Good Morning, Quilters!
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my sewing room and posted this photo of my sewing room:
At the time, I admitted the other half of the room was less serene.
My friend, Tracy Mooney from Generation Q Magazine challenged me to show the rest…
This is very hard for me…
Don’t judge…though I know you will…(I’m feeling very judgmental about it right now!)
The book cases are leftovers from my daughter’s college dorms…(I’d rather buy fabric?)
As you can see, focus is somewhat of an issue….
Well, they say that admitting we have a problem is the first step….
I’m calling the carpenter TODAY!
What about YOU? Are you willing to share a photo of your sewing room right now?
Are YOU a focused quilter?
Share on Instagram at #realsewingrooms @theinboxjaunt
Happy, Cluttered Sewing!
Lori
PS…Don’t forget to ENTER TO WIN my second Craftsy video, Creative Free Motion Techniques: From Doodle to Design HERE
And check out their new line of gorgeous solids on sale HERE!—I just ordered several 10 inch square packs…
PS…All tutorials, images and information are the property of Lori Kennedy at The Inbox Jaunt and are intended for personal use only. Feel free to re-blog, pin or share with attribution to The Inbox Jaunt. For all other purposes, please contact me at lckennedy@hotmail.com. This blog contains affiliate links. Thanks!
93 comments
Susan Paxton
Lori, I love your sewing room. I was used to sewing in the motor home I was living in ( I actually finished a lot of quilts in the 2 years I lived there) In January I moved into a 1 bedroom trailer. Lots more space now but not near enough. My machine and some of my fabric are in the living room. I use the kitchen table to cut on. Needless to say I rarely eat at the table. I moved the bulk of my fabric into the bedroom but are still in bins. I have a dresser to move in there and then best of fabrics will be put in there. Some scraps will be sorted into see through bins and put in the closet. I like to be organized but am still a mess with all the quilting projects I have to work on. Love your blog and your free motion quilting tuts. I am 73 years old and have only been quilting about 4 years. Lots to learn and my bucket list is long.
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Get stitching! No time to waste cleaning!
Marcia D.
Lori, now I feel better. My sewing room looks like a counterpart to yours. I thought having a dedicated room for all my sewing would keep it neater. Maybe all the projects in my ADHD head just keep on coming. LOL.
You have such great inspiration, just keep on!
Marta, south Georgia
Well, I don’t do instagram and so can’t show photos of my rooms… yes, there are 3, using small spaces in 2 and most of 3rd..
I will just write off the top of my head here… You ladies look/sound like amateurs in the messy department. How is that for being judgemental? !! 🙂 Our guest room twin beds are piled high. Our garage/cottage has a large drafting table where I cut and design and sew/quilt, but I have to actually carry supplies and go out there to work. There is another room inhouse that is supposed to be my sewing room. It has 4 walls. Wall One has 3 closet doors. First closet has husband’s files so nothing rests in front of it. Two have notions, crafts of all kinds. Wall Two has french doors to outside deck. Wall Three has fuse box in wall..and a twin bed and its matching chest of drawers full of husband’s childhood games. Can you say Connect 4 and chess and checkers and Game of the States, etc. for grands to use. I use twin bed as a counter top for sewing stuff. Wall Four has set of double French doors opening into living room. Thus in mid floor is a table for sewing machine/small items-piecing, my ironing board, boxes and 2 rolling plastic drawer things (5 more in my bathroom.) We can barely walk around in this sewing room. However, I have view of flowers out the deck and of TV in LR. Sorry I can’t give you a belly laugh with photos. When I was laid up with injured leg, some guild members came to visit and they still love me..I was mortified that they saw it all….But now I embrace it.. I have actually produced passable quilts in these conditions. Like Maxine… it all hangs out !
Lori Kennedy
Marta, you make me laugh! I notice that you have flowers to view — I hope you have a “vase quilt” underneath them!
Marta, south Georgia
Well, not exactly….flowers are in big pots on the deck..But there are some vase quiltys in the LR under the camellia and the Easter lily! 🙂
Jean
Sewing room? What sewing room! More like the dining room table.
Mary Ann
I thought I was the only one who had to use the dining room table–not good when company is expected! Then everything gets stuffed away and can’t find it when I’m ready to sew again.
