From K - Craft Room Reveal (Part 3 - Design Wall)

Welcome back to the third and final episode of my mini craft room reveal. The last and final wall of my craft room is the wall that has me most excited... why you ask? because it's a ginormous design wall of course (emphasis on gi-nor-mous)!

When you first walk into our new craft / sewing space, this is your typical first glimpse of the room:

You'll notice that two of the walls are pretty bland, and pretty white... but that's all to ensure that the main feature of the room is always ever changing, and consistently remains the main feature. Right now that wall is looking a little something like this:

Look progress on my first of two Ghanian wax print quilts! But I digress... so back to the topic at hand.

This design wall has been a work in progress for some time now. I am fortunate to have an amazingly handy husband and he took some serious time planning this sucker out to make it just right. It didn't always look like this... actually to be quite frank, it looked a lot like this for some time:

The hubs used a combination of three foam insulation boards, two sheets of white laminate, and some remnant wood to create two portable 6.5' x 4' foot design panels (6.5' x 8' feet when combined). Each design panel is hung using hardware found at a local hardware store, and the panels can be moved about using handles that are attached to the outside edges.

  

Undoubtedly my favorite aspect of this design wall thought is that it's multifunctional! When I hang the board batting side out, I can lay out a project. If I hang the panels laminate side out I can spray baste a quilt, and if I lay the panels out on the ground, I can use the laminate side to pin baste on (saving our hardwood floors from future scratches).

Because our walls are near white right now, the back of my design board doesn't show up prominently, but here is a peek to settle your curiosity:

I count myself truly lucky to have my own sewing space, and a giant design wall is definitely the cherry on top. This wall is going to get some major use!

From K - Craft Room Reveal (Part 2 - Stash Storage)

Before I had a craft room, I had a craft closet, and before that it was a simple craft trolley. About 6 months ago I decided a trolley wasn't cutting it anymore, but I hadn't yet committed to downgrading our guest room. As a compromise I invested in a practical storage cabinet so every little scrap could have a home.

While this closet didn't solve all of my sewing woes (like providing a dedicated corner to sew in), it has been one of the smartest sewing related purchases I've ever made (for my sanity especially!). I thought that during my sewing room reveal you might want a peek at where all the goods are stored, and how I manage my stash.

Lets open those doors up and have a peek shall we?

This closet system is roughly 8 feet tall, and while I'm nearly 6 feet myself, I figured that top shelf wouldn't get all that much use. I used a couple of large boxes from Ikea to keep it simple and store items I don't use as often, such as wads of stuffing, and sock monkey materials.

On the second highest shelf you can see three wicket baskets that I found at my local Shoppers Drug Mart. I put a blue tag on each basket listing the current contents. These baskets are my  valor laden effort  desperate try  half successful attempt at organizing my current WiPs and keeping them down to a reasonable number. The first basket is full of baby fabrics for various projects and I don't see that tag being removed anytime soon. The second and third baskets currently hold my wax print fabrics while I work at completing those two quilts.

Below the wicker baskets I have a shelf that holds my mini fabric bolts of 0.5m or greater (I use comic book boards as bolt supports), as well as various spray bottles (glue adhesive, 505, spray starch etc). I used some smaller ikea storage boxes to house my receipts, labels, fasteners, and resources (including patterns, colour charts and inspiration photos). Lastly there is a binder along the right side that holds my purchased PDF patterns that I have printed out.

 

I won't bore you with the layout of each drawer but I will show you a couple to satisfy your curiosity (you know you want to see inside!). Here is a peek of the top drawer. From the back, left to right, it's filled with mini quilt sandwiches to practice free motion quilting, my Machinigers, a collection of storage bags for projects on the move, and a large stash of Shout Color Catchers. In the front row, I have a sewing box filled with notions, the stitch chart for my Janome, a basket of selvages, and an assortment of fabrics by Anna Maria Horner (Innocent Crush), Amy Butler (Soul Blossom), Joel Dewberry (Heirloom, and Aviary Two).

The second drawer holds additional fabric storage for a number of completed projects that will soon be gifted, my Janome quilting extension table, yardage (4+), charm packs, some miscellaneous FQs and two quilt projects that are up and coming (I custom bundled each using various fabric lines).

 

The third drawer in my storage cabinet holds my scraps. I tend to toss very small scraps and hold onto the somewhat larger pieces that are most likely to be used. The first bin holds red-orange-yellow-gray scraps while the second bin holds green-blue-purple-grown scraps. The third bin holds black and white scraps, and the forth bin holds solids. I can guarantee that more scrap storage will be needed soon but there is still quite a bit of space to space behind those bins for when I spill over.

The last few drawers hold my batting, thinsulate, and template plastic, along with my non-sewing related craft supplies like paper, frames, punches, stamps etc.

I am really glad that I invested in this cabinet and I love having everything organized and at my fingertips now. It allows me to rearrange my stash, take inventory of what I have, and prepare upcoming projects, all while looking at my options in one place. Call me weird or call me crazy, but this closet is my happy crafty place.

