you can imagine how useful that is. Get one at a craft store. you won't regret it. Kitty

I use my hemostats for turning fingers; turning other doll parts with very tiny openings to save sewing time; to stuff toys; to turn tubes-- I couldn't work without them.

Teri

I stopped at a garage sale a few years ago, and bought a bunch. The seller was an E.R. nurse who collected unused parts from the pre-packaged kits of disposables they use these days. The hemostats are steel, not plastic, and seem every bit as good as the old ones that got sterilized.

I bought several (straight, curved, short, long) after I started machine embroidering, they are very useful for holding a jump stitch while using Littauer scissors to snip the thread.

Beverly

Those scissors are also from the medical supplies -- and so well suited to our purposes. I have to admit that I enjoy getting something cheap or free far more than if I go to a store and pay list price. Just a competitive shopper, I guess - or a garage sale junkie....

Be sure to hit up your dentist for worn-out tools, too. Those little pointy things can dig thread out of a machine, shape modeling clay, and do a lot of things that are much more pleasant than having them in your mouth.