Real Sewing Space

I love seeing the #honestcraftroom on Instagram–it definitely helps to know that most of us don’t work in professionally decorated studio sets. Of course, a woman can always dream about a 400 square foot space with long design walls and built in overhead LED lights….and an assistant to do the pressing and cleaning up.  Sigh……..

Well, today’s post is about my very real sewing space and I feel BLESSED that I have dedicated space in our home.  My main sewing space is a small bedroom measuring about 10 x 10.  There’s a closet in this room that I use for fabric storage.  (I will share more about my fabric storage in an adjacent room in a future post this month.)

I have an Ikea table as my cutting table.  The legs extend so it is a good height for me. (Ikea has numerous options and it is easy to attach adjustable legs to the top.)  I keep my wool pressing mat and iron on this table so it’s a convenient way to work.  The mat is 24 x 36 inches long so I can cut long strips or work on large blocks.  I’m also showing the lights that I keep up so that I can easily switch over to filming tutorial and demos for my LIVE and ONDEMAND classes.  Info on the lights can be found here and the light covers here.

Underneath this table…is a pretty messy area.  I keep a bin to toss in my scraps and a trash can. And various other things like quilts that I need to attach binding to or whatever.  I stop and clean out this area every couple of days.

Next area, to the right of my cutting table, is my sewing machine.  I might rearrange this room and shift the machine to a different corner. You can also see my 2nd design wall behind it.  The little frog in the photo is a reminder of a wonderful quiote I read that says “Frogs that Take Flying Leaps, Always Land on Their Feet”.  It reminds me to be bold and take leaps into the unknown when I’m creating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I’m at my cutting table, there is a large design wall behind me – shown below.  This wall is my main design area.  It’s covered with foam panels covered with white flannel.  It makes a great surface that I can use straight pins to hold blocks up or just put them on the flannel.  The bin of fabric at the bottom of the photo is sitting on a stand.  I use the stand to hold my laptop when I am conducting a Zoom session.   I made the blocks on the wall during a MidCentury Modern live class.  I’m playing with a new layout for this pattern and I’ll hold a live Zoom event discussing this variation for the students in the On Demand class.  You can find out more about this class here.

And there’s another storage area opposite my main design wall. I have a high table (also IKEA) and a small rolling storage cabinet.  This area is for storing rulers, more project bins and tools.    I use 12 inch square plastic bins to hold fabric, blocks in progress and notes for individual projects.  It’s a great way to keep a project orderly.  And, I tend to work on several projects at a time–each project in different stages.  My bins are clear scrap book storage bins like these.  

And, of course, I want to end with a shot of where I store most of my quilts that are not in active use on beds and couches (there area few of my artquilts in a bedroom closet).  The quilts are shown here folded in a large cabinet in our living room.  The cabinet is getting a bit full which means it is time to give away or sell a few older pieces.  I do not believe in hoarding quilts–I want them in use by friends and family. 

I want to end with another expression of gratitude that I have dedicated space in our home.  I feel fortunate indeed.

Peace and Blessings,

Carole

4 thoughts on “Real Sewing Space”

  1. Ursula Cirrincione

    I am Just Reading your book and went top the Ressources. It is incredibly good! And Then found your Working space and must Smile. Half of of my wardrobe is full of quilts and donot mention the tops under the beds… Greetings from Germany during corona times

    1. Jennifer Wiltrout

      I’m loving your blog posts. I’m playing catch up today. Thank you for taking the time to post.

  2. I agree with you about what a working space looks like-I am still waiting for that assistant to come by who will clean up after the fabric explosions that happen as I work. I confess, I used photos of my space that were taken after I cleaned and organized it this past spring. Thanks for the reminder to consider myself BLESSED for the space that has been provided for me to do my thing. Something I must never forget to be thankful for.

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