New Sewing Space!

You may not have noticed, but I haven't sewn much in 2014.  I've had a bit of a creative block I guess. It was post Christmas exhaustion paired up with a healthy dose of the blues over the fact that The Bug is getting to be harder and harder to sew for. And the snow. Heaven help us the snow put me in a funk unlike any other funk. AND quite frankly, the sewing room had gotten way beyond out of control. 

We had similar "out of control" issues in the downstairs "play room".  Both spaces needed a major clean up and purge because neither were functioning for us any more.  But more than a tidying up that was needed.  The Bug is growing up you see. Despite my denial of it.  She never played in the downstairs playroom anymore. She always played upstairs in her room where she has "privacy" (she is only 6... going on 16). And my upstairs sewing space, which was once a nice spot to work while waiting on Baby Bug to fall asleep was now feeling really far removed from the living space.

So we switched the two spaces!
They are approximately the same size rooms but it was a challenge to get everything to fit in a way that was functional. I'm loving it so far though.

My work table is a family heirloom. You can't see it here because it's buried in fabric but it has such a neat texture and personality from years of use. I usually have my cutting mat and ruler up here. The blue basket holds scraps, the trays hold WIP's and the wicker basket hold scissors, rotary cutters and other little things that come in handy when cutting.

I've "hidden" all kinds of stuff under the table. There's fabric paints and interfacing in the two bigger blue bins. The stacking bins hold trims, elastic, bias tape, zippers, etc.

I've got this old microwave cart set up as my ironing station. Underneath, the shelves hold my knit, wool, corduroy, fleece and laminated fabric. The three drawer unit holds scraps. It needs to be purged because it's out of control. Baby steps though.

On top there you see my thread. I could probably use another of those holders, huh?

The little blue metal bucket holds fabric markers and chalk. The hoops on the wall were just sort of half hazardly flung there to use some nails that were there from old art work. I may add some more into the mix. I kind of like the effect.

Around the corner is my sewing desk.  The chair is the one I remember sitting at my grandma's sewing machine. I made a little cushion for the seat to make it a bit more comfortable.

My batting and fiberfill are in a big bin that is tucked back in the corner. It's not pretty but it's fairly well hidden back there.

 The top shelf of the desk holds some office supplies and some tins with vintage pattern covers printed on them that hold my old 4-H project patterns. Up on the white shelf there are several antique sewing notions that I've collected over the years.  The "Sew Door Key" art on the wall is temporarily hanging out on an existing nail. It will move eventually.

The sewing basket was from my Grandma when I first started sewing. The blue file box holds more WIP. It used to hold my pdf pattern collection but it's outgrown that little bin and now resides in a file cabinet in the closet. There are some side shelves on the desk that house my button jars and some other random things.

This cart will eventually be replaced with something a little nicer looking but it works for now. It holds all kinds of little things and craft supplies. There's velcro, D-rings, glitter, magnets, clasps, embroidery floss, buttons to be covered, glue guns... Everything miscellaneous lives here.

It's all organized in little plastic drawer organizers that I picked up at the Dollar Store. The under the table bins and the blue metal buckets were all purchased at the Dollar Store as well.

These built in bookshelves have enough room for all of my sewing and crafting books with a little room to spare!

And the bottom shelves hold the rest of my fabric stash.  I weeded out three garbage bags full to donate. It was painful, but necessary and in the end, it felt good. We took the fabric to a thrift store here that has a fabric section. It helped me to know my fabric would be going to others who have a similar appreciation/obsession.

I made the curtain to hide the fabric shelves. They are organized now but they might not always be! The fabric was something I ordered from fabric.com that didn't quite work for the project I intended it for but is absolutely perfect for this. (It looks like it's no longer available! Boo) I slipped it onto a tension rod for a very simple, pretty little curtain.

As soon as everything got set up I sat down to sew. I've sewn more in the last week or two than I did in the last two month.  I like being able to do a little work here and a little there as I have time during the day. And it's nice to at least occupy the same general space as my husband in the evenings. It makes me feel like we are hanging out even if we are each working on our own things.

It was so much work, but definitely time well spent.

~Lindsay

Sewing Room Organization

I really, really like to see the studios and nooks where people create. I suppose I'm a bit voyeuristic in that way. But I like to see how other people set things up and get ideas that might work for me.

So when I found a bunch of bins at WalMart on President's Day and decided to reorganize all my junk I knew a post about the new and improved sewing room was in order.  However, I have no "Before" pictures. Suffice it to say, it would have been humiliating. Fabric everywhere. Total chaos and clutter. You might, even, have questioned the existence of my floor.

First, my "new" curtains. I opted to just use the valance and therefore let in optimal amounts of light.

And bonus, I now have four panels that I can sew with!

Here are a few of the things I bought. The three drawer bin holds my scrap fabric which I actually sorted and folded nicely several weeks ago. The bottom drawer is interfacings. Boring stuff that it's nice to have tucked away.  

On the right, you see an open bin/laundry basket that I'm using to store my batting and fiber fill. That stuff gets out of control fast and my old "toss it in a cardboard box" method just wasn't working well for anyone.

The three bins on top hold works in progress.

They look so much nicer there than they did strewn about my table and draped over the curtain rod.

This bin holds all my patterns and tutorials that I've printed. I probably should have purchased two of these. All that paper sort of grows out of control quickly.

