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New Tools of the Trade

November 27, 2017 by Lisa Leave a Comment

When it comes to embroidery, I have to say I find it pretty relaxing. I love brainstorming ideas, shopping for fabrics and plopping down on the couch to stitch.

The exception to this ultra-mellow process is the whole tracing the designs onto fabric bit. Well, the tracing is easy enough, it’s just my equipment that would get me me bogged down. For the past few years I’d been using this 1970s-era light table that I snagged out of the Boston Store garbage. I mean who was I, someone that would trace designs by taping fabric to the window on bright days, to turn down a free light table? It was the solution to my main stitching problem!

And then it became the problem itself. This old table was huge – easily 18×24″ – and heavy. Lugging the thing up from the basement became such a hassle that I’d leave it on the floor of our den for weeks at a time, which wasn’t a great look. But I tried not to get down on it too much, because it’s not like new tables were that different.

Until I found out they were.

After making a dozen trips down to my basement to trace in a day (because I didn’t fee like moving the monster from its home), I was all that’s it – I’m looking for a new one (but only if it’s cheap)! I searched for light tables on Amazon, and I found this.

Holy crap, folks. It was like I flashed 50 years into the future (well, I had considering how old my light table was). Light tables are the size of iPads now. And they only cost about $25. I’ve never clicked “buy now” so fast.

Working with this table – well, it’s obviously not a table anymore – is a real dream. I love the adjustable brightness, the slim profile, how easy it is to store (even though this one is laying out in the den more often than not, too). This one small change is making my stitching process way easier. A good investment at last!

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About Lisa

Lisa is a writer, reader and crafter based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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