Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Momma's got a sewing room.

I think this just may be my most favorite room in the house now, but that has not always been the case. This is the room that caused my worst "why did we buy this house" melt-down. When we purchased the house this room was not being used for anything, it was a big, dark, empty room. There was no insulation and the walls were actually the siding from the outside of the house. There was even a little hole in the back wall that was completely open to the barn. The floor was patched together with old barn boards and plywood then they were covered with roofing tar paper. Hmm? It was one of those floors that bounced like crazy when you walked on it and in all honesty I chose to crawl and not walk on it. I still remember the day when my hubby sent me up there to start demoing the floor and to pull up the tar paper. It took about one minute to completely break down. This room scared me! Seriously I thought something was going to crawl out from under that tar paper and attack me or that I was going to literally fall through the floor. A few minutes later with two spot lights and lots of reassurance I was pulling up that tar paper. Within a few months this room was framed, insulated and had sheet rock. At first it was our living room/office/guest room. Then it became our bedroom with the first little one joined our family. So here we are 7 years later and this once scary room is my craft room and...Momma's got a sewing room!
I can't tell you how amazing it is to have all of your materials and tools stored in one place. I can finally sew and create with all of my materials in the same room. Goodbye to running around the house to find all of my items so I can begin sewing at the kitchen counter. Goodbye to stacks of fabric and unfinished projects stashed all over the counters. And goodbye to having to clean up my sewing messes just so we can eat. Yes, I am one lucky girl, that I know!
So welcome to my sewing room! I'm pretty sure that when the kids are sleeping this is where you will find me.

So the two huge armoires hold all of my fabric and crafting supplies. I am so lucky to have these to store my fabric in. They are great! Unfortunately now we have no where to store our clothes...minor details right?

Most of the items that I added to my craft room came from thrifting, yard sales or something that I already had in the house.

Nothing more perfect for a craft room then to hang bunch of pretty fabric up on the walls with hoops. And of course my 2 little hooligans logo needed to be hanging up there as well.

A little peek inside at my fabrics that are finally neatly organized.

I used a combination of comic book boards and Fabric Organizers from here.

All of my knits, satins and whatever cheap fabrics I have snagged up to make clothes is stored on the top shelf.

In the other armoire I placed all of my home decor, upholstery, minky and odd ball fabrics. I also squeezed my batting's, pillow forms and whatever else I could in here. The drawers are filled with zippers, threads, patterns, and every single crafting supply or material I own.

I purchased this little vintage inspired dress form a few weeks ago. I had been searching for a real dress form for months now but they were just too pricey. So I snagged up "Beatrice" for a mere $30 with free shipping (brand new) from Ebay. I think this will be great to bring to craft fairs and is just a fun display piece.

And in all honesty we are the same height. So she may help with draping and some minor fittings, but her waist is going to need a lot padding before she can even get close to the same measurements as mine. She may be skinny, but my bust size is bigger, so boo-yah!

Ok, so here is one of my most favorite thrifting finds...my sewing chair! I saw this little beauty and knew it would be perfect and for $15 I couldn't pass it up. Just look at the shape of it, how cute! I think I might end up painting it white in the end, but for now it is going to stay as is.

My sewing table is actually a fold out table that we already had. The top was in pretty bad shape but with a little sandpaper and a few coats of white paint it is now perfect. I love how big it is and really it was free, so you cant beat that. I also bought a large cutting mat and a new ruler. I had been using a tiny scrap booking mat to cut all of my fabric and let me tell you how difficult it was cutting out large pieces of fabric. So this is amazing to use. I also found a fold-out suitcase holder while thrifting for $2. Now it makes the best little spot to hold unfinished projects so that my table can remain clutter free. It's s holding a sleeping bag that is in the works right now. I'm just hoping that my unfinished pile doesn't get too big.

Then there is this little chair. Yet another thrifting find for $21. The fabric is in amazing shape and needed nothing other then a new home. Its not my typical style but for some reason it was calling my name (maybe because there is orange in it) and I'm so glad I brought it home. What a cute shape and you should see the piping on it...adorable! I have learned over the past 6 months that my style has changed so much. I am now a cheap, thrifting, vintage loving girl...who loves bright colors!

Another dresser for storage which is actually still filled with some of my clothes. In time I'm hoping to fill it with all of my handmade items. I would love to start selling again in the next few months and hopefully I will have enough items to go to a few craft fairs this year.

