Needlecrafts Embroidery Embroidery Basics

Printable Hexagon Floss Minder

Embroidering can often get chaotic and messy with various colored and sized threads piling up on one another making it confusing for you to know where everything is. However, a floss minder can keep all the used threads in one organized place without the confusion or the overlapping, making whatever project smooth-sailing.

Make your own hexagon floss minder with these easy and quick directions to bring more organization to your embroidery projects.

  • 01 of 04

    Keep Your Extra Floss Organized

    Printable Floss Minder
    Printable Floss Minder © Mollie Johanson, Licensed to About.com

    If you're like me, as you work on an embroidery project, there are strands of floss on your work area, in your project bag, and perhaps stuck to you as well. Often there are pieces left over from when you've separated strands and only used part of a cut of embroidery thread.

    It's so easy for those pieces of floss to turn into a knotted mess, either as you're working or when you are finished and the excess gets set aside. Not to mention it can be difficult to make sure you know what color numbers the pieces are. 

    A floss minder or organizer is a great way to help tame the tangles! You can buy them in fun designs, like this happy unicorn, or you can make your own with this easy tutorial and printable. 

  • 02 of 04

    Floss Minder Tools and Supplies

    Floss Minder Tools and Supplies
    Floss Minder Tools and Supplies © Mollie Johanson, Licensed to About.com

    To make hexagon floss minders, you will need:

    Hexagon Floss Minder Printable JPG
    Card stock
    Scissors
    Hole Punch

    The hexagons are in gray and black to give some contrast with most colors. You can print the JPG on any color card stock you like. You can even use the color of the card stock as an organizational help. 

    Using heavy card stock will help these to last longer, but it's more important to use a weight that your printer can handle. Regular printer paper is not recommended.

  • 03 of 04

    Making Your Floss Minder

    Punch Holes for Floss
    Punch Holes for Floss © Mollie Johanson, Licensed to About.com

    Cut out the double hexagons and fold them in half.

    A double thickness of card stock makes these a little more sturdy so they last longer. You can attach the two sides together with a dab of glue or double-sided tape, but once the floss is attached, the sides will stay together without adhesive.

    Use a standard hole punch on each of the dots on the edges. 

    You can also make a floss minder on the fly by folding an index card in half and punching a few holes near the edges.

  • 04 of 04

    Keep Threads Labeled and Tidy

    Pull out those extra bits of embroidery floss and loop them through the holes. A Lark's Head Knot is perfect for this.

    If you place the strands of floss on the organizer as you work, you can also write the color name or number by that thread. Of course, you can do this later too, but it's easier when you are thinking of it and have the correct information right in front of you.

    These little printable tools are quick and easy to make, so you may want to make one for every project you're working on. Or print a bunch and have them for all of your extra embroidery floss pieces, perhaps grouping them by color. 

    Even though they are only made of card stock, they'll last a while. If you write on them with pencil you can use them again and again, changing the color names as you run out of one color and replace it with another.

    The next time you need to start another project, look through the strands you already have ready for you!