I don’t know about you guys, but my thread and bobbin storage is not paticularly satisfactory. My threads are loose in a box and my bobbins are in a clear plastic bobbin box.
What I would love is a wall rack which can store my thread and the relevant bobbin together… So I’m wondering if you have any recommendations?
I like the idea of Handi-bobs where you clip the bobbin to the tread spool, and price wise they’re not too bad (about £8 for 24 from the USA inc S&H) but I wonder if I’d still be able to put the spool with the bobbin attached on a thread rack.
Or do you have a different solution that does the job just as well, or better?
I’ve looked at the DIY options and quite honestly, by the time I’ve bought the materials and spent the time making a rack, it’s actually more cost effective to pay for one (plus I’m not sure my wood work skill are up to it)!
What do you guys do? Do you have a storage solution I can plagarise in a shameless manner?!
Ooh, I have emailed you a pic of what Santa brought me. If you know someone who could help with the DIY skills …….
Thank you! I’ll have a look…
I keep mine in various pretty vintage tins & hat boxes, no racks.. I’ve been pretty ocd about it too, 1000m reels (for overlocker) in one box, blues and greens (100m) in another, warm colours in another, black, white, navy & grey together in another tin, and topstitching and silk threads are together.. starting to run out of room for pretty vintage tins. My bobbins are in a portion of my sewing kit box, all set out in little sections, colour coded of course!
That sounds gorgeous! Unfortunately space is an uber premium so if I can get it onto a wall it helps massively! I’d love to have a peek at your sewing space!
not right now you wouldnt! It’s a mess! Just finishing off project no 3 of the year, another skirt for daughter no1.
It’s a sign of creativity! Mine is in dire need of a tidy up which is on the cards for Saturday…
Hi Vicki, I have one of these which I have mounted on the wall
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0001DUP10
It’s fab! I keep my bobbins in a separate plastic bobbin box picked up at my local craft shop, but I think there would be room to store the on the rack as well if you wanted to
xx
I keep eyeballing those. Even with S&H from the US they’re not too bad! I’ll have to see if I can find a UK supplier to see if its worth running the customs gauntlet!
Opps just realised I sent you a link to the American Amazon but if you google the make or “thread rack” on UK Amazon it should come up. You can buy it from plenty of other places too if you want to protest about Amazon’s tax evasion…!!
I’m bad, I’m afraid I often follow the price before the tax circumstances. I am more ethical about other trading practices though!
I think you need to order a handyman online to come and custom make it for you – and then sell them online! If you want one so will everyone else
Ooh, custom thread rack. I live in a lot of hope! Although a bit of research at the DIY shed may be warranted. Be prepared for the possibility of some very wonky woodwork!
I have one of those wood peg racks mounted on the wall for my thread. The shorter spools like Coats and Clark leave plenty of room for the bobbin on the same peg as the thread. I’m trying to buy a little better quality thread these days, and their spools are a bit taller and I can’t do that.
I have a bobbin storage tree by Nancy’s notions. It’s rubbery and is supposed to keep all the loose threads in check. It only really works for that if the bobbin is full or close to it. It has a hole on the bottom that fits right over one of my empty pegs on my thread board. I like it OK, but I kind of wish I had gotten one of those rubbery circle things instead.
I’m intrigued by the rubbery circle things! I think I’m going down the making route despite saying I wasn’t earlier!
The cheapest I can find a wall rack with a decent amount of storage is £36 + the cost of bobbin thingies that attach it to the spool which would be an additional £40!
Where as I can make one with sticks long enough for Guttermann spools and a bobbin for about £15 and some frustration / swearing / husband coercion.
I wish I could help you darls, but I’m not that high tech LOL ^__^ I have a plastic bobbin container by my machine, with all my bobbins in it, and a few spools of thread nearby from both the last project and current project – the rest of my thread I just keep in a plastic container with all my other notions… it’s not pretty but it works for me, as I ‘shop’ for each project before I start ^__^
That’s kinda my system at the moment but the thread collection is demanding more organisation now and it’ll free up some table space!
I have the little plastic clips that attach a bobbin to the thread as I can never find the right colour bobbin otherwise. I used to use elastic bands to keep them together but I found that the elastic would perish and then snap. I inherited a thread spool holder but there are very long spools on it so they end up being stacked on top of each other and it doesn’t work with the bobbin clip anyway being so tall! So I’m a bit like you with a semi satisfactory solution!
As Lizzy says, someone is missing a trick in the fact there isn’t a decent solution out there! In theory it’s so simple but nothing out there will store a decent number of spools and bobbins together. If it does store them together you’re limited in number. If you can get the volume you can’t store the bobbin with the spool! Soo frustrating!
Louise, what type of plastic clips do you have and where could i find them? They sound handy!
Mine are also in clear plastic boxes, each spool on it’s own “stick” and each bobbin in it’s own cradle (does this even make sense?). Not the most elegant solution and would also love a wall rack of some sort.
Sounds mucho the elegant than my current mess!
I have a standard wooden peg storage rack that can stand up or be hung on the wall (my dad and husband made it for me but it’s just like the ones on amazon and joann’s).
I use an old pfaff so the normal bobbin storage doohickey’s won’t work, but what I did was glue a magnetic strip to the fronts of the rack and I can stick the bobbins next to their corresponding threads. I can even fit two bobbins per color on there if I offset them slightly.