And here is my newest little baby...and obviously not a thrifting or cheap find, but a NEEDED one.

I've used it a couple of times, but I need to spend A LOT more time learning all of the stitches and how to master threading it. But I know in a few months this is going to be my best friend! Goodbye to zig-zag stitching all of our clothes.

So all I need now is a good light for sewing. The only problem with this room is that there is not a single window in it. So it is really dark and as you can tell from the photos, really hard to photograph. Any ideas on a good light? I see them all the time at JoAnn's but wonder if they are worth the money or if I should buy a cheap lamp at Walmart.

So there you have it, Momma's new sewing room!

21 comments:

  1. Great room! Check out I Have a Notion's blog. She just did a review on a lamp.

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  2. Wow! Good job. It's so nice to have a room for just working in. You can leave your unfinished projects out and continue on when you have time. I bought a desk lamp from Ikea and use that for task lighting. It seems to do the trick and was very inexpensive. I know you will get a lot of use out of your room. Cheers!

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  3. Your sewing room looks awesome! It's so nice to have a place all your own. :) I love your fabric armoires! That is just what I am looking for for my fabric.

    I have 2 Ott-Lites in my craft room, and I really like them. I haven't tried anything else to be able to compare them to, but they are much better than regular incandescent lights that make everything look yellow.

    You are going to have so much fun in your new crafty space!

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  4. Yay! I am so envious. I am constantly doing all those things you USED to do. One day maybe...anyway, maybe your hubz could (one day) knock a hole in the roof for a nice sky light? That would be awesome if it is possible. I know it is harder than said (hubz, sorry), but maybe one day? Looks stupendous though, I love it.

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  5. dollwood farms: its already on the list:) too funny!

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  6. just super looking - so organized too. I love both your chairs ! , but especially the sewing one. I have two ott lights ( desk and floor ), and , though a little pricey , well worth it for true colours.
    thanks for sharing your creativity and happy crafting in your new haven.

    Lynn G.

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  7. It's perfect!! What a great little space just for you!!

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  8. LOVE the new room. Great "thrifts"!! I have a ceiling fan/light fixture in my sewing room. Not known for great lighting...unless you put "good" light bulbs in it!! I also have the same set up, along with a floor lamp, in the family room where I tend to cross stitch...I use "daylight" bulbs and they work GREAT. I have heard people love their OTT lighting, but I have had both and IF you go with OTT be careful, some of them take very specific (not readily available) bulbs that are expensive.

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  9. LOVELY and yay for your new serger! You are going to LOVE it!

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  10. Lovely room. I just got my own office/craft room in the last couple months. Amazing feeling to have your own space in the house!!

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  11. I've heard wonderful things about the OTT light.

    I own the same serger as yours. I LOVE it. I hope you enjoy yours just as much.

    PS I love the room.

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  12. I am so happy for you! Awesome space! I am also curious about lights for crafting. I have considered the Ott lights. I was wondering if the bulbs can be used in a regular lamp. That would save a lot of money, but I somehow doubt it, otherwise why would you pay so much money? Let me know what you find out!

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  13. You don't need a fancy schmancy lamp (unless you want one), you just need the bulb that they have inside. They're 'full spectrum' bulbs aka daylight bulbs.
    http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=full+spectrum+bulb&x=0&y=0

    Anything between 5000 and 6500k (the k stands for kelvin apparently) with full spectrum (daylight) is what you need. The higher the kelvins the brighter the light. You can just change it out in your main ceiling light and it's like having a room full of OTTLITEs lol.

    Info source: {imaging engineer husband of mine}

    Hope this helps you save some $'s :)

    Samantha xx

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  14. I love it! It really looks like such a fabulous and useful space for sewing.

    I've been jonesing for a serger lately, but I'm wondering how much I'd use it. I have a bad habit of wanting the newest gadget and then having it sit in the box for 9 months. (Cough, The Silhouette, cough, cough.)

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  15. Oh your room is just fantastic!! Very lucky mummy and I bet Very Happy too.
    Have you ever thought of putting in a roof window? In Australia they are very popular in little rooms likes yours. They let in tonnes of light and you do not have to rearrange your furniture to accommodate them.
    www.theratherbusybee.blogspot.com.au

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