Posted by Tammy on 30th Oct 2026
The Unrewarded Conquerors of Quilting
As quilters, garment makers, sewists and even home décor enthusiasts it’s quite common to stop by your local store and admire all the new fabrics and test drive all the strategically displayed new machine models that have recently arrived. We keep our thread racks full of every color of the rainbow and if you’re like me you have a drawer full of shiny new needles patiently waiting for its’ turn to make that smooth seam of stitching that every one of us gets so excited for!
But what about those other underrated, sometimes forgotten, and often over used items in that drawer? Did you look? Want to guess what were talking about today? Your probably right! Let’s chat about the unrewarded, extremely useful notions that are sitting there sometimes in the dark waiting patiently for you to put them to use!
Here are some of my favorite heroes that I would highly recommend taking a looking at you might even find one that you just can’t live without!
The CutterPillar Flex Sewing Light
Sometimes inspiration, (or just plain insomnia) hits and away you go! Your machine might have the best lighting out there but there is always one thing that needs to get done, you have been at it for hours and you look up and suddenly, it’s dark outside! You need just a little bit more light on your project. I found myself in this situation more often than not. I needed just a little bit more light so I purchased myself one! This cordless light has 3 levels of led brightness, it’s rechargeable, the neck is repositionable so you can point it just where you need it and it doesn’t get in the way! There is also an accessory kit that you can purchase that has additional spare cradles so that you can move it from machine to machine when you need too!!
That Purple Thang by Lynn Graves
Who knew that a purple piece of plastic would come in so handy! It is my go-to piece of equipment for so many reasons. It pushes, pulls, pokes, stuffs and typically anything else that I might need it for. I sometimes forget that I have it in my hand. It has too many uses to list here! You can’t go wrong with adding this one to your arsenal!
I never realized how much accumulates on the bottom of my iron until I tried to iron white fabric one day! Needless to say, I never not have some iron cleaner in my drawer now! This cleaner removes everything, right down to mess from fusibles and on the bright side it doesn’t smell!
This is a recent addition to my sewing world. I was speaking with a colleague about some new rulers that I purchased and the fact that they were not non-slip on the back. She recommended this product, I purchased, and I will never be with out it again. Not only does it work fantastic on the back of my slick rulers, you can use it on templates, paper and even spray some on the bottom of your favorite socks and never slide again!
If you’re like me and you do a lot of quilts, this is a must have! I fought with binding, tried every way imaginable to roll, lay, tuck and drape and it always got tangled. This little jewel makes binding so much better, wind it up and your ready to go! Who knew something like this even existed!
Who knew! Yes, this little jewel allows me to hem that perfect hem, measure and iron directly on it and keep a consistent seam line all in one pass. The angle is perfect for making a corner, no more measure, pin, iron and then sew. Press and sew!! Poetry in motion!
And last but not least a Lighted Seam Ripper! We all have them. Do we like to use them? Well no, but we do! I am almost ashamed to say that I have tried so many out there and the one that I like the most is the Gypsy Quilter Lighted Seam Ripper. It has a bright light, stays sharp, has an on and off switch, safety ball and has a clear cap for storage when not in use. It fits my hand perfectly and even has some grippy ridges along the top for extra control! It is battery operated so make sure that you have some extra G3-A batteries in that drawer as well!
These are just a few of my favorite notions that I keep handy in my sewing space! Are there others well of course, but these are the ones that I rely on often. They are not flashy, nor or they expensive, you could add all of these for less than backing material for your next quilt. Even so, they are reliable, make my life so much easier and ask for nothing in return. Let’s celebrate them today! Pick one, or more, from the list above and as a special treat use code “Fav10” for 10% off your own unrewarded conqueror!