My messy sewing room
 

As ugly and messy this room looks it is a wonder that I ever get anything sewn properly. I clean it up and then it gets messed up again. Although I am in the process of organizing my scraps into 2", 3 1/2" and 5" squares. Oh and also 1 1/2" squares for my postage stamp quilt. They are going into plastic bags for now and then clear shoe boxes. I thought maybe if I posted my mess on this forum that it would motivate me into getting it done. If you have any suggestions/ideas, please don't be bashful. Let me know how to "fix" this mess. Hopefully I will be able to post more than one pic. Well, it let me post 3 pics but I guess you can see the mess I am in. And I don't like the little attached images. When you click on them they always magnify and you really can't see it well.

I hope you feel as I do. It is my room and I don't care. As long as I'm sewing. I've gotta learn how to attach pics etc. My room is a mess and if I straighten it and then start something, off it goes again. LOL

I feel it is time to clean my sewing room when I can't walk in it or can't find anything. Guess what -- I am trying to clean it now since it reached that state and I moved the mess into the guest room until I could make more room (hmmmm wonder why I am here...)

I think the only thing that will help is to pack ALL your fabric in boxes and ship it to me. Then you can start fresh. LOL.
Seriously just vow to do a little piece each day for an agreed amount of time. Then reward yourself with a treat (can be anything you want or long for) each day you accomplish your task. First thing you know, you'll have an organized room and you will be able to create to you hearts content. First thing I did when I set up my sewing studio is to organize my fabric on boards. They took less room, & I could see what I have. I can't start a project if my space is a mess. (That is just me, it doesn't bother some.) Good luck & show us the "after" picture when you get it done.

I know what you mean! I clean up and organize my room and then I turn around and it is a mess! I decided tonite I really don't like my sewing room too much. Some good things about it, but some not so great. I might have to rethink this whole thing. I cut up a bunch of scraps into diffrent block sizes, strips, now I think they are in my way!Gee!

I am just so thankful that my room isn't the only one that looks like this! LOL I am in the process of redoing it now and I am bound and determined to keep it neat. So we'll see how well that works! lol

OMG I just did the exact same thing!! But my sweetie said "Let's take the bed in the guest room apart and store it in garage and then we can put up some shelves in there too so I have more storage" ! Wants me to have 2 rooms for my quilting fetish! How wonderful is that? In fact, we are looking to move in the next few years and every house that he wants me to look at has some large area that he feels will be "perfect" for my sewing room!

See if you can find some plastic bins, to fit onto your shelves, to hold your various projects and fabrics. For overflow, the bins can be stacked. :)

I really don't think it looks all that bad, I have seen for worse , so don't be to hard on yourself.

Looks familiar. My room is in a similar state. In fact mine is so messy my quilting has overflowed into the dining room. Like you, I always have the best intentions after I clean up but it's always back to a mess in no time. Seems to be another one of those afflictions common to quilters.

Your room looks like mine does after I clean it up! LOL I do keep all works in progress in there own labeled 14x14 colored plastic boxes with everything needed to finish it (except the batting) pattern, thread, fabric ect. After cutting my scraps to size they go into baskets on a shelf above my cutting area, just drop it in as I trim. After spending 6 days straight last winter sorting and trimming all my scraps I learned to do it as I go or at the very latest right after I finish the top. I also have taught myself to hate plastic bags! LOL Last winter before I hit the scraps, I hauled EVERY THING out of my sewing room, sorted and reorganized everything! (you really can't tell now, but at least I know what I have!!) I found hundreds of plastic bags stuffed full of stuff! Scraps, trash, new and used fabric, new notions, quilt pattern's ( found 3 of the same pattern, still haven't made that one), thread, new and used ( I now have 11 spools of white and 15 spools of black, all new, all same brand and weight) scissors, projects half started that I can't finish because I used the fabric I needed on another project, 2 finished quilts that were to be gifts but where in the bottom of plastic bags with other stuff on top of them. I hate plastic bags! they are not allowed in my sewing area! Good luck on organizing, remember what works for one may not work for you. keep trying untill you find the right system.

Oh, KSue, your room is organized and neat compared to my disaster. There should be no flat surfaces around me, or something will be piled on them! My room was the sun room, so with the route to the backyard, there are gardening stuff, tools, leaf blower-------- Also, the easiest access to attic storage is there, so stuff patiently waits to be lugged up there and stowed. But after the third rearrangement, sewing can be accomplished!

Wish I lived closer I'd tell you to put on a pot of coffee and invite me over. My three quilty friends and I spent an entire day 'organizing' my basement sewing room. We worked hard, but have never laughed so much! Had a blast!

There is no way (well, maybe if someone gave me a million dollars) that I am going to put photos of my areas on this board.

Good luck with your project. It will feel better after it's all orderly.

Even just stacking things 'neatly' helps considerably with the visual clutter.

I figure if my dog still has room to lay down, it's okay....Not much other floor room!!!

