Welcome to My Sanctuary

Yesterday The Apple Pie Gal did an excellent post on her quilt/sewing room which actually isn't a room at all, but rather a corner of a room. Her point was that even though you don't have a whole room in which to set up shop, you can still find an area to make your own.

She indicated she'd like to have a look-see at my quilting area. I am lucky enough to have a whole room to call my own. But this certainly wasn't always the case. In forty-plus years of living in various houses, this is the first time I've had a room (yes, a WHOLE room!) that is strictly mine. Maybe hubby just got tired of eating on the kitchen table amidst rotary cutters and seam rippers. Because it was on the kitchen table that I quilted for many, many years using three shelves in a small cabinet for all of my storage. Well, the cabinet and boxes stashed under the bed, in closets, wherever I could smoosh them in. (And where I sometimes forgot I put them.)

My room is 12' x 16'. The door to it opens off what will be my new kitchen when our remodeling is done. As you step in the door, this is what you see.


Directly across the room is a wall of storage. (More of that later.)

If I shut the door and look to my left, this is what you will see. Storage of my Big Board (which hubby made for me) and a storage chest with TV (that does work occasionally) on top of it.

Also on the wall a little farther down is my cutting table. The shelves under the table hold boxes of fabric and other sewing supplies.

A closer look at the top of the cutting table.

Back to the storage wall.

The left side contains more fabric and general storage areas. I have back copies of quilting magazines in containers on the floor.

The right side is for storage of wall hanging and quilts I use for seasonal decorations in the house and projects in progress.

If you keep going clockwise around the room, next comes a wall with thread racks, calendar, clock, etc.

This is my work table where I keep my two machines permanently set up. I use each machine for specific sewing jobs. I do all my piecing on the machine on the left. My chairs are swivel chairs on wheels so when I'm piecing, I swivel around to the ironing board to press without having to get up.

When I planned this room, I made the choice to sacrifice storage space in order to have two design walls. You see the smaller one above (with the applique on it) with a glimpse of the other one that covers nearly a whole wall.

My big design wall goes floor to ceiling and will hold a full-sized quilt (queen or king size if I really squeeze it) for layout before piecing. I can't tell you how often these design walls have proved themselves out. Sometimes I have to leave a project there for days to decide if I have color combinations right or make a decision as how to quilt a piece. Love my design walls.

Then we are right back to the door again.

Although I've never yet done it, I have this burning desire to hole up in my quilting room for three or four days straight, coming out only to grab something to eat, make a bathroom stop or sleep a few hours. It is such a wonderful, cozy, well-set up room (for me anyway) that do you see why I'm so frustrated I'm not finding more time to spend in there?