Pretty pearly pins

I have been having an exhausting week at work, the kind where I come home and can only think about crafting in my head and can't actually bring myself to do anything. However today I worked from home. I think one of the best things about working from home is that as soon as I'm off work I can work on a project if I'd like, rather than dealing with a commute first that adds to the tired feeling. Today, I'm working on my current sewing project.

But I'm not here to complain about work! I'm actually here to marvel over the little things in our crafts that make a big difference. I have had the same ball head pins for years and years. As they are wont to do, they've slowly disappeared or been thrown out over time, so I was left having to resort to supplement my pins with a package of tiny pins I've always hated. The shaft was too short, the heads were too small, and they generally made me cranky every time I had to use one. And, well, that's a lot when you sew. Awhile back I bought another pack of pins at a craft store only to get them home and find they were too dull, so I was left back in the same position.

Meanwhile I was seeing beautiful pearly looking pins all over the crafty blogosphere in people's sewing projects and looked at them with envy. So pretty! And obviously functional for apparel sewing, something my last purchase wasn't. Why didn't I have any of those? I had pin envy!

So finally I remembered when ordering fabric recently to see if they sold pearly pins like the ones I'd seen. And they did! And they were hardly anything fancy, at under $5 for a box of 100 at Denver Fabrics.

Well they arrived this week and I am in love! How can I possibly be so enthralled, so happy to pick up each of these lovely pins each and every time?

I mean, they're just pins. Pretty pins, but pins nonetheless.

But they make me smile, and I am happy to grab for one of them when I need to use them. They don't make me cranky. Far from it! It's amazing how one simple little thing like that can really help your craft, isn't it?

(Recognize the project yet? I'm really excited by it!)

So I ask you, my dear readers—what crafty tools or supplies have you found that really make a difference in your craft or just bring a smile to your face whenever you use them? Do share!