If you love to sew, you probably have a great sewing room design idea or two up your sleeve, and the problem has been finding a spot to use them in. If you're carved out a space for your sewing (and maybe crafting) projects, these handy tips will help you save time and money.
Ideal Sewing Room Design Idea Tips
Keep it organized. Although having a room dedicated to sewing may be a dream come true, you can make the most of almost any space if you can manage to keep it organized. There are loads of accessories out there that can do everything from help you keep your needle sizes straight to coordinating your thread spools and bobbins. The big thing to remember is that storage should be as accessible as possible or you won't use it. If you have stacked wicker boxes housing your fabric but they have to be unstacked and restacked every time you need to get whatever's in the bottom box, pretty soon you'll be putting loose items in front or on top of the stack waiting for "next time". Instead, why not invest in modular shelving that will allow you to put things away and get them back out again easily? That way you can employ flexible shelving solutions that can grow with your hobby.
Allow plenty of open area. It's really tempting to cover every available space with fabric, rulers, tubes of stabilizers, patterns and all of the other paraphernalia you need to complete your sewing projects. As you build your space, though, don't forget to leave yourself about three feet of area around objects. This is particularly true of your cutting table. You'll never feel truly comfortable in a space that's hard to maneuver around in.
Take advantage of doors and walls. Even though those decorative framed prints you've been hoarding will look delightful in your sewing room, make sure to save enough wall space for your design wall and for storage. Hanging racks and cubbies can make storing your rulers, thread and small notions much easier, and wall space is a great, easily accessible location. To keep everything from looking cluttered, consider placing small items on the inside of a closet door.
Plan for enough light. While you're designing the perfect sewing space, don't forget to add plenty of light sources. Sunlight coming in from a nearby window can be invaluable when matching fabrics, and having at least two work stations with good lighting (not counting the lamp on your sewing machine) is a good idea.
Quick Sewing Space Tips and Tricks
- If you don't have enough space for a design wall, use a sheet of flannel pinned to your drapes.
- Invest in cork boards. These inexpensive boards can be used to display your design ideas, park blocks waiting to be assembled, store needles and pins, and hold zip lock bags containing specialty tools and notions. They aren't a good choice for long term storage, but they can get you organized for specific projects using a minimum of valuable table space.
- Instead of putting your finished projects away, keep some of them out on display. This way you can use your completed work in your interior design and inspire yourself at the same time.
While you're in the planning stages, write down every sewing room design idea that it occurs to you. Put it in a notebook for future reference. Refer to blogs by other sewing enthusiasts, too. Bloggers often post pictures of their sewing rooms that will give you some interesting insights and ideas.