I had the same thing with a messy sewing room. What I did is made up my mind that after I get finished for the day in my sewing room I will clean and straighten it up for the next day's work. There is nothing that will kill creativity (for me) than to have to work in a messy environment. Also, I downsized my stash by giving garbage bags of fabrics to the Senior Citizens Organization. Now, I only have quarter cuts of fabric. If I need to have more yardage, I go and buy it as the project dictates. This has worked for me.
Good luck!

I had to move my sewing area to the dining area in my living room. Ugh, I try and keep it clean but for me that's more stressful than having it messy (believe me my room look the same or worse than yours when I had my own room). The plastic bins work great for me also. I organize mine with 2 for fat quarters, 1 for fabric bundled for the next projects, 1 for patterns and then last one for "other fabric". The best bins I have are two smaller ones that are labeled " strips" and "scrapes". I leave these open and when I'm cutting I toss the strips and scrapes in the box right then. This was the best thing I ever did. Love it that you posted your room, I'm sure it makes many of us feel better that we are ok with messy areas.......

When I see a messy sewing room, I think "that person gets a lot done" If we are always arranging
& organizing - what do we have to show for our progress? I make things to show I can do it!

No bad at all! I envy you your shelves. The only thing I might do is to take all the fabric off the shelves and fold it as follows: I use my 6" wide ruler and wrap all my larger pieces of fabric around that. Slip the ruler out and fold it in half. Seems to fit well on shelves that way and takes up less space. Wish my room looked as good!

It just needs some plastic tubs to put the floor items in. They stack and make your room look much neater. Label everything! At least I have to! You think I would remember what I put in these tubs or small containers but I don't. If my quilt room gets to messy it interferes with my progress. Just like I can't cook in a messy kitchen.

I don't get it......... What do you mean "messy sewing room"? Looks perfect to me!

Mines look like that I a couple of days. You can always box it up and send it to me. When you click on the picture to view it you can click on it again to downsize it.

hmmm looks pretty organized and clean by MY sewing room standards........ :-)

I thrive on chaos!!!

*PAT* .... are we twins? LOL

I cleand up everyday when I finish working. Seems to work well for me!

I just wish I lived closer..I would love to help you..I am an organizing whiz...LOL I keep mine cleaned up, can't sew with it messy..just take your time and you don't have to please anyone but yourself...so when you like it...that's all that matters...I'm always looking for a little blank spot on the wall to hang something else...LOL LOL ..You can see my room on Mission Organization..its called "My Sewing Room" sak658...I have added things since that post...made 11 quilts last year..

Oh my - he's is keeper! I hope mine says the same thing when we move in 5 months! It's his fault I have outgrown it in the first place. He loves to shop with me for fabrics and doubles everything I ask for and never leaves any fabric center with fq's in his hand! Gotta love 'em!

The only question I have is, where is your sewing machine(s).....I guess that is one of the pictures you could not get to post, huh? My sewing room looks just like yours, only about three times that size because I have a Gammill on a 12 ft table down the middle of it. Love it, love it, love it.

Well, I love your valance!!!!!!

I so agree with gramie bj's comment on plastic bags. I'm going to train myself to unload my purchases right away and put them in a designated spot and get the plastic bags outta there. I hope to be able to straighten up my space soon. I can live with it for just so long and then it makes me nuts.

Oh, and I wanted to add...I think you are a brave woman to post pix.

Eek, you peeked in my room last year! Much better now! LOL

Sue This is do able. First tale the white book case only and buy foam core , corrugated plastic, measure the shelves and cut the plastic one inch shorter than the shelf height and 1 in. shorter lenght for deapth. wrap fabric pin end to self mark coraplast with the yardage on it. Stand it up right. Do that then e mail me and I give you some other ideas.
sandy O

KSue, I see that you already have a wonderful sense of organization -------you just need to expand on what's already there. You've covered your boxes on the top shelves with contact(?) paper and added a list sheet on the outside-----do more of them for your magazines and anything else that is not fabric and put them on your shelves. Cover the bigger paper boxes that you have under your hanging rod--------move some of them under your cutting table near the window as it seems like your utilizing that space for the bags. If your bags are holding "projects" together------get them into more covered boxes & label with a pic of the finished project in a plastic sleeve attached or clear boxes & slide the finished pic project inside the box so that it can be viewed on the outside & shelve them. Sort your fabric by color---one per shelf in plastic bins. Use hooks under your cutting table nearest the center of the room to hang your rulers, scissors, and rotary cutter on. Someone on the board suggested using your ruler to fold your fabric so it looks neater----then put them in your clear bins by color. You can do this KSue----------just set a timer for 15 minutes and go to it. When the timer rings----STOP! Do a little each day and it'll get done-------looking forward to seeing your posts for your "new room" soon :-D

WHY don't you live closer to me?? I love to organize. It is so much fun and satisfying when you are done. My suggestions when you are cleaning...

