How to Use a Magnetic Pin Cup: Safer Pin Storage for Quilters
If you have ever reached into a pincushion or a loose pile of pins and caught a sharp point, you already understand the appeal of a magnetic pin cup. The Magnetic Pin Cup Large in Gypsy Purple holds your pins point down, so you can pick one up by its head while sewing without getting poked in the process.
What a Magnetic Pin Cup Is
A magnetic pin cup is a small storage cup with a magnetic hold that keeps pins organized and oriented in the same direction — point down. This Large version is made for pins that measure approximately 2.1 inches, and each cup holds up to 100 pins. It includes the cup, a lid, and a removable case. Pins are not included, so you fill it with the long quilting or sewing pins you already use and love.
The Gypsy Purple color makes it easy to spot on a busy cutting table. The same cup is also available in Fortune Fuchsia and Bohemian Blue.
Why Quilters and Sewists Use It
- Safer handling: Because pins sit point down, you reach for the head, not the sharp end, which reduces those small, annoying pricks during piecing and pinning.
- Faster workflow: Pins stay upright and together instead of scattering across your table, rolling onto the floor, or hiding in fabric layers.
- Generous capacity: Holding up to 100 pins means it can keep up with larger jobs like pinning a quilt top, loading a backing, or working through a stack of blocks.
- Ready to travel: The removable case and lid make it practical for taking pins safely to class, retreat, or a sewing group without loose pins in your bag.
How to Use It, Step by Step
- Load the cup: Drop your approximately 2.1-inch pins into the cup. The magnetic hold will help settle them point down.
- Set it within reach: Place the cup beside your sewing machine or pressing station, close enough to grab a pin with one hand while you hold fabric with the other.
- Pin as you work: Take pins out one at a time by the head, pin your layers, and return used pins to the cup as you remove them while sewing — do not leave them loose on the table.
- Close it up: When you finish, put the lid on and slip the cup into its removable case for storage or travel.
Practical Tips
Keep one cup dedicated to your long pins so the size stays consistent — this Large cup is sized for pins around 2.1 inches, and mixing in much shorter pins can make them harder to retrieve. Do a quick count before a big pinning session; if you are approaching the 100-pin capacity, work in sections. When sewing, make it a habit to return every pin to the cup immediately as you remove it from fabric. That single habit prevents lost pins in batting, carpet, and chair cushions. If you teach or sew with children or pets nearby, always lid the cup when you step away.
Care and Storage
Store the cup with its lid on and case in place to keep pins contained and dust off your pin heads. Keep it on a dry, flat surface away from the edge of the table where it could be knocked over. Periodically empty it, check for bent or dull pins, and discard damaged pins safely in a closed container rather than back in the cup. Bent pins can snag fabric and are not worth keeping in rotation.
Project Ideas
Use the cup for any project that needs frequent, orderly pinning: piecing quilt blocks, pinning bindings, holding layers for bags and totes, and loading quilt backings and tops. It is equally handy at the ironing board and in a class kit, where safe, contained pin storage matters even more than at home.
Shop the Magnetic Pin Cup Large Gypsy Purple at Linda's Electric Quilters.