Elsie
Congrats on taking the challenge! Your sewing room looks like a happy, creative person has fun there. Mine is much messier with stacks of fabrics, unfinished projects, collections of fabric “ideas” for quilts, and lots of books and papers. Still, I manage to create. I do try to clean my cutting/pressing area before starting a new project, though, and that helps.
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That’s one of my biggest problems–everything gets piled on the cutting table!
Janet
My room looks nothing like the machine photo and a lot like your following photos without the shelves but 2 folding tables, old dining table and a ping pong table. I have a number of unfinished projects in different areas…all waiting to be finished. Some are quilting or fabric related projects and some are paper (cards). I never seem to get caught up and need to drop everything to start a project for a birthday or something. I find if it is tidy, I can’t find anything and don’t want to mess it up. I find I work better in an organized clutter. I love my space and it works for me! Be proud of your space and all you accomplish in it. Thanks for the tour…good to know I am not the only one with stations for each project to focus on. Happy cluttered sewing to you too!
Cathy W.
Trust me you are not alone. Most of us could use a good cleaning in our rooms.
I started moving my sewing/quilting stuff down from upstairs to our enclosed porch. It has taken me almost 3 months and, I’m still not done.
I covered the floor in a cushiony vinyl and, purchased fantastic cabinets from Home Depot (now installed), I have refold most of my fabric. BUT now I’m allergic to my fabric and, must wear a face mask and plastic gloves to finish. I tried to pre-wash but it was taking to long. When the room is done there will be a place for everything which I love. II’m trying to stick to a new rule “No fabric purchase until equal amount or more goes out in a quilt or other project.”
LINDA MATTHEWS
No fabric purchase until equal amount or more goes out in a quilt or other project.” AMEN –
and, “Good luck with that:)
Debra Edwards
Nice to see that you are just like the rest of us Lori, just normal, trying to be creative sewers.
Laroletta Petty
I had six delightful friends come today to sew in my sewing room-a converted family room in our garden level basement. We are sewing for a November craft show to benefit our local crises pregnancy center. We had a great day sewing and sharing…tomorrow will be soon enough to return all the ‘stuff’ to where it belongs-at least most of the time. Tomorrow I will do the assignment for the quilt along. I try to keep things organized and I do a comfortably good job. Mostly, I love my sewing space. My husband has built the sewing desk which is perfect, cabinets and bookcases. I like to sew and quilt and do so most days and I enjoy sharing with friends and helping them grow in their skills. I have been a sewer for about 70 years (yes, I started young). I was a home economics teacher and have taught quilting classes from time to time. So, now, I;m happy to help others=at the same time I look to others like Craftsy and this blog site to help myself along. I just enjoy my space.
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I really wish U worked like that!!
Megen Wilson
I have gotten used to my sewing room – then I took a picture….OMG The camera made it 2 dimensional and really bad. So thru the picture out and refolded all my stash 🙂 It’s all about space and time-2 things we never have enuf of
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Space and time –never enough! Love that!
Pamela
Your space looks reassuringly like my own. If you can do such fantastic work in a space like this, I have no excuse! Sometimes I find sorting and cleaning the sewing room gets right in the way of just STARTING… (or finishing…the project, the quilting, etc…).
Wendy Arthur
Miss Lori, I think your sewing room is just fine. It doesn’t look any different then mine! 🙂
twemyss
Typical Dutch, mine is pristine, clean it each time a quilt is finished! my wardrobe has shelves and lots of matching clear containers and labels and so do all my tool boxes! As my mother said, a place for everything and everything in place! Now where the heck did I leave my little measuring ruler, still don’t know where it went, hahahaha! See, no one is perfect so celebrate yourself!
Lori Kennedy
I’m so jealous…I wish I was like that!
Dianne
Everyone’s sewing space looks like that more often than not. No shame in a creative jumble. I love the poppy quilt!
Pat Knight
I don’t think it looks bad at all. Whenever I really clean up and organize, then I don’t want to mess it up! I can’t send pictures of mine until I get it cleaned up!
Lori Kennedy
Not fair–you have to show it like it is!
Tomomi McElwee
I have to tidy up at least once a week before people come in for the class. What a destruction!
Lori Kennedy
Nothing like company coming to motivate!
Michele
“This is not messy, its the look of creativity. Melinda Bula on TQS. Its the stuff that gets up on its own and moves somewhere else lol that drives me crazy.