From K - Craft Room Reveal (Part 1 - Productivity Table)

Working on a quilt top is one of my favorite aspects of any quilt. I love the motion of cutting the first few pieces and getting a glimpse of what the project will turn out to be. When I initially began thinking about making a sewing/craft space, one of my main objectives was to have a comfortable and permanent productivity station. About a month ago I gave you the first glimpse of this table when I posted a table top ironing board tutorial.

My intention with this table was to create some permanent space to both cut and iron on while I work on a project. Lucky for me, my brother was getting rid of this ikea desk and I knew right away it would be perfect for the task at hand. The best part about this table is that the saw horse legs are height adjustable using wooden dowels, so the table can be lifted to accomodate my tall figure. Cutting can be extremely painful on my back if have to slouch over a short table top, so this works wonders for me.

Realistically, this productivity table has become more of a productivity wall. Early on in my planning process, I knew I didn't want a heavy desk against this wall, but I still needed some storage. This desk works well for me as I have clutter free storage on both sides.

On the left hand side of the desk, I have a wooden notion tackle box that was handmade by my father-in-law. I have been oohing and ahhing over antique sewing boxes on ebay for years and he definitely took note last christmas when he gifted me with this. I currently hold my more used notions in this tackle box, including spools of thread and my gingher scissor collection. To the right of the notion box, I have two wicker baskets placed on the saw horse base. One basket holds marking notions, a tape measure and a jar of pins. The second basket is used to collect scraps when I'm cutting on the table top.

 
In the right hand saw horse leg, I store my Janome so it can be accessed quickly when I need it. A well placed screw in the wall holds my rulers when they aren't in use, and a closet knobs holds my current favorite tote for when I'm out and about.

In the photo above you get a closer view of my new craft room drapes. I used a combination of two Anna Maria Horner prints from LouLouThi along with some Kona Coal to add some visual weight on the bottom third. It was a pretty strong fabric choice and I have to admit I was a bit worried at first, but once I hung them I felt nothing but inspired. I think they made the perfect addition.

In the back left corner of this final picture you can barely make out a folding table. Currently I pull this table out and set it up against the far wall when I sew with my Janome. It shakes a bit if I force the pedal, but for now I'm enjoying the flexibility it gives me to open the space up when I need it. Perhaps in the future I'll find a better long term solution.

I am also on the hunt for some half decent track lighting to help bring some light into the space. The dome shade we have right now isn't cutting it for late night sewing fests and as fall and winter approach, I see more of those in my future.

From K - Table Top Ironing Board Tutorial

Our family can easily be defined as being competitive... and had I of known Amanda's hubby was up to some crafty business this week I would have leveraged it to the max! You see unlike Amanda's husband's practical attitude toward paying a professional, my husband can't  stomach the idea of not building something himself... sometimes in what people might consider an extreme way. Just as an example to demonstrate my case, before I had even finished my very first quilt top, the hubs literally came up with a plan to build me a long arm machine... seriously, a long arm machine! I didn't even know what one looked like let alone how to use it but to this day he's still determined to make me one, and you know what... I just might let him someday!

But I digress, so back to the leveraging of husband-y craftiness...

Throughout my craft room renovation quest, my husband has been a tremendous support to me. Not only in helping gather supplies, but also in the design process and follow through on many of my projects. I have big plans for this sweet little crafty nugget of mine, and I am fortunate enough to be blessed with one handy husband to help me bring all of my ideas into fruition. Last night after laughing about how he would have completed one of these ideas last week (if for no other reason than to beat Amanda's hubs onto our blog),  he helped me polish off a table sized ironing board that I had been planning when the idea for a craft room makeover was just a seedling of thought. Here is how we made it happen.

Simple Table Top Ironing Board Tutorial

Materials Required:

• Plywood Board (cut to 30.5 x 32 inches) with sanded edges
• Short upholstery staples (shorter than your plywood thickness)
• 1.5 yards of home dec weight fabric
• 2 yards of batting
• 1 yard of thinsulate
• 0.5 yards of jiffy grip fabric and spray adhesive (optional)

Step 1: I have a fairly large table in my new craft space for a dedicated work station for both cutting and ironing. To maximize the pressing side of the table, I asked the hubs to cut me a board 30.5 x 32 inches. Due to the weight and size of such a board, he suggest we use 3/8" plywood. (Note: a handy husband was useful in my case, but is in no way required for this task - your local hardware store should make 1-2 cuts for free if you purchase your board from them).

While the hubs cut the board and sanded the edges, I cut 2 layers of batting, 1 layer of thinsulate and 1 layer of fabric, being sure to leave roughly 4 inches of extra fabric on each side. Once we had our materials prepped, it was off to the garage to use the air stapler and air compressor (Note: for these next steps a simple hand staple gun would suffice).

Step 2:  Layer the batting and thinsulate layers over the pre-cut plywood (thinsulate layer on top). Now flip the project upside down so the bottom of the plywood faces up. Pulling the layers taught and starting in the middle of one edge, staple along one entire side of the board (stapling every 3-4 inches). Once one side is complete, pull the layers smooth and staple the opposite side of the board. Continue this process until all four sides are complete.

