Spiffed!

I'm gonna quit clicking buttons!   I wondered what a spiff up was!   Now I am knee deep in spiffing!  Bonnie  from Institches with Bonnie has been doing some things in her studio.  No problem, I caught right up.  My batting was in good order except for a jumble of odds and ends in a bag.  My fabric stays pretty good in my shelves although there is some serious leaning to some stacks.  Then this week it was the ironing station. vbsigh  Mine was buried under piles.  I know that flat surfaces are my nemesis! 

Okay.  I give up!   If I admit I won't be making any more garments I can clear an whole shelf way up high and put the batting up there as well as the odds and ends.  Some of my shoe boxes have fabric groupings that are now passe.   I need one whole shelf for low volume.  Browns are out and greys are in.  The greys can share space on the low volume shelf and all the earthy fabrics can go up high as I have embraced clean and bright.  :)  The top of the craft unit holds backings and all that landscape fabric that may or may not make the next cut.  :)

A start on Thursday evening had me committed to restoring order.  I'm a good sleeper but I was awake at 4:00 am with all kinds of ideas.  :(  I gave up at 5:30;  shook my feathers at the Rooster, barely acknowledging his leaving and sorted, shuffled and stacked.  The shoe boxes hold planned projects for home decorating- quilts, table runners, place mats, wall hangings, pillows and fibre art.  As those decrease I can switch that wider section out for my narrower coloured section.  I anticipate my solids and hand dyes will be increasing. 

 I roared off to town at lunch time for shelves and some cool plastic tubs from our Dollar Store.  :)  All my cute FQ's are in the new tubs and available for the grand kiddies to make projects.

 It all fits back wonderfully well and I only have three large bundles of fabric  to make a decision on.  These are not clean and bright. Would they make an eventual gift???

Anyway.  I'm feeling virtuous and I hope Betty doesn't have a craft corner that she wants spiffed! 

The Coop and Saucer Playroom/Studio

My sewing space has had a place in probably every room of the house.

As the kids left the space became a room.

I realized it could even be in the biggest bedroom since the Rooster didn't care where  he slept as long as he had a window to survey his kingdom and give the wake up call to all under his wings!

So here is what the first 11' x 12' sewing space looked like.  The worst thing about this room is the west facing window.

I would soon bediscovering that ALL that bulletin board stimulation is not good for me.  I had no grand kiddies so I amused myself with a couple of dolls.  

I was in full sewing mode.  I had also just become somewhat computer savvy.

I'd never had a sewing cabinet but realized I needed to get my machine down flat for machine quilting.  These cabinets are not cheap because the lift is so expensive.  I didn't realize I'd never really use the lift. Nor did I know about standing to sew.  There are also a lot of corners to bump my hips on!

Then I got a better idea.  I was trying to reduce visual stimulation.  I now had two machines on the go. 

I was trying to get more efficient and reduce clutter so I tried cutting on the counter and confined the computer to a small desk.  I don't know where the heck I put the cutting table in this makeover but I needed it back.  The ol' sore back, ya know! .

So I put that folding cutting table at the end of the sewing cabinet and stored the spare machine which I used for my student on it.  It was handy for the odd thing and then I discovered that I really liked standing. I was using it for all my piecing of quilt blocks.  I was also beginning to discover mixed media art.

Then I got a bigger heavier sewing machine, my Nina.  We got some good deals at an auction. A wee trim on the legs and Nina had a solid base.  The old sewing cabinet became the computer desk.

One more modification to the old IKEA media cabinet and I figured this was as good as it gets.

But things are pretty cramped.  My poor hips! There are only 2 plugs in this room. I have extension cords threaded around and through and taped on the floor. And really, I must admit that having the computer in the room is a great distraction so...

 Here I go again!

I'm trying to do it properly.  So I hung hooks for aprons and work shirts on the main door which will mostly stay open.  The old office cabinet will hold stuff for Creativity 101 and I'm thinking to paint it aqua.  The closet door got the bulletin board hung.The closet also has the darn ironing board that never seems to fit anywhere!  It also has my old school cupboard for my whites, beiges, browns and blacks as well as some books.  Under the low knee wall is the cupboard that has the canvas cubes holding scraps which are easy to haul out to the light.

The ironing station.  This was another piece we got at that great auction.  It holds large stencils and large sheets of  paper.  I wanted a shelf for the supplies and I thought if I can run a sewing machine and slice accurately with a rotary cutter I should be able to run the Rooster's chop saw.  Heart pounding, I finally got it going and ... easy peasey.  In fact I went out again and cut a back board for the desk that butts up to the cutting table.  whoo hoo!

But I think I will leave the table that will go behind Nina to the Rooster. lol  I am sew excited about this corner and can't wait to get back to more quilting.

I want to make new white curtains for the storage shelves.  It will be a design area. By putting the computer in the hallway I will loose my design wall so I must rethink that and the best I can come up with is two big hooks in the ceiling in front of the mixed media counter that I can suspend my big wooden dowel and flannelet sheet  from. I'll roll it up in between projects.   I figure when I'm doing a big quilt I won't be doing too much at that counter.  It should also save me all those steps from sewing machine to out in the hall and back again!

I want the Rooster to make another box for the top of the last unit.  I'm also thinking that possibly a peg board on the wall might keep me entertained if I get the urge to rearrange anything any time soon.  :(

Interestingly,  I noticed that I have come full circle.  This is pretty similar to how I originally had the room.  I must learn to trust my instincts a little more.

So I'm thrilled but not quite done. I have to edit the books, shuffle the contents of the drawers around a bit and find creative places for the leftovers that are stacked in the hallway!  That could possibly the workroom out in the barn.  I know one thing.  It isn't coming back in to clutter up the Coop and Saucer Playroom/Studio.

Any chicks wanna join me for a cuppa?  We can sit around and soak up all the ambiance!  VBSIGH