West Coast Studio Tour

 Company's coming.....so my studio is actually clean.

 If you happen to remember, I have rearranged this room several times. I think I finally have it functioning the way I like or should I say love.  Let me take you on a little tour....

Let me start by saying that the studio occupies the master bedroom. My reasoning being, the room has such a lovely view and is also right off the kitchen, making it a little noisy for sleeping....it makes so much more sense for us to sleep in the back bedroom(maybe just a little rationalizing going on here).

We still keep our clothing in the master bedroom closets and use the large en suite. Since this Night Owl is married to an Early Bird (isn't that always the way), it works perfectly for us. My late night sewing doesn't disturb my husband and his very, very early morning coffee making, showering, etc. etc. doesn't wake me up in the morning.

Also, when overnight guests come, we give them the back bedroom that has a full bathroom right next to it (giving our guests a fair bit of privacy) and we sleep in the studio....see why I had to clean it. There's a Murphy Bed in the Studio and since all our personal stuff is in there as well, it's an easy transition.

Well onward....

 

Here is my massive design wall...

 So wonderful to work from...

and so fabulous to display finished quilts on.  

There sits my beloved Janome, sunk into it's lovely little table ( made by Janome as well).

 

The design wall takes up the entire wall....in the far right hand corner is my current project.

The little cupboard, to the right of the door is perfect for holding several of my quilting books (in the interest of full disclosure it doesn't even hold half of them).

 

On the other side of the room is my beloved Murphy Bed...sooo comfortable...I kid you not.

We chose cork floors for this room, which I love!!

 

 The table I use for cutting is actually a small dinning room table (bar stool height). It actually folds down to half that size....the stools slide underneath.

We had a much smaller apartment, when we first bought property out here and that's all we had room for. We've moved twice since then and now have a regular sized table. I was so happy to re-purpose this table, as it is the exact right height for cutting...so much easier on the back.

Last spring I found this handy dandy clip on ironing board....it also adjusts to different heights.

I believe it's meant to clip onto your sewing desk so that you can sew and press without standing up each time. A marvelous idea, but doesn't work on my particular sewing desk.

I then came up with the brilliant idea (well, I think it's brilliant) of attaching it to my cutting table....no more stubbing my toes on that darn ironing board which didn't quite fit into the space.

I created a sit down ironing spot on the adjacent desk.....such a nice little L-shaped work space.

 I have a Pfaf out here as well, which can sit on the desk when needed, but I seem to be using the Janome as my go to machine. I do have sewing friends that come and stay with me now and again so an extra machine is always a bonus (also very helpful if one machine is on the fritz). 

From the window there is a fabulous view that I love to drink in, as I'm working.

What can I say...this prairie girl can never get enough of the ocean.

This is the balcony just off the studio. Below are some shots of the stunning views.

 

 

 

This room is smaller than the space I have in Alberta, but it just seems to work so well and that ocean....what more can I say. 

And there you have it....my west coast studio, let's just hope it stays this way for awhile.

 

The Design Wall that Just keeps on Growing/Quilt Photography

 Now that I'm back in my West Coast Studio, I just couldn't help adding a few more panels to my design wall....and to my pleasant surprise, they were quite simple to move around.....those Command strips really are amazing.

 

By making the decision to switch the TV, in the room, to a smaller one, that can be wall mounted...I created more wall space, and you know what that means!!! The design wall now measures approximately 60 inches by 143 inches, and there's still room to go up higher, I'm still considering that.

 

Would you look at the size of that baby. It took moving stuff around several times, to get a layout that accommodates a design wall this large. I find work spaces can be tricky to get just the way you like them....you actually have to work in them, for a while to see if the flow is right. I think this is probably my fourth layout, for this particular room.

 

On photographing quilts....I'm going to try something new. I've decided to have a few of my quilts photographed professionally.

 

Many quilters don't think twice about sending their quilts out to be quilted, something I won't consider, because I'm just too much of a control freak. So I'm saving money there, right? See how I easily I rationalize to myself.

 

But in all seriousness, when I think of the all the hours that we put into making our quilts it would be wonderful to have a portfolio of professional quality. I would love to hear if any of you have taken this route.

 

Floppy Design Wall....beside an open window

I've discovered hanging batting, from a decorative rod, makes for a very floppy or should I say unstable design wall. 
Although, it's fabulous for displaying finished quilts. 

Since I often use the QAYG method, my blocks are somewhat heavier.
Hmm, I really should finish that quilt.

My plan is to attach the batting directly to the wall instead, thus eliminating all floppiness.

P.S. I jut walked back in the room....help, things are flying off left and right. The design wall is beside an often, open window!! 

 I might need some insulation board as well. Things are never as simple as they seem.

One Last Ocean Wander

One last ocean wander....before heading back to the prairies.

With my studio arranged to my satisfaction ( I hope) and my scraps all sorted, a walk along the ocean was the order of the day. 

I just might be up for some serious quilting next week....I really am all sorted out.

Sometimes I Irritate myself!

The west coast studio looked perfectly fine, until I started rearranging it again...for the third time, this year. 

I moved all the furniture around and hope I'm happy with this arrangement. Everything got moved closer to the windows again....the view is really lovely. 

I hung up a curtain rod, with rings and clips, so that I could diplay quilts.  The plan is to make a hanging design wall, that can be hung, on the same rod.

Since this room doubles as a guest room, it will be nice to be able to take the design wall down at will. I'll have to test that theory out.