Step 3:  Using a utility knife, rotary cutter or some sheers, trim back the excess batting and thinsulate so the back of the board is smooth (I appologize for the poor picture quality as we were in a dark garage at night).

Step 4: Center your board on top of your home dec fabric (both good sides down). Pulling the fabric around the board to the back, staple the fabric using the guidelines in Step 1. For this step it is important to note two things: a) you want to make sure if you are using a directional or geometric print that your pattern is straight at all times; and b) unlike Step 1 where you staple the side of the board, in this step we will staple fabric directly onto the back of the board.

Step 5:  Lay the excess fabric at the corners as flat as possible and staple them down.

Step 6:  (Optional)  Because my table top ironing board is going to rest of a glass table top I wanted to make sure it wouldn't slide around. To help give it some hold on the table, I used some remnant fabric, along with some white jiffy grip fabric to cover the bottom of my board. To adhere this layer I used some all purpose craft adhesive spray however the verdict is out on the level of hold it will provide. I may be heading back to the garage for some staples instead (not as aesthetically pleasing but more functionally sound, and after all it's the bottom of the board).

Step 7:  Set up your board, plug in your iron, and enjoy!

I hope you have enjoyed this mini tutorial and find it useful. I know already how much I am going to love this mega sized board, and I can't wait until I need to press my next quilt top. Ahhh the joy that will be had!

From K: Prep for a cold-ish week ahead

This past week in western Canada has been sooooo HOT and I don't know about you, but when it's hot and my house is without AC, I definitely limit my indoor exposure. At the expense of my craft room reno and planned sewing projects, I spent most of my time this week outside in the sunshine. Up here in Canada summer doesn't last for long so I figured this week I should enjoy it. With that being said though, I did my best to prep, plan and get supplies for the craft room reno, as well and begin the start of cutting my first of two wax print quilts.

I've had a really hard time starting my wax print quilt for the past few months now. Knowing that the opportunity to get fabric straight from Ghana again in the future is an unlikely event, I have worried about wasting what little stash I have.

This week I decided to make a plan and just jump right into preparing the first quilt top. Katie from Sew Katie Did posted last fall about scrap quilting using magic numbers. I thought this might be the best 'structured but still somewhat unstructured' way to tackle these vibrant african prints. The above photo shows the beginnings of some prepped squares that I plan on sewing up soon.

This upcoming week looks to be more temperate so here's hoping I can bare the thought of sitting indoors long enough to start up my Janome. In the meantime I'm saying goodbye to my vibrant purple guest room in order to make way for a fresh, modern sewing space!

From K - Craft Room Inspiration Board

One of the prominant action items that I mentioned in my Summer Sewing Hit List was to modify an existing space in my house that would allow my creative juices to flow. Our current guest room serves well for its intended function, but when it's not in use, it makes for a lot of wasted space. While talking it over with the hubs, we decided that the guest room might as well serve a dual purpose.

In order to visualize what mood I wanted for this space, I went to work putting together some inspirational photos using OlioBoard, and this is what I came up with:

When planning this change, I had a couple of main objectives in mind:

1. Don't spend a fortune. I want to create a more functional space, but not at the risk of a costly reno. I want to set out to find some practical and affordable pieces, and also to use what I already have available to me.

2. Start with a clean slate. Presently our guest room is a pretty vibrant purple. The room was originally painted a couple of days before guests started arriving for our wedding, and while the colour wasn't how we invisioned it, we somehow left it until now. I'm thinking a clean grey would be a good place to start.

3. Don't forget about guests. Although we presently don't host guests more than once every month or two, I still want to make sure they have an enjoyable stay, and that includes a private space of their own, a soft spot to sleep, and a warm rug under their toes. I plan to accomplish this using a convertible sofa and a practical but inexpensive ikea rug.

4. Incorporate inspiring elements. (in progress, and finished!) My hope for this room is that my Works in Progress will be what catches the eye, so I'm keeping the furniture very neutral. With that being said I wouldn't do myelf any favours though if I didn't at least incorporate a few of my favourite Anne Marie Horner prints from Innocent Crush. I think they will wip up to become some excellent custom pillows.

5. Create storage to maximize space. About 4 months ago after endlessly searching for a storage solution, I broke down and purchased a Pax Wardrobe System and filled it up with drawers of crafty good-ness. This unit has been an absolute blessing the way of managing my quilting stash and other craft supplies, but I want to make sure I also incorporate some useful storage that isn't necessarily hidden behind closed doors.

6. Make quilting a priority. (finished!) In order to truly maximize my use of this new space, I need to put sewing on the front burner. This means dedicating space for a cutting board, an ironing station, and of course my trusty sewing machine.

7.* Build a dedicated design wall. Part of making a sewing space is to minimize the fabric explosion that presently exists around the rest of our house. Gone will be the days when my couch stood in the place of a design wall. I'm hoping the hubs will help me build something pretty nifty so the couch can be fabric free (*not shown on mood board above).

I'm hoping to make this design process a priority over the next couple of weeks in order to encourage myself to complete the rest of my summer sewing list. I'll be sure to keep you posted on my progress!