Simply Thimbles

Hi all, Time flies doesn't it? Seems like only yesterday when I last posted to this blog. Can't believe it was March 2015! I think I must have been asleep because I have no idea why it has taken so long to post. These thimbles show the passage of time. All of it a lot before mine, I hasten to add. These little ladies show the changes in fashion in the United States from 1900 through to 1947. Originally part of a collection from Avon in the1980s. The four above are from left to right, 1910, 1900, 1928 & 1927. These four are 1923, 1938, 1942 & 1947. The 1920s must have been a great decade for fashion in the US, with 3 examples from that era included in the collection. In fact the 20s were a time of great change and not just for clothes. It was the interim period between two world wars. People thought that with the end of the First World War, conflict was over and there was a new, vibrant, buzz for the future. It was the age of bobbed hair, the Char...

Well, as I mentioned in my last post I felt an ebay moment coming on.  It turned out to be more of an ebay hour.  I didn't find Kermit the Frog but I did come across this rather sweet little sewing machine thimble.  It reminds me of the sewing machine my mum used when I was small.  It was a Singer and I can still hear the slightly sing-songy tinkly, clickety  clack it used to make as she turned the handle.   This thimble is  pewte r and has been hand painted.  The little handle turns round and the sewing machine flips up on  a hinge to show the top of the workbench.  As you can see in the picture below, the thimble dimples are under the hinged lid.   I wouldn't fancy trying to sew with this particular thimble as it is quite heavy.   It's a nice little momento of times gone by though and I couldn't resist it.       It was a very productive hour on ebay as I also c...

Now this is something you don't see every day.  A group of James Bonds all in the same place.  I wonder what you call a group of Bonds? A gaggle? A set? A pride? What about a Hunk?  A Hunk of Bonds.  Umm. That'll do me, unless you can think of something better? From left to right we have Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan.   Did you know that Roger Moore made 7 Bond films?  Neither did I until I read the back of the thimble.  I was also a bit surprised to see that Sean Connery's thimble says he only made 6.  That's odd I thought, so I did a google search and sure enough, Sean made 6 official Bond films and 1 that wasn't official.  It was called "Never Say Never Again" and was made in 1983 - but not by the people that own the Bond franchise. So it doesn't count.  It's also the only Bond film (or rather non-Bond)  that I have...

Not all thimbles can be used to sew with. Some are purely decorative. These are a couple of the decorative ones that I have. Technically, the well isn’t really a thimble but it’s thimble sized, has a cute little cat in a bucket and so is therefore, in my opinion, thimble-esque (ish). These three are made out of pewter and are an incredibly small snapshot of decorative thimbles available specifically for today’s collectors market. You can’t sew with these as the decoration gets in the way and they don’t have enough dimples. If using a thimble then dimples are fairly crucial to its success as a sewing aid. Ideally, a usable thimble should have dimples on top and on the sides. It’s amazing how many times it’s useful to be able to alter the angle of the thimble to suit the stitch you are doing. This is why I have never used any of my china thimbles as they don’t have dimples on the sides. Different people like different types of thimbles. Leather thimbles are a popular choice with h...

Some of the thimbles play a central role in our Christmas Decorations! These are all new additions to the collection. All of them except one were part of a job lot of 63 that I picked up on - yes you guessed it - eBay. £3.98 for the lot. The best bargain yet. The one second in from the right saying "Happy Holiday" was a freebee from one of my regular suppliers. It came with a purchase of Mr Men and Little Misses thimbles from - I bet you can't guess where. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

I started collecting thimbles about three years ago and currently have just under 200. I only have two display units so not all of them are on show at the same time. Why did I start collecting? Well, it all started with a little brown bear. I was checking out the auctions due to finish on eBay and came across this little guy around 5 minutes before he was due to end. He looked so cute and I felt a bit sorry for him, sat there with no bids. So I bid on him and won him. A bargain at only 50p. I was delighted a few days later when he arrived in the post looking just as cute as he had online. So began my fascination with thimbles. Up until that point the only thimbles I had been aware of were the plastic ones in sewing kits, the metal one that I use for sewing and the souvenir ones on sale at theme parks and historical buildings. Most were showing the place I was visiting or were purely functional with floral designs. The little bear was the first thimble that I had come across...