The Well-Stocked Sewing Room, Part 4 - Furniture

It's time to talk about furniture! Have you seen those glossy brochures with the made to order furniture specifically for sewing rooms? Have you seen the PRICES????? Lovely and functional as it may be, it doesn't live anywhere near my checkbook balance. So, I have to be creative and arrange a lovely and functional sewing room, without spending a bundle. Or anything at all, for that matter.

I've found that most sewing rooms (unless you have that super checkbook balance, or a carpenter hubby/friend) are made up of the odds and ends of furniture with no where else to live, in the house. Mine is that way. In the last year or two, there are a few pieces I've bought specifically for the sewing room, but I've been sewing since I was 9 years old. I've sewn everywhere from my parents bedroom, to the dining room table, to my very own room.

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Ok, commercial is over :) 

Let's talk about furniture in our sewing room. Since I just moved my sewing room into a larger room, I do have pictures for this post!

I have a motley assortment of tables, shelves and desks. It's how I manage them that make them sewing room worthy. I was also given some cubbies, when my stepsons MIL closed her daycare, which - to me - was more fun than Christmas! :) Yes, I am low maintenance.

The table with the fabric around it - an old banquet table is perfect as a cutting table. Well, almost perfect! It was too short. The cheap way to fix that is to buy bed risers. I got mine at Bed, Bath and Beyond. The 7" risers (4 of them) for about $15. Certainly cheaper than a new table. I laid a cardboard measuring mat over the top. Underneath is uber-storage, the fabric is to hide the storage. And you can almost see the black mat in front of it? Best thing I ever purchased - great for my feet and back while standing at the table for long periods of time. 

•  Make sure any tables you have are the correct height for your height! I'm tall, so I need higher tables in order to save my back while cutting out. The normal 'dining room table' height was just too low. It's important that any table you work at, whether standing or sitting is the correct height. Otherwise, physical problems can slow you down and that's not fun.

The cubbies :) Under the second shelf is a cubbyhole twice the height of the ones you see here. They have stacks of fabric in them and etc, and they look messy. They are going to get a curtain to cover the that section, which will also add to the 'pretty' in the room. Under that tall section is a regular size cubbyhole, which is filled with books. These cubbies are free-standing, and I felt the books would anchor them. They also work as a room divider between my sewing room and the living room. They provide a ton of storage!

• Think 'out of box' so to speak, using unusual things for storage. I never would have thought of using day care cubbies for my sewing room. And remember, underneath anything is great storage space! 

Another storage miracle! This is a potting table we've had on the porch forever, next to the front door. I painted it white and had intended to leave it on the front porch, but I needed some more storage space. It was also a great place for my TV (storing things behind the TV also) and a shelf behind the TV, but under the table - is two large boxes of fabric, a small rubbermaid tote full of zippers, 6 boxes of embroidery floss and my dremel tool case. All hidden behind the fabric curtain. Which btw, was a pain in the you know what to attach underneath the table with a staple gun. :( But it got done and I love the look of it!

•  You can barely see the corner of my sewing desk. See the serger on the corner of it? That 'desk' is really my dressing table. I repurposed it. It has great drawers in it for all those sewing things you need at hand right away. It's big enough for my serger AND my sewing machine. But it was a little high, for comfortable sewing. Solution? I sit on a pillow in my sewing chair. So, this time, I changed MY height, instead of the furniture's height. Works great. 

I found this great desk at a yard sale right across the street from my house! I love the old wood in it. I placed it at a 90 degree angle to my computer desk (see the corner of it at the top left with the lamp base?) so I have a great work area. The desk also faces the TV, making it a wonderful place to do hand work.

I organized the drawer with plastic bins from the dollar store - 3 for $1. I had them all over my house, so I went collecting and got enough for my drawer. It's very well organized and has stayed that way. 

•  The dollar store, flea markets, garage sales, thrift stores - they are all awesome places to find what you need for your sewing room without breaking the bank. Shop from your own home. Look in the attic/basement. What aren't you using anymore? Can it be repurposed for the sewing room? 

Need super ideas? Search Pinterest for 'sewing rooms' or 'craft rooms'. Pretty soon your head will be swimming with ideas, more than you'll know what to do with. Since we're on the topic of furniture and sewing rooms, let's talk about 'stations'. Different places in your room where you do different things.

• My computer desk/wood desk is one station. I do a lot of computer work here (duh) and so I keep my notebooks, binders with blog planning, binders with my work stuff in them and my password book right here. I keep a stack of fresh printer paper and different notebooks for ideas, drawing, planning etc. But since I also do hand-work here (wood desk, turn chair 90 degrees to the right), I also keep my knitting notions in the cubby to the left, hand sewing notions on the wood desk (thread, pincushion, scissors etc) right here. This way, I don't have to go searching each time I need the basics. 
• My ironing board is another station. At the end of it, I have a basket with a spray bottle, pressing cloth, pressing ham, pins, scissors etc. If I'm pressing seams, and find pins, I simply add them to the pincushion in the basket, and don't have to go in search of a pin container. 
• My cutting table is another station. I keep all marking tools there, pins, pattern weights, measuring tools etc there. And I try very hard not to put things there that don't belong - otherwise I end up with a mess. 
• My second cutting/working table is an old kitchen island. This is where I have my rotary cutting mat, rulers, cutters, markers, pencils and again, the basics (pins, thread, scissors). I also bought a mat for the floor in front of this table. Love those mats!!! 

The point is, to think about what you'll need where and then supply it. And then the really hard part is to keep it there! Don't steal pins from the ironing board when you're at the cutting table. I have even used a wind-y cord to attach a scissors to my sewing machine, so I'll never be there without one. Do what you have to do to maintain organization.

Ok, I think that's enough food for thought for one week don't you? Next week, our final installment - Ambiance. Huh? Don't worry - it applies :)

Till later - Karen

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