Sewing essentials: Needle sharpener / Yukinko's carefree and easygoing handmade life

Kiwi needle polishing

Hello everyone. This month I tried making a needle polisher using kiwi.

For all you sewers out there, do you own a needle sharpener? If you leave needles stuck in a pincushion for too long, the contact surface between the fabric and the needle can rust, and the needle can become difficult to cut through the fabric. I had a strawberry-shaped needle sharpener a long time ago, but I lost it at some point, and more than ten years have passed since I started thinking about making one. The other day, a fellow sewer gave me some "diamond powder," which is the filling for a needle sharpener, and I was finally able to make my long-desired handmade one. When I tried to make one before, I searched for the special filling but couldn't find it, so I gave up at that time. For some people, it might just be powdered stone, but for me, it felt like "that legendary gem!!"

 

In Japan, needle sharpeners from the Showa era (1926-1989) are often strawberry-shaped, but according to my American friend, the strawberry shape is the most popular there as well, and tomato shapes are also commonly seen. I've heard that in Japan, people sometimes put hair or wool in them not only for polishing but also to prevent rust, but in America, they put in tiny chips of walnut wood or plant seeds, which is quite interesting. So, I thought about what shape I should make, and finally settled on a kiwi made of wool. Come to think of it, I recently saw macaron-shaped ones for sale, and there's a mystery to why needle sharpeners naturally lead to food-related designs: strawberries, tomatoes, kiwis... It's quite fascinating how even something as simple as a needle sharpener can be so profound.

 

Yukinko

I've been contributing to the magazine "Couturier no Tane" since its inception. As my daughter grows, I've also found more free time. Lately, I've been completely engrossed in sewing.　

Instagram: @yukinko_no_kurashi