Pins and Needles - an easy needle case to make

I have a thing for pincushions, needle cases, scissor fobs, any gadget-y type of thingamajig. I am always making something new to hold those objects. I have pincushions in every room, sometimes more than one to a room and needlecases in every tote or bag.
The other day I was looking through some of my scraps of strings and thought, this is a good size for a needle case. Okay, I really didn’t need another one, but, my sister did! Sisters are handy dandy folk to have around, especially when they enjoy stitching as much as I do. It isn’t her birthday or Christmas and it’s past Valentine’s Day, however I really don’t need an excuse or reason to make something special for my baby sister, Cat.

Here is a quick tutorial on how I made it.

First, find some scrap strings about let’s say approx. 9” in length and 4” in diameter. You will also need the same dimensions of batting or felt for the innards and for the lining. Also a bit of red cut in the shape of a heart.

Center the heart on the string foundation.

You will want to embroider this- by hand or machine, whichever you are comfy with.

Once you have it sewn securely, you will want to turn it over and remove some of the stitches that are within the circumference of the heart. You will then carefully stuff this with polyester fiberfill.

After stuffing, slip stitch the opening closed and begin sewing your sandwich together.

You can use a decorative stitch or straight stitch. You really just want to make sure it is bound together. Take care at where the heart was stuffed, ending your stitching just before you reach there and picking up again right after the stuffed heart.

You are now ready for the binding

For a super easy instructional on binding I don’t think you could find a better tut than from the Missouri Star Quilt Company (ps) if you are really wanting to learn some quick and easy quilt projects, take a peek at their many fun videos. Quack!


Once you have the binding on, you’re almost done!

Okay, so I got a little ahead of myself and forgot to take some extra pictures. I think you can figure out how I got to here.

Cut out another heart shape and place it on the lining right behind the front stuffed heart. This will be a nice place to hold your sewing needle.

In the center, I attached a lobster claw clasp to clip my nippers to.

On the opposite end of the inside heart, I attached a few plastic circles generally used for café curtains. Through these you can pull some floss and voila! You have a neat and tidy little needle case to carry with you anywhere!

Ta Da!