1. crank up the music or put on the television
2. do one small area at a time. if you try to tackle it all at once, you will tire and quit
3. take breaks to sew a few blocks. it breaks things up and keeps you interested.
4. set aside all the stuff you truly don't need or think you might not need. don't toss it yet but get it out of the room and really think hard about whether or not you need it.
5. ruler fold the fabric. it saves so much space and makes everything look great. you don't have to be super perfect about having everything exactly the same size when folded. I feel that those comic book boards aren't really necessary (at least for me).
6. I don't like the clear shoe box containers. they are too small. get bigger clear containers. they work better. I got 7 containers for WIP and limit myself to that many WIP
7. group similar things together. make everything easily accessible and easy to put away.
8. understand that once you have finished organizing and start quilting again, part of the system may not work and you may need to rearrange a bit again. Just notice what is not working and amend that part of it.

Have fun doing this and make it a gift to yourself. you are giving yourself a happy beautiful functional space...
Feel free to PM me if you need suggestions for particular items or trouble solving certain things.

I'm the first to admit that I'm not the tidiest person but I have to keep my room fairly tidy because it is also my bedroom. If I clean up and put things back in their place it's not too bad but if I leave things laying around it soon ends up messy. I'm in the process of getting an allotted sewing space so hope I can keep it tidy as my friends will be coming to sew with me.
From your photos it looks like you could do with some plastic bins, especially the ones on wheels. I traded a friend some see through shoe boxes for sturdier plastic containers. I now use these for fabric and pattern for future quilts - one per box. I also use one to carry my latest project,especially when I go to my sewing group.

Looks as though you have a structure of order, but just keep adding stuff without putting it away. I know because I do the same thing. Today my quilting/living room is perfectly neat - everything put away so you hardly know it is used for quilting. Everything is stuffed in my little closet for now. We are having company Sunday, did you guess that? By Monday or Tuesday - KABOOM! It will all explode again as I get on to my next project. In case I have serious withdrawal, the last thing I did before putting cutting board back in closet was cut out the BOM I need to bring to guild meeting on Wednesday. I can always pull out the Featherweight to make it tomorrow if I begin having symptoms of anxiety.

I think my cutting table actually looks worse but that is because I have been in several swaps lately and I have also had a lot of small donated scraps that I am trying to cut into the shapes I use. Today it even has my mother's 70th birthday cake dumped in the middle of it as my DH and DFather reorganised the other bedroom this morning!!!

Every 2nd week I am on early shift and have about 1.5 hours free before I have to start on tea. This week I have been using the time to tidy my room and weed out excess magazines etc. Sometimes I use all of that time, sometime 1/2 hour or so is enough.

I took the excess stuff to my local group and most of it went home with them.

My 2 rooms could give yours a good run for the money! LOL (But true)
I would post pix, but my DH would be mortified!....
Trying to straighten up mine as well.
Love your lady bugs.
Good luck to us both, Penny.

Start in one corner and dig in..

I had piles and piles of scraps, bolts piled high everywhere there was space, newly bought fabric covered my sewing machines, cutting table and ironing boards.. I had enough.. It took me a week but I can now walk in and sit at my machine and sew... Yay..

If I can do it, You can do too !!!!

OK this is not perfect by no means but I can work in there again.... Im happy to go in there now, as before i hated to even look in there..

[ATTACH=CONFIG]339318[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]339319[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]339320[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]339321[/ATTACH]

YOU CAN DO IT !!!!! YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

I had to reorganize my sewing room a few months ago. I had fabrics in tubs but after a car accident and dislocated ribs I found it hard to move the tubs around - they were just to heavy. I got a few plastic drawers that fit on my larger shelf and folded all the fg's to fit in the drawers. I can see the edge of all of them and can just pull one out. No more having to lift a stack to get the one I want. It saves lots of time and effort. All fabrics larger than a fg but smaller than 1 1/2 yd I wrapped on a 6" ruler and than folded to fit on the smaller upper shelf of a bookcase. All fabrics bigger than 1 1/2 yd I wrapped on my 12" ruler and folded to fit on the bookcase and stand them on end like books, again no more lifting of stacks of fabric to get the one I want. All the fabrics are sorted by color. I got the larger 3 drawer sets, a total of 12 drawers, didn't put on the wheels and stacked them in stacks of 6 for a smaller space for my scraps. Pieces smaller than fq's went into the scrap bins.
Since we did have to put a freezer in the sewing room the space on top of it has small easy to lift bins with my UFO's, WIP's in them. They are numbered and I typed out a list on my computer of what is in each one so I can find them easily without having to search through all of them. If I move them or finish them I revise the list.My larger UFO's are in larger bins on a low shelf so I don't have to move them. They are larger tops that I haven't found the backing for yet or I don't quilt them until I have someone to give them to then I buy the batting and finish them. (It saves space.) I have one larger bin of just bleached and unbleached muslin.
My quilting books are on a books shelf in a small odd space in the hall.
Of course I am working on finishing the UFO's so I will have more space. I'm trying not to buy anymore fabric unless it is to finish something already started.
If you need a better explanation for anything feel free to PM me.