Hi friends! I have been a busy bee, sewing through projects as fast as I can :) But, I wanted to quickly share an easy organizing project; easy, quick, and cheap - aren't those the best projects? I have been accumulating a variety of colors of upholstery thread to use with my new sewing machine, and was getting a little tired of them just sitting around my machine. I had seen various thread holders in craft stores and figured I could probably make my own. So, here's how you can, too...
You need:
- board - I used a 1x2 that we had from a previous project
- dowels - I used 3/16" that would fit inside the spools I had. Tip: it was cheaper to buy the package of 12" dowels than to buy the 36" long dowels, so check out that option (I found this package at JoAnn for $0.99).
- measuring tape/ruler
- saw (a miter box helps, too, but it isn't necessary)
- sandpaper
- drill with bit the size of the dowels you have chosen
- hammer
Decide how many spools you want to store and then figure out how far apart you need to space the dowels - I cut my board to 12", which gave me room to space 6 dowels 2" apart.
Choose your drill bit to match the size of your dowels. Drill your holes in the board; try to drill straight down and don't go all the way through the board ;)
I cut my dowels approximately in half, because I wanted to stack two spools on top of each other - decide what works for you. Smooth out the cut ends with the sandpaper. Then gently hammer the dowels into the holes. If you leave the dowels longer than 5-6", they will be more likely to break as you hammer them in - ask me how I know this :/
And you are done!
I thought I might need glue to hold the dowels in, but they are not going anywhere :) (and if you do happen to break one while putting them in, pliers work to get them out... just a tip... not that I know from experience or anything...yeah...)
Just enough room to have the spools side-by-side...
... and stacked up :)
Now, go make your own and Happy First Day of Spring!
Sherri