the tools of the trade

it doesn't take too long when you knit and crochet to accumulate a bunch of needles, hooks and accoutrements.  last year, i asked for a needle case for christmas and received one like this:

this one was made by art bin and costs between 13 and 19 dollars.  it is nice and sturdy, holds long and short needles and has 3 pockets on the right side.  however, the pockets are opaque black fabric and if i had a dollar for every time i had to dig around and dump the contents of each pocket to find the little fiddly thing i was searching for, i would be able to hire people to knit for me!  i decided, i needed clear pockets.

i saw this one out there on line, although i never ran into it in person:

that certainly is clear, although the pockets are mostly for needles and not for the little fiddly things.  this one lists for about 13.  eh.  close, but not grabbing me.

one type i decided against completely was the darling twee handmade fabric cases you find on etsy.  they are usually 25-30 dollars and typically are meant for one type of needle or the other, either straights or circulars or hooks...but not everything i happen to want in one space. i love how cute they are, but if they are not serving to lessen my irritation by solving my problems, no amount of sweet owls or pink skulls will suffice! i even thought of trying to make one myself that would include clear pockets.  it didn't go too far before i realized i underestimated my lack of sewing patience.

last night, i had a brainstorm and i stopped at walmart on the way home today to pick up this little baby:

this is a modella makeup valet bag that unfolds to look essentially like this:

i paid $15 for it and sure, it's a more than a little bit 80's, but it holds everything except my single pair of 14 inch needles. so tonight, i played with my toys! i handed off the travel-sized bottles to interested parties and then sat down and sorted all my needles and hooks and dpns and cable needles and circulars and stitch markers and counters and embroidery needles and stitch holders and point covers and rulers and scissors into their perfect little zippered pockets!  i even coiled pipe cleaners around my needle sets to keep them together while visually marking which size they were. :D

oh, i love to sort almost as much as i love to play with string!