Found a hidden treasure inside an old pin cushion

Murrmurr

Murrmurr

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Location
Sacramento, California
Just for something to do, I decided to organize the bits and bobs of all my sewing notions yesterday. I have these 3 pin cushions that my grandmother made for my grandfather, who owned a tailor's shop. I don't use pin cushions, so I decided to pull the hundreds of pins out of the cushions and put them in this flat-ish steel cup with a lid that I use instead. One of the pin cushions felt weird after all the pins were out. It felt like a few had managed to get down inside the thing, or else a couple of needles did, as happens sometimes. šŸ˜‰šŸ¤«

I squeezed the pin cushion until I squeezed out the eye and shank of a needle, and accidentally tore a little hole in the old pin cushion when I pulled it out. I felt bad, it being grandma's homemade pin cushion and all. But, squeezing the thing again, it felt even weirder, I felt friction, so I said "screw it" and ripped it open a little more.

First off, it was packed with sawdust. You don't see that anymore. I imagine it wasn't nearly as easy for grandma to fill this thing with sawdust than with batting cotton or some synthetic fluff. But when I ripped it open that little bit more, I saw the eyes of 4 more needles, and I kind of hated to but I kept digging, and I kept finding needles, lots and lots of needles.

So, grandma's handmade pin cushion was sacrificed, but I found a total of 47 of my grandfather's old sewing needles, all various sizes, and a few of them are micro-thin! You don't see micro-thin ones these days, except maybe at some specialty shops or maybe online (they are considered extremely hazardous). Grandma probably made that pin cushion in the 40s, maybe the 50s, and one of the others is much older. The needles are an even greater treasure.

I put grandpa's old sewing needles in a little vintage bottle that has a cork stopper, and set it on a display shelf in our livingroom - in among some pottery that my oldest granddaughter made years ago. And along with sentimental value, it's a funny reminder of how, when I worked in his shop, Gramps used to scold me big time whenever he caught me sticking a sewing needle into a pin cushion.
 

Oldntired said:
Agree, I would like to see a picture.
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I doubt pins and needles are all that easy to photograph, but he can give it a go if he wishes of course!

When I read the thread title I was hoping a map was found showing buried treasure, but that's just my foolishness, and I can see why very rare/old needles, with a sentimental attachment or connection could be just as good! :)
 
Alligatorob said:
You should post a picture!
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Oldntired said:
Agree, I would like to see a picture.
Click to expand...
grahamg said:
I doubt pins and needles are all that easy to photograph, but he can give it a go if he wishes of course!

When I read the thread title I was hoping a map was found showing buried treasure, but that's just my foolishness, and I can see why very rare/old needles, with a sentimental attachment or connection could be just as good! :)
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Graham's right. I tried but the bottle has a crusty old label on it that goes almost all the way around, the thin gap between reflected the light too much, and when I dimmed the light it just didn't work - you can't see the needles; you can barely see the bottle.

This is the best shot I could get. Had to lay it on a sheet of paper, label-side mostly up. The needles are in there, trust me. If you look real close you can see the tallest ones.

needle bottle.jpg
 
Just read the OP.
(so far....will read the subsequent posts, later...)

Great story, and excellent story-telling......! :):geek:

But @Murrmurr : :sneaky::cool:
You (and some of the rest of us :giggle:)
really do need to find something else to do! :LOL::ROFLMAO::LOL::ROFLMAO::love:
 
Kaila said:
Just read the OP. (so far....will read the subsequent posts, later...)
Great story, and excellent story-telling......! :):geek:
But @Murrmurr : :sneaky::cool:
You (and some of the rest of us :giggle:) really do need to find something else to do! :LOL::ROFLMAO::LOL::ROFLMAO::love:
Click to expand...
"Elsewhere" I've made the exact same comment as your last line concerning an online discussion we'd been having, (essentially about "Wokeness"), so just maybe we need to look closer to home for pointless endeavours sometimes!!!!! :whistle::unsure:;):cautious::sneaky::cool:
 
RadishRose said:
Smelling salts?
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I can't read the label, but it does look like an old smelling salts bottle, doesn't it?
He claimed that the pills he kept in it were some sort of antacid, but because they were so small I think they may have been nitro tablets. He said he bought them OTC, but maybe not; maybe they were prescribed.
Kids weren't allowed in grown-ups' bathrooms, especially not their bathroom cabinets, so I never saw the bottle that the pills actually came home in.
 

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