I Call it Jack...The Seam Ripper

I, contrary to Elaine, what's new...don't normally name inanimate objects...like cars, sewing machines, longarms or whatever...Like Carmen the Dogwood in the front yard, or Kermie the 54 Elna Supermatic...her 45 Featherweight Sheba, like the Queen...but the seam ripper...well it got a name...I would have hated Jack the Ripper had I lived in that era...and so therefore the seam ripper, not being one of my favorite devices, got a name. Say hello to Jack...the Seam Ripper:

But like a lot of my work longarming I have brought tools in from the garage and given them a new home. Good for all involved...they are more comfy inside, protected from the extreme cold of winter and heat of summer in the garage...they stay a lot cleaner and for the most part have their own little space and not jammed with a bunch of other tools in some drawer. I'm sorry, you don't have a Longarm Pouch...

 For me...they make the job at hand much simpler, more efficient and involves less time to complete the task. If you know anything about me you know I subscribe to Keep It Simple Stupid. Enter the Pick & Hook set.

This is my set...purchased at Home Depot...They can be found at Harbor Freight for like a $1.50 for a set. They won't say Husky...so...that's a good deal!!!

 

But when it comes to removing the stitching from those infrequent Oops I've found nothing easier or more seamlessly...so to speak. The points are not so sharp as to fear cutting or puncturing the fabric, the points slip under the seam smoothly and with very little effort it is pulled out quickly from one loop to the next...and almost as quickly as they went in...they come out.

 

Depending on the lay of the thread pattern determines which tool I use...most of the time the 45 degree hook is used and on occasion just the straight pick. Your choice. Give them a try...you won't be disappointed. And Jack...well he stays in the pouch most of the time unless there is need to make the first cut to get the removal going. They also are used to pull up the bobbin thread when needed. They slide right under the foot and hook the bobbin loop to pull it through. Works for me hope they work for you.

Quilt till you wilt.



 

 



What's in a name???

Here it is Saturday again already, I honestly want to make more than one entry a week...if you have to work...well I haven't forgotten, so I can sympathize... at the same time...so sad, too bad...suck it up. Okay; as many of you know, and many don't...but soon will...I have a 'nickname' more on that later. But it all started in the late 60's when Elaine left a note attached to the seat of my bike, at work, in plain view, saying that she had stopped by to see me...I was not there...more on that later...So I am in the process of joining a Veteran's Motorcycle Association which came to being having made Quilts of Valor presentations to several of its members. On the application form is this box marked "Road Name" or more commonly referred to as 'nickname.' Here is the dilemma...I have never had any other nickname, never, ever and since that fateful day that I walked into the shop of the construction company I worked for, saw almost every other worker standing around my bike, all of them for the most part resembling shaved gorillas, reading the in plain view note left by my lovely wife that began with..."Lessie Poo, I stopped by to see...." Well I have been Lessie Poo. We all had at this company a radio call sign... Units 1 through Unit 30...Unit 1 being the owner and the junior guy holding down the last spot. Well at the time I was like Unit 17 having worked my way up the ladder...I would never be referred to by either Unit or a number and for the remainder of my days my call sign was "Lessie Poo." Here's the problem...This particular group requires your 'Road Name' to be sewn on your motorcycle vest. To make matters worse most of the good nicknames are taken, Killer, Woodchucker, Tiger, Fifty Cal, Die Hard, Frag, Dead Eye, Racer, Stud, Cowboy...well you get the picture. Not to mention their logo includes a 'skull.' Please how tough am I going to appear wearing a black leather vest with this huge blood soaked skull covering the back, with Marine Corp patches and other manly logos and pin accoutrements with a name patch bearing "Lessie Poo" I mean really. At first I was thinking like "Cujo." But then that really didn't turn out too well for the dog. And the odds of me answering to Cujo are pretty slim.

But...well...really, Lessie Poo I'm kind of used to and considering the source from whence it came... it's not all really that bad. But back to that dilemma thing...what to do, oh what to do. I'm going to have to think about this...oh wait "Trigger" no that's a stuffed horse, Bullet, another dog just like the horse...I'd even thought about "Quilter" but might as well stick with Lessie Poo...What do you think?