Small Quilting Space in a Closet

Goal #89 - Setting up a sewing space in my house

Ever since my son was born, finding time for hobbies like quilting has been difficult. Even more difficult is not having space for quilting. Before he was born, it was only a minor annoyance (maybe more than minor to my husband) to have the dining room table covered in fabric and cutting tools and spools of thread while I spent days working on a new quilt. After the baby it was not possible: Pins falling to the floor, little hand grabbing at carefully laid out fabric pieces.

 design from iheartorganizing

I don't have a "spare" room in my house or a "studio" out back like people in quilting books have. I needed to make use of what space I had. Along came Pinterest - the great visual idea board - and brought me tons of inspiration this month to get started. I decided to use my laundry room to create my tiny-quilting-space, but a closet would have worked too.

To see my idea board for my tiny-quilting-space, click here! If you like the idea of setting up something in a closet, search "closet office" on Pinterest for ideas - check out this pretty example to your left.


To start, I found a design for a table that would fold down to be stored away, and my ad on Craigslist for a carpenter to build it yielded a dozen emails in so many hours. Ikea sells a similar table for about $200 but it was too big for my space. I encouraged the craftsman to make whatever amendments he thought would make the table better and I am very happy with the result.

Folding table all tucked away 

Folding table up and ready for inspection by toddler

Then I used an old TV tray to create a fold away ironing board by using an industrial stapler to staple the metallic fabric to the underside of the tray (you can see it in the photos at the end of this post). I've had an unused magnetic herb/spice container set in my kitchen for years, so this was finally put to use as a holding tray for pins, bobbins and buttons. 

Since I will not have room to lay out pieces on the floor or a large table, I followed a great idea for a mobile design wall. I purchased a large piece of stiff sheet insulation ($10) at a DIY home store and had them cut it to size. I then used an industrial stapler to cover it Warm&Natural batting. It creates a "sticky" surface for cotton and is also pinnable. I love it! You can see it behind my sewing machine in the photos at the end of this post.

newly organized closet

I cleaned out the small closet in the laundry room (most of what was in there will be just fine in the garage now) and moved all of my sewing and craft supplies to the closet. This required some downsizing, which was good to do anyway. The most useful thing did was to move my fabric from big disorganized bins on to little "bolts" that I can easily see on the shelf. To make the bolts, I ordered 100 comic book boards from Amazon ($10), folded each piece of fabric lengthwise, secured one end of the folded fabric to the board with tape and then wrapped it around the bolt. The best part is that I can see at a glance how much of each fabric I have by the thickness of the bolt.

so many little bolts

books and unfinished boxes for projects

Room at the bottom for paper crafting supplies and 

embroidery

Lastly, a folding chair finished my new quilting room. When I want to sew, I simply wheel my laundry cart into the hall way and set up the table (the sewing machine is stored in the table's open cabinet). When my son wakes from nap time, I can just shut the door to the laundry room and not worry about stray needles.

After: Quilting room

Before: Laundry Room 

Now I can get on with my craft and quilting goals: #19, #67, #74...

Tiny Sewing Space for Quilting

Its a new year and in just in time for launching new projects, I have fallen in love with the website Pinterest, which acts as a visual e-collage of images from around the internet that inspire you. It has been a pleasurable time-suck but has proven really helpful to develop some ideas that I have had floating around in my head.

One of my 101 goals is to create a quilting space for myself. I have no spare room in my house and can not use any common space for fear that a small child will disorganize my perfectly laid out quilt pattern or worse, find a spare pin on the floor. My solution? Make a collapsible sewing space that can be set up and taken down in the laundry room.

I collected ideas on Pinterest and have gotten moving on creating my space. If you want to see my idea board, just click here: Tiny Quilting Space.

Yesterday, I went to the fabric store and bought a length of metallic fabric for ironing boards to turn a wooden tv tray into a fold away ironing table to set up next to me when I am quilting. It was very easy to do with an industrial staple gun.

Next, I have a carpenter that I found on Craigslist who is building me a narrower version of this table from Ana White Homemaker:

When I want to work on a sewing project, I will wheel the laundry bins that I have in the laundry room into the hallway and open up my table to create a 5 foot long work space. My custom table will be only 18 inches deep so that I will have room to sit in front of it. 

Now I am going to start working on my design wall. Off to the home improvement store for a piece of insulation!

 

A New Year and New Intentions

Exactly one year ago, I embarked on a mission to complete 101 goals in 1001 days. As a new mom, it has been a great prompt to continue to prioritize myself and value my interests. I have done some great things this year because my goal list, including working in the Herbfarm kitchen, taking a chicken from yard to plate with my own hand, meeting and cooking with some lovely people, and watching three babies be birthed into this world. 

Now that I have finished some of my most exciting goals, I seem to be losing a little steam. I am considering changing a few of them. I know, I know. It kind of seems like cheating. But as we grow and change, our interests and priorities do too. Also, its my game so I can make up the rules.

If you have one of these skills, access, or knowledge, and would like to help me make any of these happen, please let me know! You will be compensated by my grateful and entertaining company, as well as very good goal-completion karma (priceless!). If you make your own list, I would love to read it!

