Spring Clean Your Studio Blog Hop

I walked into my studio one day in January and this is what greeted me.  OY!  How was I getting anything done in there?  So I went to work and cleaned it up.  Starting here:

That felt much better...It is nice to feel like I have space to sew and I can even enjoy my sewing machine cover I made several years ago from a Pat Sloan pattern.  It was buried under stuff behind my machine.  Always amazes what I can find when I start looking beyond the top layer.

It was a good start and that is where I ran out of steam.  Depression is a hard thing that can leave you feeling pretty unmotivated to do life and that is what I had been dealing with.  Then Cheryl Sleboda came along with a call to join her 2020 Spring Clean Your Studio Blog Hop.  She is just amazing and such an ecouragement to those of us in the world of quilting.  Just the kick-in-the-pants motivation I needed; a deadline!

Oh, but that meant taking before pics.  Dare I be so bold as to share with you what my work space had become?  No wonder I was struggling to find any joy in this space.  I confess I am a "piler".  I put things in piles to be put away at some later date.  The problem becomes that later date can be pretty elusive.

The first thing I knew I needed to deal with was my fabric stash.  I had several piles of fabrics from past and present projects strewn about the room.  I just needed to take a few days and put it all away.  I even found a stack of brand new fabrics I had purchased last year during a shop hop-oooh sweet delight!

First the embarrassing befores...

And now the after photos...
I use comic book boards to store 1/2 yard and up fabrics.  I also have them sorted according to the color wheel I use which helps when pulling fabrics for a quilt. 

To help me replace it back to the right spot I pull the identiying card out so that I know where to put the fabric when I am done with it.  Of course that only works if I do not let things pile up.

For the fat quarter collections that I have a hard time resisting I place onto comic book boards that I have cut in half.  Smaller cuts go into the boxes on the top shelf which are sorted by color families.  Other precuts get stored in the clear bins on the shelf between.

A couple of close ups...I even found space for my button collection which includes my mom's tin from her days as a seamstress for our family.

More ongoing projects are in large bins on the floor and my thread collections are now easily accessible as well in the bins right above-labeled so I know what is in each.

With everything organized I have enough space to store my embellishments and art supplies as well.

Next my ironing space was in need of a redo.

I traded out the bins, which now reside on my shelves for these drawers which provide me with a better surface for my iron to sit on.  And all of the things I use in my ironing area are now readily available in those drawers: pins, applique supplies, fusibles, bias tape makers, and spray starch too.  The little LED light on the floor gets used when taking photos but is also plugged into the power strip with my iron; if that light is on I know my iron is still plugged in.   
For now I pulled out some quilt bird blocks that are Joan Ford patterns I am working on for fun and put them up on my design wall to enjoy along with my other works in progress.

Finally it was time to tackle my main workspace.
My table was custom designed and made for me by my sweet, adorable, husband and my very talented brother a few years ago.  Since I do my quilting on my Bernina 440 QE I wanted a table that would support a large quilt.   It was also designed to be the right height for me to comfortably sit and sew without back fatigue.  

...let's focus on my cutting area. One of the things I asked for was a cutting table, again designed to be the perfect height for me to use my rotary cutting tools. ​ And since it just sits on top of the table I can remove it when I need the full table for quilting.   How did I even get anything done in what was left of that workspace?  (Do you like my crazy camera set up from making videos a few days earlier?)  And I have to share that the lamp towards the back was made by my dad out of an old x-ray tube.  Honestly, I am not even sure what that is, but he made two of them in the 1950's when he was in a tuberculosis hospital for a year.  It's nce to have a reminder of my dad in my studio.

So the redo:  I have repurposed some of the bins underneath to hold things that I use all of the time in this area.   The drawers now contain my most used rulers, and the bins have current small ongoing projects  The space underneath holds my LED light box and some other tools I regularly access at the cutting table space.

I keep a can with various pens and pencils handy here too and my box of Scrabble tiles that I use to identify pieces as I cut them out.  

As I look around my room now it just feels so much better!

And my sewing space makes my happy again.

I just keep walking into my studio and taking it all in.  It is not a big space which means that there is not a lot of room left for me to work if I let it get unruly  in there.

I told my husband this morning that I am planning on using my next 30 days to keep it that way.  Hopefully by then the habits needed will be formed.  I have found some takeaways from the other quilters participating in the hop this year.  One of the biggies for me is to clean up at the end of every day.  Then to take a moment and plan out my tomorrow using the planner I designed this year.  It has not gotten much use since Covid took over our lives, but it is time to bring it out again as a tool to staying organized and on task.

There are many wonderful quilters who have taken up the challenge to Spring Clean their studios this year and you can visit each via the links below.  Thanks for stopping by as I have bravely gone where I have never gone before: it is not easy to admit one has made a mess of things.  So thank you again, Cheryl Sleboda, for this wonderful hop of inspiration.

---

April 1 - Sam Hunter - http://www.huntersdesignstudio.com
April 2 - Marian Pena - http://www.seamstobesew.com
April 3 - Jennifer Fulton - http://www.inquiringquilter.com/questions
April 4 - Martha Wolf - http://Www.pinwheelprodns.com
April 5 - Jennifer Strauser - http://www.dizzyquilter.com
April 6 - Steph Carton - http://www.theelimonster.com/blog
April 7 - Simone Fisher - http://www.simonequilts.com/blog
April 8 - Kate Colleran - http://www.seamslikeadream.com
April 9 - Carlina Moore - http://www.alwaysexpectmoore.com
April 10 - Jen Frost - http://www.faithandfabricdesign.com/blog
April 11 - Leanne Parsons - http://www.devotedquilter.com
April 12 - Becca Fenstermaker - http://www.prettypiney.com/blog
April 13 - Sarah Myers - http://www.quilted-diary.com
April 14 - Mitzi Redd - http://www.reddhomestead.com
April 15 - Jeanette Larson - http://www.Jenonthefarm.com
April 16 - Camille Ainsworth - http://www.stitchinthenw.com
April 17 - Becky Philips Jorgenson - http://www.patchworkposse.com
April 18 - Bobbie Gentili - http://www.geekybobbin.com/category/blog
April 19 - Janellea Macbeth - http://www.janelleamacbeth.com/blog/
April 20 - Lisa Ruble - http://lovetocolormyworld.blogspot.com
April 21 - Debra Davis - http://www.tuning-my-heart.com/blog
April 22 - Rona Herman - http://www.Ronatheribbiter.com
April 23 - Sue Griffiths - http://www.duckcreekmountainquilting.com
April 24 - Sarah Ruiz- http://www.saroy.net/
April 25 - Jessica Caldwell - http://www.desertbloomquilting.com/
April 26 - Tammy Silvers - http://tamarinis.typepad.com
April 27 - Ebony Love - http://www.lovebugstudios.com/blog
April 28 - Cheryl Sleboda - http://blog.muppin.com

I wish you all joy and peace and
Happy Quilting!