The addition of just a few new bins allowed me to tidy things up elsewhere in the room quite a bit.

You'll see I've taken full advantage of the under the table space.

Have I mentioned that this is a TINY room?? How they got away with calling it a third bedroom is beyond me. But it works. And by golly I am so, so very thankful to have this little nook.

Here's the table top with all my sewing books and magazines tucked away there in that back space that is totally useless as work surface because of the sloped ceiling. Those magazine holders were free--perk of working at a library--and covering them in something pretty is on my "to do" list. The trays hold seasonal fabrics mostly because I didn't know what else to do with them and the baskets hold a mish mash of notions that I like to keep close at hand. 

The glitter shoes? Well, those belong to the Bug and were awaiting a fresh coat of glitter on the worn toes.

I just realized I didn't photograph my sewing machine. Ha! Oops! Well, trust me, it's just to the left of this frame.  More little notions and tools are organized nicely in this sweet little wooden crate that one of the Bug's Melissa and Doug craft kit came in.

And the top shelf of the sewing desk. I took this picture simply so I could profess my love of that nifty bobbin holder. If you don't have one, you need one. It will revolutionize your life and will whip your bobbins into shape.

I am amused by the foreshortening of the nasty toothbrush I use to clean the lint out of my machine. Gross but necessary. It gets crazy dusty in there. Just keeping it real I guess.

And here you have the motherload.

If you want a laugh, compare these photos to the photos in the post I made right after we set up this room for my sewing.  Oh how things have changed in a year and a half.

In fairness, the majority of the fabric I have now was inherited. I swear.

On the wooden shelf (microwave cart) you have vintage sheets, apparel fabrics, knits, felt, pre-cuts, upholstery weight fabric, linen and muslin.

The wire shelf holds mostly cottons with my satins up there on top (next to packing boxes). Yeah, I know it ain't pretty. I know that my stacks (and stacks, and stacks) of fabric could be more neatly folded. But I ran out of steam. And the reality is, they don't need to be neatly folded because as much as I pull things in and out of there it would never stay neat. So long as I can see everything (and my floor) I am a happy camper.

So I hope you've enjoyed that little glimpse into my world.  It's not perfect. There's still a lot of stuff I'd like to change and do. But it's morphing into a really usable little space where I love to spend my time.

And did I mention how happy I am to see the floor?

~Lindsay

The Sweat Shop

This Labor Day weekend certainly lived up to its name!  This weekend the sisters of 402 worked our fingers to the bones at our sewing machines!

As has been the tradition for a few years now, our family has rented a cabin that is large enough to accommodate all of us (and then some) during the long holiday weekend.  My sister had decided that I wasn't being motivated enough on my own - so she agreed to sell some of our home-made goods at one of her friend's booths at the Apple Festival (shameless plug - come by if you are in the area and need some adorable dresses for your little girl or an handy and attractive apron for yourself (or as a gift).)  Anyway, back to the tale at hand - with only a couple more weeks to build up our inventory - my sister didn't think we could afford the luxury to just sit around and relax all weekend - so we both brought our workshops to the cabin.

The cabin has a finished basement with a pub height table and open floors.  The area proved the perfect spot for my sister's sweat shop.  I of course am kidding about my sister being so bossy (call for help.)

In all seriousness - I found the "labor" of sewing relaxing and the addition quality time with my sister enjoyable (even when the Bug was watching Wonder Pets - seriously Ming Ming needs an attitude adjustment!)

Now we didn't spend the WHOLE weekend sewing - you can tell by this picture I may have been exaggerating when I said we worked our fingers to the bone (though this picture was taken towards the beginning of the weekend.)  We took occasional breaks to spend time with the rest of the family, but it was nice to have the space and time to start and finish a project.  I was able to complete two and a half aprons - including two new patterns - which I will blog more about later.  I even made a sale - my mom has commissioned an apron as a special gift for her boss.  So at the end of the weekend - I am glad my sister suggested we bring our machines and set up sweat shop.  Apple Festival or not - we may have to add family sewing time as part of our Labor Day tradition!

Hope your Labor Day weekend was just as relaxing!

~Michelle

A Weekend Sans Toddler!

The Bug spent the weekend with Grandpa and Grandma and what did I do with my time?

Did I use it wisely by organizing my seriously out of control post-Christmas sewing room?

Nope.

It may look like a disaster area, and it is, but I know where every single thing I need is. And I can still see the floor, so it's not that bad, right?

I actually took the opportunity to catch up on those projects that tend to pile up.

I finally finished the hand quilting on the bluebird quilt! Yeah, baby girl is two months old tomorrow and my goal was to have it done before she arrived.  Ahem. . .

The revised goal is to have it completed and in the mail before her baptism. That gives me approximately two weeks to bind it. I can totally do that. Right?

And then I made a planner cover for a friend who saw the one I made for my co-worker and realized her own day planner needed gussied up!

She loves green.  When she said that, I knew this combo was perfect for her!

Shhhh. . . these used to be my living room drapes! But then we moved and didn't need them any more so I decided to repurpose the fabric because I still LOVE it!

And of course, since I couldn't decide which fabric should take center stage, I made it reversible so that she has to make that decision!  Jessica, I hope you love it!

It's amazing how productive I can be with more than a half hour here and there to work with!

~Lindsay