The question is..... how many times can one arrange one little room????

Just Because My Machine is Resting....

Just because my machine is taking a rest, doesn't mean my fabric addiction is asleep.

 There is nothing better than finding a deal.

Fabric for $6 a meter....

and my favourite Valdani thread at half price.

 

 Good thing I wasn't sleeping.

Amazing What One Can Find in the Sale Bin /My Pinterest Conclusion

I'm back on the coast, escaping the 25cm of snow, that fell back home, on the weekend. Best of all, I brought two fellow Blockheads with me......not only are they my quilting buddies they are wonderful friends. You know the kind....the ones that make you laugh until you cry, they are both cackling, in the background as I type.

The first order of business was a little Shop Hopping!!!

I can sniff out a bargain a mile away.....it's amazing what one can find, in the sale bins!!!

Next, I wanted to thank all of you, that gave your extremely, helpful, comments regarding Pinterest.

Here is what I've concluded:

• If you are going to pin.....allow your work to be pinned, only fair, I think.
• Make sure the name of the person who's work is being pinned is mentioned.....not just the name of the blog that happens to have that person's work, on their blog. The blogger is probably giving credit, but I feel it is our responsibility to do the same when we pin.
• I agree that once you put your work out there you loose a fair bit of control...it's the nature of the beast.

That said....I will probably use Pinterest somewhat, or maybe a lot, I'm not sure yet. Personally, I want to be very careful that I give credit where credit is due. Thanks again, for taking the time to comment, I found it very helpful. 

Amendment......as I was answering all my comments on this subject Deborah O'Hare brought my attention to this blog post. This is a very worthwhile read. 

After reading about Pinterest being a Haven for Copyright Violations I might be putting Pinterest to Rest, for me that is.

I'll keep you posted.

Dual Purpose Sewing Spaces

My sewing room, here on the west coast, definitely has more than one function. When we have house guests, which happens fairly often, it becomes a bedroom. 

 Since, the room is highly visible from the main living area, I've chosen to go with hidden storage, rather than open....totally opposite from my sewing space back in Alberta, which is downstairs away from the rest of the house.

As you can see, I have a sofa bed, rather than a regular bed, which would take up precious space...not quite as comfortable, but well worth the sacrifice.

It suddenly occurred to me, that I could use my four decorative metal pictures, as a bulletin board, since they are magnetic. I've owned these for a number of years and that thought just came to me last week....I'm a little slow some days.

The desk also serves as a night stand...it has an adjustable reading lamp as well, how convenient.

Every Sewing Room needs a cutting table. This is actually a bar height dining room table that has a drop leaf....again a great space saver. It's the perfect height for cutting.

These little dark shelves are actually CD holders.  By hanging them horizontally they have a new purpose....look, they can hold my rulers and who knows what else.

When all cleaned up it still looks good.

The TV stand is actually a dresser  made out of reclaimed lumber....looks great and is wonderful for storage. See all those delicious fat quarters.

All kinds of stuff hidden here.

I also have this fabulous trunk under the window....how perfect this is, for larger pieces of fabric, which of course I have no shortage of. When the lid is down it acts as a bench or  table top.

The only piece of furniture, in the room, that I bought specifically for sewing, is the desk. Sometime it pays to look around the other rooms, in your house, when you are setting up a sewing space.  Moving from one condo to another made me rethink the function of some of my furniture.

I also love the fact that the room can switch from bedroom to studio so easily.  

Right about now, I'm getting pretty sick of the tools.....I really need to get some actual sewing done.

A Dark Grey Cloud

There was a dark grey cloud hanging, over the place, as my husband installed my lovely new light fixture.....and no, it had nothing to do with the weather. What the bleep bleep....who makes these bleep bleep fixtures any way???? Accompany that with heavy breathing and moaning...no not that kind, no time for that.

In all fairness, this is light fixture number two....number one was too small. So yes, this cloud was there with light number one as well.

There it is in all it's glory.....you can see him still working away. Yup, there's more.

 

Time to smell the flowers and a good stiff drink...to bad I don't drink, I could use one, right about now.  You'd think I was the one doing all this work.

Gotta love that do it yourself, assembly stuff, from Ikea....bless their hearts.

 It's ominously quiet at the moment, hmm.

We took a little break, and now the dresser is being assembled.....not so quiet anymore.

She's All Fired Up and Ready to Sew......

The machine that is....not so sure about me.

This room went together really easily....the layout is so conducive, as a work space. The new cork floors are fabulous.

This is actually a sofa bed, so we are all ready for company.

The nice thing is, most of this  furniture, we had in our other place. We've had to buy very little.

I'm thinking of ordering one of those roll up type vanishing design walls, for this spot above the bench.....anyone out there had any luck with one of those?



And look at all the electrical thingies I managed to hide with this little book case.
 In case you're wondering, I hate all those switches and things...they mess with the aesthetic. I really am a fuss budget.

This closet is really doing double duty.

The rest of the place is coming together as well.

The kitchen all ready for my husband to cook in...I don't really do that any more.

All those years of cooking, for four kids, will do that to you.....the boys were over six feet in their early teens, that's a lot of spaghetti!!

Living room all ready for relaxing.

Here is my husband's little den...he works from home when we are here.

Not to shabby....he likes to call it his West Coast Office.



Of course, you know who is sitting at the computer, at the moment....gotta do the blog thing, right.



After all that, I'm just way to tired to quilt....maybe I should head out the door for a little retail therapy or dinner.