Sewing Room Organization and Mini Tour

Blogging can be random, right?  Here and now I should be posting about my jeans that I completed two weeks ago and the pajama pants that I sewed for the girls a week or so ago.  But, no.  Here I am ready to talk sewing room organization.  Go figure. 

I guess the Picture Problem is one excuse.  I hate the whole picture thing--thinking about doing them (oh yeah!  I should have taken a picture of that--notice that past tense thing); uploading them; editing them; putting them on blogger and then writing about them at the proper place and time--all of that stuff makes me slow.  And apparently it makes me random because I have the pictures for the ongoing sewing room organization but not any pictures of finished jeans or pj's!

As I said, sewing room organization is an ongoing project and over the last six months I have made considerable progress.  I still have a long way to go as in I could actually put things away after I get them out and am done with them.  Still working on that one!  I do it when I cook, so why not when I sew? 

The next thing that brought this post forward, was a conversation with a fellow ASG member.  We were marveling, gawking, drooling and just plain envying another member's sewing space.  It's bright, cheerful, colorful, organized, quirky, clever, innovative and just plain ol' fun (and enviable!).   She's happy to show it off, even with people having to go through her front door and upstairs.  And why can't I have that, too?  Well, I guess that would mean not only a clean, neat home but also one that has some style and decent flooring and such (I think that means no fur--we have A LOT of fur).  Some of the main rooms are like that; certainly not all of them.  One day!  But in the meantime, the sewing room is getting some of the attention that it needs so I can enjoy the space (and be more productive???).

Anyway, here's the UGLY part.  This is part of why I'm not really happy with my sewing space.

Ugly paneling.  Very Ugly Paneling.  Extremely Mega Ugly Paneling.  Not only is it this lovely, but it is textured, too!!!!  That means my fabric catches on it!

 



The Extremely Mega Ugly Paneling in action with sewing supplies propped up.

Now, in order to combat that particular problem in a time long, long ago, we conceived a solution that would minimize construction and pain.  And it was this:



Corks!  Wine corks!  Lots of 'em.  They are cut in half to minimize how far they extend into the room.  And, NO, we did not drink all the wine to get the corks!

Yes! Practical, functional, not un-beautiful, fun, innovative, clever...and slow.  It is smooth and doesn't catch my fabric which is another benefit.  And I can use it like a bulletin board.  Eventually.  When it extends to cover more wall space that will be a nifty use for it. 

Well, in the meantime, I have been gradually working on other areas of the sewing room to make it more organized and more user-friendly.  First, my dh installed a hanging rod so that I can hang up ongoing and future projects on it.  I really like that it helps get the piles off the other surfaces in the room. 

Not the most beautiful in the world, but highly functional.  It sits over the youngest dd's sewing/work/play table, which dh made many years ago as a school table for the older kids when we began homeschooling.

Next, dh really outdid himself with this shelf project!  I love, love these!

Look at those wine corks along the edges!  One day it will look totally perfect with my walls!

The shelves were made to hold ironing supplies.  I'm still deciding what to put on them, but it's really nice to have a place that is not the floor or the ironing board for starch, water bottles, and pressing tools!



Those corks really, really look a ton better in real life!  Here, they look *almost* as ugly as that paneling, but it ain't so!



Won't that wall look terrific when it has all its corks on it? 


My sewing space is kind of awkward with lots of doors.  I really love the things that have been  added to help with space organization and need to continue to work on that so that my workroom can be a place that I like to show off!  Perhaps that's my 2012 resolution!

Christmas Gifts Received

I received several wonderful handmade items and craft books for Christmas this year and I thought I'd share them with you.  As you can tell from the bookmarks, I've already picked out some projects to make from the books!

First up:

Amy Butler's Style Stitches

The Beader's Bible by Dorothy Wood
My newest want-to-do hobby!

Simple Glass Beading by Dorothy Wood

 Now, to the handmade items!  First, is a make-up bag my stepmother made.  She even used some of that fusible vinyl on it so it would stay nice and be easy to clean!  Isn't it pretty with all the embroidery on it?

Next, are some bobby pins that oldest dear daughter beaded and gave to me.  They look really nice when I wear my hair up in a French twist, which I do frequently!

I thought that this scarf was very interesting.  One of my husband's co-workers made it and gave it to me.  It's quite simple, but very clever.  All it has are multiple types of yarn knotted together intermittently--no knitting, no crocheting!  The various yarns are simply lined up together and about every 12" they are knotted together.

Finally, this wasn't really a Christmas gift, but a very nice beginning to the holidays.  At the beginning of November, my local American Sewing Guild chapter held a drawing for a gift basket for all of the Shop Hop participants who went to all the shops.  Guess who won????!  Yes!  It is truly a terrific basket, filled with donations from the various shops who were in the hop.  It also included three very, very generous gift cards to sewing stores!!!!!!!  I was SO surprised and pleased.