June Neigum
I have gotten into the habit of at least putting away the stuff from the last quilt like left over fabric and such before I can start a new quilt. Most of it gets put on the quilting table, but at least it is off the cutting table so I can cut a new batch of fabric. Make me feel like I did do some cleaning or maybe its rearranging? 😉
Vikki
Mine looks the same but I know where everything is. How about you?
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Yes. But I don’t have room to cut anything!
Vikki
Once every blue moon when I do clear the decks, it’s such a refreshing feeling of possibilities of what to do next. I hardly notice the mess creep back, and it seems such a waste of time – to tidy or to sew (I’m not even going to add a question mark)!
Brenda
Looks like you have been busy…this is how mine looks when I’m in the middle of a project.
Ann
You shouldn’t worry, it looks like a fun and creative space. Mine looks similar but, not as bright because I have a sewing basement. I have put in a load of “daylight”lights and it works well for me. As long as you enjoy it, then it is perfect.
Mary Ragan
Looks like mine! Once when I was selling my former house I told the realtor that I would clean up my space before she had any showings. She said “Please don’t. It looks like just what it is.” Had no trouble selling that house!
Susan T
My sewing room is all packed up for our semi-annual relocation, back north for the summer. My sewing room there will be in turmoil for the first week, as I unpack everything and find a home for all my “stuff”. I’m hoping to re-arrange my area over the summer months, as there is lots of craft stuff that hasn’t been used in a long while, and needs to find a new home. I also have some quilting deadlines to meet, and my grandson to hug!
Marta, south Georgia
Grandsons are No. 1 !!! Yes !
Linda
Thanks for sharing your sewing room. It sure made me feel “normal” and from the comments it seems we are almost all on the same page. I often wonder what the rooms/houses in home dec. magazines look like before the photographer and her team arrive to stage the homes. Don’t change a thing – and then we won’t feel like we have to either!
Carolyn S
Lori, it looks like you can still walk in most of the room without taking careful planned steps. By my standards it’s quite neat and definitely used..
Sally Atkinson
I’m sooooo glad to see that a “professional’s” quilt space looks like mine. Obviously you are able to be creative in your space, so it works for you. That is all that matters.
Every time I see those lovely pictures in the magazines I feel inferior. I have to remind myself that I am fortunate to have a bedroom devoted to my love of quilting, and even if all my furniture is used office furniture it works. However, I am untidy and have more than one (two, three, four….) projects going at the same time. I started to reorganize and it looks like a mess, but am hoping to have a more useful space once I’m done. Same size, same furniture more useful – hope, hope.
shoshana vogel
lori, don’t sweat the small things, a messy sewing room means that you have one to mess up and you can just walk in a begin loving what you’re doing at the moment, without it , you’d first have to clear a space somewhere, lug in all the stuff, including the machine, and set it all up and only then, if you’re lucky and noone else wants the space can you begin to start what you love doing.
enjoy the clutter,
shoshana
Carolyn Wainscott
looks better than mine
Kathlyn
Thanks for not tidying-up beforehand… looking at sewing rooms with works in progress is my kinda eye-candy! It gives me ideas for my own work space.
Do you have a design wall? I have 2 – for compulsive multi-tasking. 🙂
Vickie A
Yep. I would feel right at home. As long as I know where things are the mess is a sign of creativity going on.
Theresa A
Thank You, Thank You for showing us a REAL: sewing room. I ‘ve always been told that rooms that are “fluffed up” have the mind of a “Creative Person” working in them.
Donna Hixon
It makes me feel good that I am not alone. You must be doing something right. I am looking forward to your new class coming out .
A few weeks ago there was a post about the pictures on this site being extra small. I am having the same problem. This just started a few weeks ago. Have you had other people mention this? I am using my IPad.
Nancy K
Whoo-Hoo For YOU! My quilting space is just like yours. Every time I clean up my
quilting room, I forget where I tucked this and that. Re-organizing? When I do that I can’t find what I need while working on a big project. I have labels on a lot of the small drawers which helps. My theory follows: I’m 75 years young and I learned that quilting fabrics and supplies “will never see a clean room” Clean lasts for about a week! My dear girl no apologies are needed for your sewing room. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Progress counts more than cleaning. Quilters know when it is time to sweep the surfaces before a new quilt is born. It could happen in a week, a month, a year. Congratulations you are in the same boat as a million quilters! Love your site.
tonia conner
Pat has a good point. If I can put my hands on a piece of fabric I want, I’m happy. But that is not the case now.
Pat
I love the look of your room! Bright and cheery colors – wouldn’t change a thing.
