11 February 2014

Behind the Scenes: Studio Tour!


My sewing studio-office makeover is done and I'm moved in! May I offer you a guided tour of Tilly and the Buttons HQ? Do come in...


My sewing table is set up next to the window so I have lots of light for daytime sewing and blog photos. The table is from Ikea - the great thing about it is the Vika Kaj adjustable legs, which make it easy to raise the table top up high so I can draft patterns and cut fabric without straining my back.


To the side of my sewing table is my dress form and Raskog trolley from Ikea, which readers tell me is a crafter's favourite. The top layer is for my most-used sewing tools, the middle layer has my pattern drafting rulers and piles of dressmaker's carbon, and the bottom layer is for current projects.



And then there's the storage - Expeditlicious! I now have a total of 32 cubes in my Expedit bookcases, and the worrying thing is how quickly they filled up. I keep my fabric rolled up and ordered by colour for aesthetic reasons, with wovens separated from knits. The shelves also store my pattern collection - vintage patterns in a cardboard archive box, contemporary patterns in two plastic boxes, and self-drafted patterns in large plastic folders. One shelf is for notions - jam jars of buttons, a gift bag full of zips and elastic, gift boxes brimming with ribbon. On the bottom shelf are four mustard yellow fabric boxes for sewing samples, fabric scraps organised by colour, lining and interfacing. The rest of the space is filled with sewing books, business books, paperwork, stationery, my overlocker, ironing kit, craft box and embroidery box. Phew!


Over at my workspace, I finally have a large monitor, which was a birthday prezzie. My 11" MacBook Air is awesome for geeking out on the sofa and slinging in my handbag, but adding this monitor is great for working. I also got some new speakers for my choons. The rug was £20 from Ikea - really I wanted this one, but I couldn't quite justify £100 for a rug right now. The drawers to the right of my desk have paperwork and my printer on top, and assorted crap inside. See the colour peeping through the middle drawer? That's full of fabric that, let's face it, I'm only gonna use for toiles. And just to clarify, that side table doesn't look like that anymore, it's now covered in crap too.


Do you like my bin?



The only thing left to do is to decorate. I love the slate grey walls, and the white furniture and pops of colour stop it looking oppressive. I'd like to paint my sewing stool bright yellow, and I'm going to create some kind of mood board for inspiring images, and maybe frame a few motivational quotes, cos that's how I roll...


Well, that's it for the tour. Loos are on the right as you exit, and please check you have all your belongings before you leave. Come again soon!

PS. If you do / have done a tour of your own sewing space, feel free to leave a link below so we can all see. Or if you don't have a dedicated space, read these tips for sewing in a shared space.