My Mind is Whirling with Possibilities

You know when you have those times when life is just chaos? Every time I think things are getting back to normal, a wrench gets thrown into the works. I have been working on the rally quilt, and all that is left to quilt on it is the applique border. I even put the binding on already! I was feeling kind of smug about getting it this close to finishing, knowing I should be able to finish it easily this weekend, when DS the Elder shows up last night needing a place to sleep.

We have a full house, so anytime we need to accommodate an extra person, I have to move everything in my sewing room to one side, and inflate an air mattress. That has already kept me out of the sewing room for two months of this year.  I wasn't sure if he would need the room for several nights or just one, the company he works for botched his hotel reservations. I just found out he got the hotel straightened out tonight, so tomorrow I can put the sewing room back...again.

The sewing room has been weighing heavily on my mind, and I am anxiously awaiting the end of May, when hopefully, all my ducks will be in a row, and I can rearrange the sewing room. I have figured out how to move all of DD#2's bookshelves out of my sewing room, and initially,  was going to do very little rearranging. I figured I would mostly keep things the same but have a little more space. The more I think about it, the more I'd like to do a bigger rearrange. I've had my sewing cabinets in the center of the room, and I think I'd like to move them to the walls, and make a cutting station in the center of the room. My current cutting table is a workbench from Harbor Freight, but I really wish it was deeper. I struggle when cutting long borders or backings on it. DH has been eyeing that workbench since I bought it, so he can have that, and I'll get something else.

I started looking at cutting stations online, and the possibilities are endless. I've used a folding table up on bed risers before, but the table started bowing after a while. I looked at the cutting tables available and I haven't seen one I think looks sturdy enough in my price range. Most have fold down sides, but I am looking for something I can keep up at all times, and have storage underneath. The cutting tables I saw had support for the drop leaves that went at an angle, basically making the underneath useless. My favorite option was a kitchen island that would be perfect, but it's far out of my price range. The most practical options I saw are either two dressers or buffet tables placed back to back with a plywood top over both, or simply a kitchen table on risers. A kitchen table would be much sturdier than a folding table, so that is an option I could work with. I could store some of my plastic drawers underneath it, and it would work well. The dresser/buffet table idea would look better, and that would be nice. I think my next step needs to be a thrift store hunt to see what I can find at a reasonable price in the size I am looking for.

I've sewn for over 25 years, but I've only been seriously quilting for 6 years. In that time period I went from no sewing room at all, to moving to three different rooms. I think with every move I learn a little more about myself and my sewing habits. I love the way I store my quilting fabric, and that isn't likely to change. I found something that works for me and I'll stick to it. Some things I am still trying to figure out, like a cutting area that is best for me. I've discovered I prefer my sewing machines in a cabinet, and my two main machines, a Bernina 440 and a Juki 98 are in cabinets. I also have a Singer 99 in a cabinet, and a treadle that is not currently in my sewing room. I have several vintage machines that I use on occasion that are portable models. I'm considering getting a sewing table like a Gidget that would give me a flat surface no matter which machine I had in it.

Yesterday I went and bought a set of plastic drawers to store all my quilting thread together. I had thread in several places in the sewing room, and that was just not working. Big Lots had a set of drawers on sale for $20, and it had shallow drawers for smaller spools, as well as deeper drawers for cones of thread. I fit all of my thread in it and even had an extra drawer, so I figure that was a pretty good buy. I had been contemplating buying a cone of Aurifil in beige for piecing, but when I got all my threads together, I realized I had enough smaller spools of Aurifil in similar colors that I could put off that purchase for a while. Yes, storing like things together is the way to go.

I've also decided I will hold off on buying another roll of batting. I should finish off the roll I currently have on my summer quilting spree, and I will just buy single batts for a while. Eventually, DD#2 will move out, and I will be able to take over her closet for batting storage, and I will likely keep a roll of cotton and a roll of poly batting on hand at all times. For now, I've decided the space I have now is better used for other things than batting storage. Buying by the roll is less expensive, but right now space is more of an issue than paying a little more for batting.

I'll be posting a pic of the rally quilt as soon as it's finished. Maybe I'll even post before and after pics of the sewing room during the rearrange. I'm hoping I get things a little more workable, without spending much money.