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Organize Your Craft Work Space

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It's amazing how much more efficiently you can work if your sewing station (or any craft work space for that matter) is well planned. When I started sewing again - after a lapse of about 30 years - I used the dining room table.

Not only did it make the dining room look cluttered; it also cost a lot of time when I had to clear the table for visitors and then set up again to get on with my sewing.

I decided I needed to organize a craft work space that could be dedicated to sewing. I think any home has some space that can be converted for your crafting use, if not permanently, at least semi-permanently.

I chose our guest bedroom. Now I can close the door to hide the clutter when I am in the midst of a big project. But usually, the room looks quite neat because of all the nooks and crannies where I can store things.

My portable sewing machine sits on the dressing table which is covered with a pretty piece of oilcloth to protect its surface. Large pieces of fabric are hung over pants hangars in the closet; smaller pieces are organized in a hanging garment bag with shelves.

Bulky items like bolts of fabric and cotton batting are stored under the bed. My cutting mat lays on the bed for use and can be slid under it when we have overnight company.

My ironing board is always set up – which is nice for daily ironing as well as for my sewing projects.

Think about spaces in your home that are not used frequently and would be easy to close off or cover up. A sliding door closet makes a good craft work space if you replace the sliding doors with doors that open from the center. It already has a storage shelf and a rod from which you can hang things, if you like.

Add a shelf at desk height for your craft work surface. Two file cabinets might form the base and provide storage as well. The interior side of the doors can have peg boards to hang tools and small baskets, a bulletin board, hanging magazine rack for patterns, even a drop leaf table for extra work surface.

If the biggest space you can find is just a corner of your living room, you might invest in a large armoire that opens into a mini-office or modular furniture that can be arranged to suit your needs.

A decorative folding screen and some bushy artificial plants can be used to hide other tools of your trade. But, for heaven’s sake, don’t store your sewing machine next to your husband’s laptop computer!

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