Hello all, Mary Ellen here.

Many of us who have been quilting for awhile now have a selection of quilting supplies that have been taken from other parts of the house and repurposed for quilting. This helps to save money to use on purchasing fabric instead of purchasing high priced gadgets. Now don’t get me wrong…I love me some good gadgets but many times the old timey things actually work as well or better.

For example, I use quadrille graph paper for measuring and trimming triangle points. There are two plastic templates on the market which are sold for the purpose of aligning triangle (or other shapes too) pieces which have to be offset for stitching. They cost about $10 a piece (which is equivalent to about a yard of fabric). I’d rather use my ten bucks on the fabric and stick with my 1¢ piece of graph paper for alignment purposes. I use a piece of 330 grit sandpaper glued to the back of a tablet cardboard instead of a Steady B… for assembling and carrying block pieces to the machine and ironing board. Blue painter’s tape has many uses. Of course mechanical pencils, Frixion pens (Be careful about how you use those!), washable markers, etc. all are useful in the quilting room.

Now don’t get me started on the many uses of Elmer’s washable school glue in the sewing room. For all you applique addicts who buy the Rox…’s glue–what’s inside that high priced bottle is just Elmer’s!

So where am I going with this? Now is the time of year to stock up on many of these supplies. With the back to school sales, and featured items advertised as the loss leaders, you can get some great bargains for your sewing room. Don’t forget to buy freezer paper now during canning season also.

What is your favorite quilting supply that you have repurposed from some other usage?