This weekend I’m braving  Dunedin snow and cold for work. Not complaing at all – I ❤️ winter! 

I wanted to tell you about a couple of gadgets I’ve discovered that might be useful for you too. First up – a lightbox. I don’t know about you but transferring designs on to cloth is one of my least liked things to do. Whether it’s your own hand-drawn design or a commercial pattern- it’s not easy. 

Many times I’ve simply taped a paper design on to the window and taped the fabric over then traced through. Not to be a wuss – but it’s hard tracing with your arms up in the air. Obviously with counted stitch techniques like cross-stitch, this is not a priblem.

Enter,the light box. Unless you’re a doctor reading plain xrays you’re unlikely to have one of these laying around. I came across this light box at Typo. Best of all it was relatively inexpensive – $50.

Apart from the annoying little call-out at the bottom, it’s pretty much perfect for small designs. And it runs on batteries. And it’s not hundreds of dollars.

The other wee gem I’ve discovered is the erasable pen. Well, I was actually told about this one, but it might be a discovery for you too.

It erases straight off the fabric and provides a much finer line than other iron-off transfer pens or pencils. And if it’s in a place that’s too tricky to rub off – just cover it with a stitch 😜

Do you have any gadgets or tools that make stitching easier?