text: Elaine Theriault January 27, 2017 4552 views
  It's the end of the week. I hope you enjoyed the journey with the Husqvarna Viking Sapphire 965Q. It's a superb sewing machine and there's so much more that I want to share with you, but that will have to wait for another week.
  Yesterday when I was topstitching and sharing my ideas for storing the partially used needles, it hit me that I need to make a needlecase for those partially used needles. Simple to make and totally practical.
  Follow along today as we make a needlecase for sewing machine needles. You can customize it for hand needles or leave it generic.
  I decided to use some fusible fleece inside the outer cover. This isn't necessary, but I like my projects to have somebody to them, so I dug out my resealable bag of fusible fleece scraps and found a piece that was a perfect fit.
  I'm using my outer fabric (the two quilt blocks) as my guide for size. If you're using something from your stash, the size is approximately 7½" x 3¾".
  Cut one piece from each of the outer and lining fabrics. You also need to cut one piece of fusible fleece that is ½" smaller on the length and the width. In this case, 7″ x 3¼".
  Sewing the lining and the outer fabric together along the outer edge of the fabric square
  Place the fusible fleece on the wrong side of the outer fabric. It was cut ½" smaller so the piece should fit just inside the seam lines. Following the manufacturer's instructions, fuse the fleece to the project, making sure it's well adhered to. Hot iron and steam are often required.
  Cutaway the corners of the project. You can see in the photo that I not only clip the corners away, but I grade down the side seams as well. This helps to reduce the bulk in the corner once the project is turned inside out.
  Turn the project right sides out. I used a point turner to help poke out the corners. Make sure you do that job gently as with the clipped corners, it's easy to go right through the corner and that isn't a good idea. You can also use the point turner to run along the edge (inside the project) to help get a smooth edge. Press well.
  You can close the opening by hand stitching, but I like to use the ¼" strips of fusible web. I cut a small piece and insert it in the opening and fuse in place. Works for me and simple!
  I could simply have inserted a piece of felt inside the cover of the needlecase and be finished. However, I wanted to customize the insert to make my life easier. If I put the partially used needles in the case with no labels, I don't remember which needles are in there. Plus, there are built-in alphabets in the Sapphire 965Q and I thought this would be a good time to give them a try.
  I cut two pieces of felt approximately 6¼" x 2¾" for the double-sized insert page.
  I'd been sewing with the single hole throat plate and when I attempted to select a non-straight stitch, I got a pop-up warning message. This is so awesome because even though I know to change the throat plate if you're focused like I tend to be when I sew, you don't always think all the steps through when you switch from one technique to another. No danger of broken needles with this Stitch Width Safety feature.
  I removed the single hole throat plate and I got a second pop-up warning message as you can see below. So even though the single hole throat plate had been removed, I still had to deactivate the Stitch Width Safety. While the Sapphire 965Q is intuitive, it makes sure that I know what I'm about to do before it deactivates that stitch width safety. I like that the Saphire 965Q asks me – "do you really know what you're doing?"
  Stitch Width Safety is no longer engaged
  It's easy to program the lettering, with separate menus for Upper Case, Lower Case, and Numbers. You can see on the Interactive Touch Screen below the first part of my lettering which is the word "Topstitching".
  I decided that I would use the Sapphire 965Q to write the type and size of the most common needles that I would use. As I was prepping this project, I realized that despite the fact that there are many different sizes and types of needles, I really only use a few different ones. I created a space for each of the needles and sizes that I use. You'll see which ones in a minute.
  I used a contrasting 40-weight thread so I could read my lettering. A little bit heavier to help define the lettering. I used a topstitch needle because the thread was a bit heavier than I would normally use.
  It's a good idea to do some stitch outs so you can gauge the size. After this stitch out, I realized there wasn't enough room to put the name and the number of the needle side by side. Again, I wasn't going for perfection here, but practical and relatively quick.
  Stitch outs on a scrap
  Default setting for the overcast stitch A10
  Insert section layered onto the outer section of the Sewing Machine Needlecase
  I sewed from the back of my needlecase so I could get that seam somewhat centered.
  And now I have a cute little needle case for the partially used needles. It has locations for all the needle types and sizes that I use. Guess what? The piece of fabric and the tomato pincushion that has been in my sewing machine needle box forever are going to be history! I LOVE my new needle case.
  The finished Sewing Machine Needlecase
  The inside of the Sewing Machine Needlecase
  Isn't that just the cutest little project? I'm thrilled with it. While I was making this one, I also prepped another outer section which I think I'll customize that one for hand stitching needles.
  That wraps up this week of fun and excitement with the Husqvarna Viking Saphire 965Q. I had so much fun and I hope you did too. Not only that, but I hope that you learned a sewing technique or tip along the way.
  If you make a needlecase, let me know. I'd love to see what you make.
  Go back to part 4: 5 tips for topstitching and its purpose in sewing
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  4 hints it's time to throw your sewing threads out
  Diane Dunlap February 2, 2017 - 4:38 pm
  I just purchased a 965Q two weeks ago and have found this series to be quite helpful. This machine is quite different than my 30 year old Viking 990. Thank you for taking the time to build this series! In your journies with the 965Q, did you locate a function on the machine to manually drop the feed dogs?