Those in process are in bold text. Completed goals are written in strike through and include the date. I started the 1001 days on January 1st of 2011, which will bring me to September 28th of 2013, and have now have 49 goals completed or in process. After reviewing the list today, I have written the goals that I am considering striking in red. 

1. kill, clean and eat a chicken (8-28-11)
2. learn to bake a great baguette
3. get rid of the Christmas tree before the tree recycling program is over (1-9-11)
4. eat xiao long bao dumplings (11-3-11)
5. learn to make Edith's won tons
6. milk a cow (again)
7. go crabbing 
8. catch a salmon  (8-26-11)
   
9. visit Goldmeyer hot springs
10. go on a girls retreat weekend (6-3-11)
11. act as a staigaire at a 5 star restaurant (7-1 and 7-2-11)
12. go to the circus 
13. regularly attend a quilting group  (winter 2010)
14. see a baby be born (1-5-11) (3-9-11) (11-27-11)
15. host a tweetup (1-25-11)
16. take a food photography class
17. visit Salt Springs Island
18. eat primarily from from my garden for one month
19. bind my three unfinished quilts
20. Bla blhjhkjhkhkhka blab la bla(In progress!)
21. go on a family walk together twice a month
22. reflect on gratitude every night for 30 nights
23. Jog for one mile without resting
24. do 3 chin-ups in a row
25. eat at the Herbfarm   (4-17-11)
26. host a charity dinner
27. acquire a mircoplane (7-30-11)
28. fluidly play Amazing Grace on the fiddle 
29. submit to the Sun Magazine's 'readers write' section every month for a year
30. learn to make perfect gnocci  (2-27-11)
31. keep a my-day-in-6-words journal for a year
32. learn 6 'signature' dishes from the cook who makes it {2/6}
33. post a photo a month for Shutter Sisters for 6 months
34. grow the traffic on my blog by ten fold
35. see my writing in print - on real paper - in a national format at least twice {1/2}
36. take my son to visit his auntie for a sleep-over
37. switch the posts on my earrings to gold so that I can wear them again (allergy!)
38. make dinner for a single mom with a new baby (8-24-11)
39. start a KIVA account (1-13-11)
40. take a girl's night out at least once a month 
41. get the airbags replaced in my car (1-20-11)
42. take a daily vitamin
43. own a meyer lemon tree
44. make corned beef from scratch (including the brine)
45. get a replacement head and start using my sonicare toothbrush again (12-25-11)
46. Try dim sum at T and T Seafood restaurant (12-4-11)
47. visit Allium on Orcas restaurant (2-26-11)
48. learn to make a pie from Kate McDermott
49. complete my professional licensing
50. get my second (and last) tattoo 
51. start a business
52. teach my son at least 10 signs (ASL) {8/10}
53. learn to use my dslr on manual settings
54. sunbathe on a secluded beach
55. write a will
56. become comfortable with the dsmIV
57. ride the entire Burke Gilman trail on my bike
58. learn to make cheese
59. start a movement
60. participate in a scavenger hunt
61. go geocaching
62. pick berries
63. purchase a quarter of a locally raised cow
64. float down a river on an innertube 
65. learn to make light and fluffy Akara (black eyed pea fritters)
66. Bla bla blab la bla
67. finish an optical illusion quilt
68. make gallons of pesto (to last the winter) from my own basil
69. grow enough potatoes to store for winter (2011)
70. grow garlic for the first time
71. learn to shoot a gun
72. grow purple peacock kale-broccoli  (summer 2011)
73. teach my son to swim
74. carve a wood-block stamp
75. teach my son to send thank you cards 
76. soften my heart towards a reconciliation 
77. Bla bla blhjhabhjhjhjhj la bla  ( (Done! 2-1-11)
78. Bla bla blab lahjjk bla  (In progress!)
79. organize my digital photos   (9-21-11)
80. get printed photo albums up to date
81. send my Auntie a card for every major holiday
82. write a personal manifesto
83. read more
84. get a professional family portrait done (10-4-11)
85. make a monthly entry in my baby's (and all future babies') baby book
86. smoke something (fish, salt...) (8-27-11 salmon)
87. visit at least 6 food producers to see how its done {2/6}
88. complete the dark days of winter SOLE food challenge 
89. set up a sewing space at home
90. donate or consign 20% of the clothing in my closet
91. Meet more bloggers, writers, chefs and food lovers
92. Find more enjoyable, paid, writing opportunities
93. get recordings of my dad singing his best songs
94. eat pizza at Delancey
95. teach a class
96. get a personal cosmetic lesson  (9-24-11)
97. do a round-brush hair lesson
98. go clamming 
99. *insert great goal I think of after hitting publish* Prepare a disaster kit for my home
100. put aside $10 for each complete goal (to spend on a little trip!)
101. donate $10 for each incomplete goal

* If the goal is blacked out, it means that the husband has censored it for its personal nature. 


I'll be posting the more interesting aspects of my progress on a regular basis. If you are also doing 101 goals - I would love to read your list too!

"Tell everyone what you want to do and someone will want to help you do it." - W. Clement Stone