Long term I hope to make another thread rack with smaller diameter but longer dowels so I can stack the bobbins on the threads, but since this works so well it’s not a very high priority.
Sounds like a great solution! I’ve got to use plastic bobbins (Janome) so magnets are out for me but it does sound like quite an elegant solution!
Mine are a mess… I have my thread in gallon size ziplocs and my bobbins in a plastic container. I NEED to organize them but will wait til the day I have a sewing room of my own… Sigh…
You will one day! And even if its tiny like mine you’ll love it!
I was just thinking about this last night! I have my thread in an old cigar box, which looks cool, but the bobbins are all over the place. I was thinking about getting one of those rubber “BobbinSavers” http://www.joann.com/bobbinsaver-bobbin-organizer-assorted-colors/prd29777/ Mounting the thread with the bobbins to the wall would be better. Please post what you decide to do!
I just found this:
http://creativehomemakers.blogspot.com/2011/01/sewing-thread-holder.html
I might try to copy it!
Ooh that’s one of my inspirations too! Also way easier than drilling lots of holes and sticking dowels…
I have a sewing box for my spools and then one of those little plastic cases for my bobbins. And I have to say the bobbin case is kind of sucky… Time for some custom holders, me thinks!
It’s the bobbin case that’s tipped me over the edge! I knocked it and they hit the deck and scattered, unravelling as they went! Aaarrrgghhh!
Hi Vicki, Your post is very timely!
My own thread storage is pretty poor at moment. Mine are all stuck in boxes or tins roughly grouped by colours and shoved into a drawer. So, not very accessible or easy to view. I also have around 20 or so overlocker cones stuck in another drawer too. I’ve been eyeing up a better shop-bought alternative to the standard wooden thread racks (which BTW for those not in the know do also come in options to carry just cones too
). The one I like is called “The Arranger” and I’ve seen it oneBay
check out the videos of it they look pretty good. Here’s a few other l links to try too :
My problem is my lack of wall space! So I’m trying to come up with a DIY solution – one where I make a “board” and I’ll then hang it off of the side of my IKEA Expedition bookcase
As/when I get around to marketing it I will share the details on my blog of course LOL!
Here’s a very simple DIY one: http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-a-Simple-and-Stylish-Thread-Rack/
And this is a good post too: http://fabricshopperonline.com/thread-storage-and-organization/
Plus, there a few Pins of Thread organisation on my Pinterest board here: http://pinterest.com/clairesews/sewing-rooms-spaces-organisation-storage-solutions/
And this lady has a great page to links of real people’s sewing rooms too
http://www.younge.com/sewing%20rooms.htm
I’ve seen the arranger. I think I’m going to have to go DIY though for the sake of economics…. They’re some interesting links though, thank you!
Hmm, I don’t have this problem – I only have four bobbins, so there is no need to keep them organized. I do have quite a few spools of thread though, because I try to buy matching thread each time I purchase fabric. I just store them in a small drawer – though it is not organized ver well – just rows of silk, cotton and polyester. Do share with what you decide as a solution!
Mine are all poly – I’m a Guttermann Sew All addict! How do you manage with just four bobbins? I think I’d go a bit mental having to unwind them so I could load up with the right thread or have I misunderstood?!
I’ve gotten really good at estimating how much thread I need to wind on a bobbin. You have no idea how many projects I have finished just as my bobbin thread is about to run out. If I do have leftovers, I use those on my next muslin. Having only four bobbins is frustrating at times, but it also keeps me accountable to not having too many projects going at once. So if I do have any longstanding WIPs, I am motivated to finish them and free up a bobbin! I know, it’s really crazy and wouldn’t work for most
I’m in awe of your estimating skills! I normally fill mine 2/3 and hope that’s enough – sometimes it is sometimes it isn’t! I’m afraid numerous bobbins are necessary for me!
I’ve always coveted a wall thread rack, but have gone uber lo tech using a cupcake stand and gu jars, organising threads in colours. I’ve a rainbow of threads on the shelf above my sewing machine. I’ve got a bobbin tray in the utility bit of my sewing machine, so that’s where they live. Interesting links in all these comments !!
Here’s a link to mine
http://scruffybadgertime.co.uk/2012/10/my-sewing-den/
I think your solution is so pretty! Unfortunately my two shelves are already full otherwise I’d be robbing this idea like a shot!
Hi,
Stumbled on this blog just this morning – http://sewmanyways.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/tool-time-tuesdaysewing-organizers.html
Once I have a large enough stash of threads and bobbins I will have to remember this one!
Oh wow! That has some possibilities… I’m starting to think of other things I could use to make a little tray with now, like cable ducting…
I just have one of those cheap wooden thread racks. The thread spindles don’t look like they’re long enough to hold the bobbins and the thread, but they are if you store the bobbin underneath the thread spool
That’s what I do.
Simple but brilliant! I wish they were cheap here… £36 is the cheapest I can find which is about $58! Buying from the US would be cheaper but the customs charges then negate the savings. Head desk! Gotta love 20% VAT (like a sales tax!)
Hi Vicki Kate,
Congrats!!! The random number generator chose you to win the sewing patterns Wendy is donating on the giveaway on my blog. Please email me (sozoblog AT gmail DOT com) with your postal address.
Thanks!