3.19.2013

toolin' around tuesday: sink your teeth in


howdy chickadees and chuckaroos.  lookee here what i got for you today!  a li'l chomping japanese stapler!

a stapler? you ask?  yep.  i found this diminutive guy whilst stomping around new york with brilliant chica one black friday.  we didn't even realize it was black friday, come to think of it, higher on the list was the fact that it was her birthday and therefore time to do some shopping.  we stuck our heads in every new-to-her store i could think of, one being muji, sort of like ikea's minimalist high class japanese cousin-by-marriage.  the stationary cart was our candy.  we marveled at double ended pens, teeny clocks, and pocket sized tape measures.  the pint sized stapler was simply too cute to pass up.  

i thought i'd use it for office type stuff, but no! this is a GREAT sewing tool.  it lives in my top (read: most important) desk drawer, next to a good sized chunk of rainbow hued post-it notes.  every time i use my overlocker, i clip a section of my test portion, add my tension settings to a note, and staple the whole shebang together.  with every new fabric i try, i go to my file of stapled notes and base my test settings off the closest candidate.  

it'd be great for your scraps as well, if you're the kinda sewist that keeps track of their stash by keeping a notebook with a cross section.  i aim to be that kind of sewist.  i think i have just the right amount of OCD for it.



and best of all, GENIUS!  the teeth are totes hidden!  no chance of snagging your hand, your thread, your fabric, when hunting around in your drawers for it.  of course, it took me about three days to figure out how to get the teeth to appear.  i hollered to brilliant chica, THAT DAMN JAPANESE STAPLER DOESN'T WORK.  yeah, it did.  it was just smarter than me. there's a little lever you slide on the inside, et voila:



i'm telling you, it's just too cute.  the boucle in the first shot is waiting for its turn, i ran out of staples!  while i was stocking up, i grabbed a mini stapler and a pack of staples just for one of you...

but now, the lucky random number of giveaway number three edit, explained below: FOUR!  y'all, i was beginning to think my random numer generator was just throwing out digits in the general vicinity of the halfway mark, but today, in 62 desires for rulers with invisible powers, out popped...




number 6!  ROWR AMANDA!  step on into the 2000's and shake yo thang.  i know you know how to shake yo thang.  and the rest of y'all, give those eyeballs a break!  holy cow it's frightening!  my inner A student is shaking with fear, although my inner rebel is laughing in her face!  you can grab one of these jammies at any local sewing store.  if you can't find them locally, try manhattan wardrobe supply's online shop, or google C-thru rulers (no compensation, just enabling).

alrighty y'all, one more toolin tuesday giveaway to go and i have celebrated my fifth bloggy birthday in makin-it-up-to-ya style.  (edit: yeah, i already did that.  i forgot to label all of my toolin' around series, and what with the sick cat, my mind went to temporary mush.  so this li'l stapler is still up for grabs, and i'm extending this fifth & final giveaway till next tues april 2.)  if you'd like to own your own cutest li'l stapler in the universe, holler at me in the comments and riddle me this: do you keep fabric notes?  or do you let memory serve you?

EDIT AGAIN.  STOP.  CONTEST CLOSED.  STOP.  WINNER ANNOUNCED TODAY 4-9 AT 5PM.  STOP.

22 comments:

  1. I love the idea of keeping notes on fabrics, and keeping swatches, but I've never yet done so. I love your way though, with the notes. Then you aren't bound (ha!) to a particular note book or specific organizational style.

    That stapler is quite cute.

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  2. You are way more organized than I. However, I would love to own a cute little mini stapler.

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  3. I love this idea and am just getting to the point where I need an organizational system. This lovely little stapler would be perfect!

    ~ Saro

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  4. That's a great idea, tension notes! I can never remember which direction the tension has to go for knits, and waste a bunch of time going back and forth till it starts to look right, yet somehow it never occurred to me that writing that shit down might be helpful *facepalm*.

    In office supplies as in kitchen gadgets, the smaller it is, the more adorable!

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  5. Brilliant idea! I'm so very bad when it comes to fabric organization. My main problem is that I like to work with scraps for quilts and small projects so I have about 10 gazillion different (and tiny) fabrics in my cupboard. Maybe a cute little stapler will provide me with just the right among of motivation to organize my bigger pieces of fabric! Thanks for the chance to win!

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  6. I'm in the process of organizing my fabric stash and it is exhausting. This adorable lil stapler would definitely help me organize AS I buy, instead of buying it and it getting lost in my sewing bin!

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  7. i took the basic serger class @ craftsy and started a stitch/fabric notebook. you've taken it to the next level x 100. what a great little stapler and i'm not sure i would have figured out the secret to success as fast as you did...

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  8. i NEEEED to take fabric notes... i used to for about 2 weeks ;)

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  9. WOW, your method of organizing is clever. I never thought of using a scrap of fabric and do a little note with the tension. I always do a lot, and I mean a lot, of tests with tension before sewing the whole thing. And it didn't even cross my mind to use a stapler to do so. Well, keep throwing more tips at us and I believe that we'll all have a more organized sewing room. Love and kisses, :*

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  10. I love this idea. I should be more organized. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?

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  11. I don't keep fabric notes, but the only fabric I've made anything with is basic cotton so far. I haven't graduated yet. I never even thought of doing something like this for when I do. What a great idea!

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  12. I can honestly say I do not keep fabric notes, but I still WANT A TINY STAPLER dammit! After I use a pattern I stuff everything into a clear ziploc baggie with a scrap of the fabric that I used. Usually when I'm going through things, thinking about a new project, the combination of fabric scrap and pattern is enough to jog my memory.

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  13. I don't keep track of anything like I should, but what I really came to ask is...

    can I be a chuckaroo? I like that a LOT! =D

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  14. My stash isn't big enough to need notes yet, so it's more scraps, somewhat folded, in an old box. My big trouble is deciding when I should and shouldn't keep a scrap that looks like swiss cheese.

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  15. This is why I stalk sewing bloggers like yourself - to teach me a thing or two. I'm supposed to be modifying my tension settings? What! This little stapler might give me the kick in the pants I need!

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  16. I do not keep notes on my thread tensions, but you know what? If I had this stapler I think I would start. It's such a great idea. Do I have enough obsessive organization for it? IDK. We'll see.

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  17. Wow, that little gaffer is the cutest thing ever! Would be ideal for me to start making fabric notes - as I admit, my memory is getting fuzzier with each passing year *lol* Then again, that's not such a bad thing - once it gets fuzzy enough I can give it a name and take it out for walkies...

    Love,
    Mugsy

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  18. Ok, I gotta put in my bid for this one. I'm a stapler fanatic. ;) I have post-it notes all over my machines to tell me stitch lengths and tension. I got tired of going into notebooks!

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  19. It's all about the memory in Marmotaland. But then, I've been sewing with fairly predictable fabrics so far. Stapler = organising my loads of study materials for the week. American literature in one bunch, Caribbean literature in another, English Society of 1066-1707 here, African American history and culture there... (I'm excited about my courses this semester, OK?) I wasted some seven or so staples the last time I was changing the filling, before I figured out how it was supposed to fit together. Ahem.

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  20. I think that it is incredibly organized and industrious of you to save fabric notes! I tend to rely on trial and error.

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  21. so cute! perhaps it will inspire me to be more organised?

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