How to Store Bobbins
ZJ HumbachDescription
When it comes to sewing, no one likes to have to stop in the middle of a project to wind a new bobbin. This is why it is handy to have several pre-wound bobbins available during each project. ZJ Humbach shares several methods for storing bobbins so you will always have one available.
Bobbin Storage
There are many different bobbin storage options available at craft and fabric stores today. ZJ shows some of her favorite ways of storing bobbins, including a flexible silicone ring and a hard plastic case. She explains that the flexible ring comes in different sizes to accommodate the size of bobbin you are storing. It is important to select the right size ring for your size of bobbin so that the bobbins do not fall out. Since the ring is made of a flexible silicone material, it is meant to grip your bobbins snugly to hold them in place without the need for a lid. Another storage option ZJ shares is a hard plastic case that can store any size of bobbin. She explains how she has several different cases so that she can group similar thread colors or types together in one box and label it. This makes it quick and easy to know what kind of bobbin you are grabbing.
Alternative Bobbin Storage
While fabric stores offer many different products for storing bobbins as well as other options for storing your sewing supplies, ZJ shows several options you may already have lying around your house. The first option she shows is a large medicine case. She explains how these are great for storing bobbins because they can store several, they have a lid that won’t easily come off, and they are fairly see-through, so you can see what bobbins are in the case. Other similar storage options include used tea tins, as they also securely hold several bobbins and are perfect for storing bobbins in your sewing room or for taking your sewing on the road.
There's something about sewing and quilting that we just have so many things that require storage and sometimes it's hard to figure out what is the best way to store threads, bobbins, needles, pins, fabric, you name it. Well today, I'd like to give you some tips for bobbin storage that I found to be very effective. These are two very popular options that I found. Now, this one is a little big. It's a rubber ring. Let me take these out and show you. It's a flexible rubber ring that you can put your bobbins in and they come in different sizes. And unfortunately, the only bobbins I had with me were standard sewing machine bobbins, the size L bobbins. But this is made for the M size bobbins that long-arm quilters use or that you may find in a lot of commercial machines but they fit in and they're nice and snug and it's very easy to see what you have and it stores nicely in a drawer. So I've got a couple of these and I do like them. Probably the one that I like best though is the plastic box. And the reason I like this is as a longterm quilter, who quilts professionally. I have probably a dozen of these boxes that are filled with bobbin threads. So I have a lot of thread that I need to store. With the plastic lid on it, it keeps the dust out because I have them out on a baker's rack shelf so I can get to them easily. And so this way my threads don't get dusty and I can see at a glance which ones I need. I also on the very edge of the box because I have them on a shelf. I go ahead and put what type of thread it is so that all of my bobbins in there are of the same threads so that it's easy to pull it with the matching top thread. So these will fit either M or L bobbins. And I find that this is a wonderful, wonderful storage media for your bobbins. And once the lid is on they don't fall out where this, they may fall out. A couple of other ideas though that I like I have seen where you can get one of the small thread holders. It's a little wooden rack that goes on the wall and it has little spindles on it. And that is another great option for holding your bobbins if you do a lot of bobbin work, especially if you're a long-arm quilter or any kind of quilter for that matter, it works very, very well. It's also a good place to store pre-round colored bobbins. It's just a nice option. And you can, if you want, make a little cover to go over it either out of plastic or fabric so that dust does not get on that unit or keep it, I like to keep it on the door inside a closet and then get my bobbins that way. Another thing I like to do is I love to pre-wind bobbins. I hate winding bobbins. So I will have a bobbin winding session with my standalone bobbin winder. And I will usually, oh do at least eight to 10, maybe 12 bobbins, typically for when I'm piecing a quilt. I do them in light gray and I do them in a cream color. And that usually meets most of my needs, either that or a dark gray, if I'm doing dark fabrics. So I will wind them up and put them in old medicine bottles. And then when I'm ready I just reach in and they're good to go. It's also handy because I do a lot of quilting on the go. When we go camping I take my sewing machine with me and I'm doing piecing. And so it's easy to just grab my little medicine bottle to put the bobbins in. I also, if I don't have medicine bottle, now I like the medicine bottle 'cause it's clear and you can see the color but I've also been known to use old tea cans the canisters that tea come in or any kind of little metal canisters work great. There's also some tea that comes in a little wooden boxes and the lid slides back and forth. And I've used those too. So sometimes we just need to be a little bit creative. We don't always have to spend a lot of money but these are some wonderful ways to store your bobbins. And especially if you have metal bobbins, you want to store them with care. And that's another reason why I like this particular system because you don't want your bobbins to get dented or out of shape because then you won't get the proper stitch quality. So again, I hope this will give you some good ideas and just be creative and you'll be surprised what you'll come up with for taking care of your bobbins.
Thanks for the bobbin storing info. I do use the "purple" ring bobbin holder. I like it and with the larger bobbin size, the bobbins sit securely in the ring and don't unwind as easily. I'd also like to add in that I purchased a plastic (clear) box with a latch to stay closed. It is the size of the purple ring and the height of 2 rings. I can easily see in the box and my bobbins are dust free.
I place mine in my eptmy medicine bottles each bottle has one color Diana
</strong> Hello: How do you keep your bobbin thread on the bobbin for storage. I seem to have a lot of bobbin threads all over the place in my bobbin holder because they begin to unthread. There’s no little slit to tuck the thread in like a spook. Thank you.
Do you put the metal bobbins in the plastic medicine bottles too or you use the plastic container for the metal bobbins
I didn't see you mentioning that the plastic case looks great but the bobbins unwind and you have thread everywhere. The cans so the same thing. The only worthwhile item I have tried is the ring. Thank you for the info