Welcome to Day 2 of the Spring Clean Your Studio Blog Hop! Many thanks to Cheryl Sleboda of Muppin.com for lighting a fire under me by hosting the blog hop, and inspiring me to tackle some of those pesky, less than awesome areas in my studio.
So you would think that, since I use my sewing/cutting table every day, I would be better about keeping the area right under it tidy. Nope - I don't look down that often, and it just became a handy place to stash things when I needed to get them off the table. Now, don't get me wrong - I don't have far to look to look down. About 5' 2" down, to be exact - but I'm usually more focused on what is going on ON the sewing and cutting table. So. Area #1 - yikes!
And then there's the nook by the window. One of the things I LOVE about my studio is that it has all these interesting areas - but a nook is just a mess waiting to happen. Talk about truly out of sight, out of mind. Yep - my miscellaneous stash of non-quilting crafty things all find a home here. A messy home. Sigh.
So what's a gal to do? Well, if I asked H3 (handy, hunky hubby) he would say "get rid of some things!". Ummmm - no. So my solution? Cabinets!
Step 1 - Clean out the area
For me, I find removing everything from the area I'm reorganizing the easiest. I have a clear idea of the space I have to work with, and it provides a welcome opportunity to go through everything that got stacked/crammed/shoved into the space and then promptly forgotten about!
Step 2 - Measure carefully!
No picture for this - but once I had the area clear, I measured the spaces to see what I had to work with. And yep - I messed it up. I either measured incorrectly, or read the specs on the website incorrectly. In any event, my beautiful cabinet would fit just so.....but without the casters I so wanted it to have. Arghhhhhhh. My solution? Felt adhesive pads on the bottom of the cabinet. So I can slide it easily if I need to move it, without scratching the floor, and it STILL fits. Score!
Step 3 - Install
And here it is - the new cabinet! Yes, I kept the scrap basket in it's original spot (it is SUPER handy, as I can toss scraps and trimmings directly into it from the cutting table), and stacked the two turquoise covered storage boxes. The cabinet (from Home Decorators - no affiliation - available through Home Depot - no affiliation) fits nice and snug. Bonus: my 16 1/2" square now has a safe, secure home right on top of it (look closely!).
Personally, I think as much closed storage as possible in a studio is the way to go. It keeps everything clean, dust and pet hair free, and safe from the fading effects of sun and light.
Can you tell I love die cutting? So thrilled that all of my dies fit neatly, label side up, in the deeper bottom drawer. So awesome to be able to see exactly what I have. Nirvana!
And the nook? I didn't forget about it. The nook received a repurposed cabinet from a huge, bulky, awkward button cabinet that was my mother's. So a piece of her is with me in the studio now - and my craft area is a bit more organized. Ok, it isn't as awesomely beautiful as the refresh of the area under the cutting table, but you have to admit - it's a definite improvement!
Thanks for visiting my studio and letting me share my studio spring cleaning. A bit about me: my name is Tammy Silvers, and I am a fabric and pattern designer. I design under the label Tamarinis, and I do hope you will come visit me again!
If you enjoyed this blog post and would like to see more from guest bloggers and from Tamarinis, you can click on this link to visit my website. Enter your name and email address and get a FREE pattern download for a pattern designed by me.*
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And wait - it gets even better! There are 21 days of the Spring Cleaning Studio Blog Hop, so be sure to check out all the awesome studios and fun spring cleaning reveals:
May 1 – Teri Lucas
May 2 – Tammy Silvers
May 3 – Emily Breclaw
May 4 – Amalia Moursiewicz
May 5 – John Kubiniec
May 6 – Debby Brown –
May 7 – Melissa Marie Collins
May 8 – Delve MIY
May 9 – Misty Cole
May 10 – Sam Hunter
May 11 – Dale Ashera-Davis
May 12 – Sara Mika
May 13 – Sarah Trumpp
May 14 – Carma Halterman
May 15 – Jessica Darling
May 16 – Lisa Chin
May 17 – Sally Johnson
May 18 – Mandy Leins
May 19 – Shruti Dandekar
May 20 – Jane Davila
May 21 – Ebony Love
May 22 – Cheryl Sleboda