I have a friend who calls her room, “The Room of good intentions” (it has her treadmill in it). But it does make me rethink my space which is filled with boxes of unfinished projects – I do recall your project of listing those and identifying which ones are cluttering our creativity – I think I need to revisit that process. And if you mentioned pictures of closets in that room – well, let’s just not go there!
Happy Spring.
wendy
I love your sewing studio–I can’t walk in mine so much stuff
Pat Vacek, Houston TX
Looks a lot like mine, only I have all that stuff in 1/4 the space. No judgement here.
Look back at that photo during your Christmas rush sewing time. You will think your space was neat and tidy in comparison.
Rosemaryflower
I will post mine on Instagram. Your work space looks marvelous.
It looks bright and a lot like mine. Lots of things going on.
Mine is the same.
I have extra storage upstairs for stuff I am not actively using. My sewing “office” is right next to my cooking “office” so that makes like pretty sweet.
Linda
Gotta admit I’ve got what too many partial projects spread around. Glad to hear I’m not alone. Sadly my space includes piles of office paperwork too!
quiltbabe
LOL, I still have about a dozen small boxes in the sewing room that are full of things I’ve not unpacked since moving in to the condo…four and a half years ago. My actual sewing area is fairly organized. Well, as much as it can be given I’m working on several things at once. It helps that I hate to dust around little stuff, so the thread is all in organizer cases in the closet (cotton) or in a library card catalog cabinet (embroidery thread), the fabric in drawer sets in the closet.
Debbie Horton
Walking into a sewing room like yours is my idea of “getting away from it all”. Let the dreams and creativity begin – let the world stay away for a while. Though I’m terrible at posting on Instagram, I directed a photo to you (where DO you add the hashtags?!) of a glimpse of my room – which is currently being repaired from water damage due to heavy rain. But it’s okay as California needs the water!
kattails....Kathy in WV
Would I show you my quilting space today? In a word—NO…..your’s looks neat and tidy in comparison.
Shirley M
It’s beautiful and perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Marty Anne
Thank you! I have a small house and the whole thing has become my sewing room. I had to get a small table and put it in the old wash room so I’d have a place to eat after the fabric and sewing machine took over the regular dining room table and area. Love
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Love that you had to buy a small table to eat!! Lol!
Judy
I laugh at your, “don’t judge” comment. All of us who have sewing rooms have had it looking like yours or worse. My room is small, so keeping it organized it really a must, but alas, clutter happens! I am just thankful that I’m not sewing on the kitchen table anymore!
Ann Hillman Lamy
Like us? Our sewing rooms MUST be a work-in-progress! Must! Organized chaos ~ it’s a way of life. LOL ***smiles***
Edy
I have a wall of kitchen cabinets in my sewing room…still can’t keep it uncluttered! Lol! Love the two quilts on the wall above the shelves. Is there a pattern for those?
Lori Kennedy
Yes…I will look up the book and share this week…(as you can see, my sewing room isn’t very organized for finding things–LOL!)
Maureen B.
Wow, you even wall art. Impressive. I have a huge window to stare at the ocean for the “long gaze” to rest my eyes. Another one to view the forest. The third has a cupboard with mirrored fronts, and the fourth has a mass of mess in hanging form … rulers, racks, cutters, scissors, etc. My thread lives in boxes on the windowsills … no hanging space. My fabrics live in boxes in a cubby. The table surfaces have projects ongoing, dead but not buried, proposed but not begun awaiting their turn. Will I share a picture … Hell no! ?
Lori Kennedy
You have amazing views! How lovely for you!
Maureen B.
It never gets old. It’s lovely to quilt with these amazing views of nature right outside my windows. Sailboats going by, deer trotting under my window eating my daffodils and hostas. As you know, we don’t own the views, we just get to share them for a period of time. I’m making the most of my share.
Marilyn
I think it is impossible to sew in a clean room. When I cleaned mine a while ago I spent more time searching for things than when hubby said it was a mess!!!
Ness
I’m So glad you didn’t say kitchen LOL! Snow storm, hubby gone = me in the sewing room all day. ?
Lori Kennedy
Lucky YOU! How are the “twinkies”?
marilyn
Your sewing room looks like you are a very prolific sewer/quilter. If it were totally organized and nothing out of place, I’d wonder about you and if you ever did anything. Welcome to the club of creative sewers with well used sewing rooms.
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