For some reason, I am Really Excited about today’s give-away. I suppose it’s because I’m a “tool” junkie – even though I’m not really a collector of tools. Just give me good tools that do the job well and I’m happy. If they happen to be attractive to boot, that’s great!

On this Tenth Day of Christmas, the give-away focuses on a few tools that I find serviceable. It happens that two of them fall into the “good looking” category – and in fact, one is downright gorgeous. So, three tools in all for one lucky winner.

First up is a laying tool, courtesy of JRCrafter. Ahhhhhh – but not just any laying tool! This is a BLT (Best Laying Tool), encased with a hand-crafted gorgeous oasis laminated wood case. The tool is fitted into the handle and securely epoxied. The case closes by screwing the cap onto the handle, so that the laying tool is protected – and so is everything else that the laying tool comes in contact with.

The touches of brass that finish the case add to its attractiveness and its substantial feel. The wood case is silky smooth. The handle makes the laying tool comfortable to hold, and the whole piece is a perfect weight. It just feels good to use it.

And golly, it is gorgeous! It’s unique to the owner, since each tool case is hand crafted, and no wood or acrylic cuts exactly the same every time.

The tool case is crafted by JR Crafter. Jack and John have a website that’s currently under construction – JRCrafter.com – but they also have an Etsy shop that features all their beautifully encased tools. Along with the laying tools, you’ll find fine crochet hooks and tatting hooks encased in either wood or acrylic. You can also find their tools in several retail needlework shops, which are listed on the JRCrafter website. Maybe there’s one close to you, so you can see the tools in person, for the photos barely do them justice.

I can’t praise these tools enough! I’ve never held a laying tool so comfortably. And I’ve never been so enchanted by the beauty of any tool. I have the rainbow acrylic laying tool, and it is almost mesmerizing to look at, it’s so pretty! But it’s perfectly serviceable, too. Once I had it in my hands, it quickly became my favorite laying tool. I’ve been using it almost daily ever since it arrived.

Perhaps not quite as pretty, but certainly excellent quality, nice looking, and extremely serviceable, the second tool in today’s give-away is the essential pair of embroidery scissors. Why essential? Every embroiderer, whether beginner or advanced, needs a good pair of scissors. These Dovo scissors are just that – a good pair of scissors. They are small, they are sharp, they are extremely well made.

I’m not really a scissor collector. I know lots of stitchers who are – who have dozens of pairs! I suppose beautiful scissors or fun & funky scissors would be fun to collect. There’s a part of me that would be a scissor collector, but the rest of me just won’t let it happen! For me, it’s just a matter of having a few good pairs of scissors that I can rely on. And Dovo scissors always fill the bill. They are my favorite scissors, hands down.

This pair, courtesy of yours truly, comes with a small leather sheath to protect the tips and anything that comes in contact with them.

This last tool, also courtesy of Needle ‘n Thread, isn’t exactly “drool worthy” (it’s not a drool tool!), but it is still extremely serviceable and quite handy for every stitcher to have. It is a Bohin ceramic lead pencil, with ceramic lead refills. The ceramic leads are white, and they write a kind of matte white, kind of like chalk, but not as dusty. The leads are fine enough to draw a visible fine line on any medium to dark fabric. Bohin also makes different colors of ceramic leads, so if you happen to pick up colored refills, you can easily use those on any fabric. I use the Bohin ceramic pencil on lots of projects – they make a great tracing tool.

Give-Away Instructions

Today’s Tenth Day of Christmas give-away winner will receive all three tools pictured above.

1. Leave a comment at the end of today’s article. If you click on this link, it will take you directly to the comment area, so that there are no mishaps! Comments delivered via e-mail or on other articles will not be included in the give-away.

2. In your comment, answer the following question:

What’s your favorite needlework tool and what makes you like it so much?

3. Make sure you leave a recognizable name either in the body of your comment, or on the “name” line above the comment box.

4. Leave your comment before January 9th, 2012, at 5:00 am Central Standard Time (Kansas, USA!). All winners for this series will be selected on January 9th, and announced that day here on Needle ‘n Thread. You’ll have to check back on January 9th to see if you’ve won, because the winners will need to contact me within 3 days to claim their prizes.

Merry Tenth Day of Christmas!

Please do not panic if your comment does not show up immediately. All comments are moderated in the order in which they come in, and they will eventually be posted. Sometimes, this takes a little while because I am not able to moderate comments around the clock. If you are looking for your comment, please use the “older comments” and “newer comments” links at the top of the comments section. These will take you through all the comments pages, from newest to oldest.

Also, just another little note – though rather late in this whole give-away series – please don’t leave your e-mail address or residential address in the body of your comment. It’s just not a good idea to expose your addresses to the world. If nothing else, you probably don’t want to end up with a bunch of spam in your inbox. Just use the line provided in the comment form for your e-mail address. Thanks!