Practical tips and life hacks for all things crafts

Hi,
since you unfortunately can’t search by keywords here in the forum, I’m starting a new thread.

What kinds of creative solutions and repurposed items have you come up with to make your crafting easier, organize your knitting basket, make it easier to find the right sewing needle, or deal with whatever else has bothered you or made your work harder over time? Do you know any ultimate life hacks, like how to get even the thickest thread through the eye of a needle?

This evening I crocheted myself a small case for the embroidery needle I need for weaving in ends when knitting and crocheting. (Hm, maybe I should wet-block it after all and iron it after it dries.) To reduce the risk of the needles poking through, I folded the case lengthwise and closed it with a bow made from a foundation chain. Folded up, the case measures about 6.5 x 3.5 x 1.5 cm. For darning needles, it would need to be a bit longer. For a firm stitch pattern, crochet with a thinner hook than indicated for the yarn. Time required approx. 0.5–1 hour with a size 3 crochet hook.
  

I’ve actually used wine bottle corks for this purpose.

You don’t have to buy stitch markers. You can also use paper clips and safety pins. Or tie small loops from the leftover thread after sewing (use a crochet hook to pull them through if needed). Thread these loops onto a wire or place them in an empty cream or pill container. That way, you’ll always have them close at hand. Do you have any other ideas?

I can show you my knitting needle pouches. That way, I don’t have to search for long, and they’re all tidy.

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I sew them from old fabrics, and I put the size on each pouch.

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Hi, I use needle holders for that and sew them myself 

I’ve stowed my set of double-pointed needles in an empty chip can.

That’s such a great idea!!! And so simple! Thanks so much for the tip! I used to try using corks, but they tend to slip right off.
Warm regards 👋 

When crocheting amigurumi, I pull the slightly longer starting thread inward and then “weave” it upward to serve as a row marker. Before stuffing or sewing it together, I simply pull it back out toward the beginning. 

A friend gave me a very nice yarn cake holder.




Only, when you put a yarn cake in it, it doesn’t turn very smoothly. And crocheting is tedious. 
But then came the idea💡💡

I still had one of those empty spindles from blank DVDs.


Including the empty discs at the end of the stack.


So, just put the empty discs (with the clear disc you can also leave info on a sticky note behind it)
onto the empty spindle, place the yarn cake onto the spindle, and put it into the yarn cake holder.
    



And then you’re ready to get started. And the yarn cake turns nicely and more easily than without these discs.

Of course, you can also use the spindle without a yarn cake holder like this.
But with the yarn cake holder, the whole thing is more stable and the yarn cake doesn’t slide off the table as easily.

I hope this makes sense. Otherwise, feel free to ask me.

Have fun with it.😊