Design wall
 

I would like my husband to make a design wall in my sewing room. How are yours constructed? I have only seen one finished design wall and don't know how it was made. Can you give me some suggestions please?

I made a movable one from 2 sheets of 1 inch thick foam boards-they were 4 by 8 foot and I trimmed a little height off.We covered them with flannel and done.I can use one or both depending on the size of the quilt and I can move them even if I have no helpers here.

My hubby and I went to Home Depot and bought 2, 4 by 8 sheets of foam insultion. He screwed it to the wall and I covered them with flannel fabric using t-pins to hold the fabric on. I really like it that way because you can take the fabric off and wash it if needed. Now they have gridded fabric for this use, which would be nice keeping your blocks and rows straight.

I bought Fons and Porter's design wall. It's a piece of fabric with grid lines on it. I can hang it up, use it and then take it down and fold it into the plastic sack it came in. When not in use, I store it on top of one of my bookcases. It is helpful to design, but easily stored when I don't need it.

Mine is basically the same except we used sound wall insulation. and I covered it with a painter's canvas. I would like the grid.

My husband and I made a portable design wall. It has 2 removable foam panels covered with fons and porter design walls. It's on wheels so I can move it around. I really like it.

Like some of the others, I just bought a 4x8 piece of foam insulation and cut off the top 2'. I pinned some sort of white fabric (can't remember what it is) to each piece and leaned them against the wall. I like having the portability.

I also did this with 3 sheets of foam board, hubby trimmed them so that they just stay there flush against the wall, I covered them with batting and I use a sticky lint roller to clean. I love my 7' x 12' design wall!!

I have a Fons and Porter with the grids. I put it up with the command strip with a hook. The design wall has grommets so I put the hooks up and hung it on the wall. I leave it up all the time.

I love my 6' x 8' design wall. Mine is somewhat unique in that my husband affixed cork sheets to the plywood base so that I would have the option of pinning things to it.

http://chocolatecakequiltdesigns.wordpress.com/2014/02/10/my-design-wall/

I have the Fons and Porter one with grids that I hang up. I got it as a gift. It is nice but I wouldn't go out of my way to spend the money for it if I could do something cheaper. I never use the grids and don't think they are all that important. When you put your blocks on the board they are not the size that they will be once they are sewn together so I don't see where the grid helps any.
One suggestion I have however is to make your design board bigger than you think you will need because even then it still won't be big enough!

I have the insulation foam board that is 8 x 4. I covered it with Warm and Natural that I attached with duck tape. I did cut it down to 6 feet tall, but I wish I had left it at 8 feet. It leans against my wall, in front of my closet, in case I need to move it. I works quite well for me. I can stick pins in it if the quilt top gets too heavy, but usually they aren't needed.

Dina

I have done exactly the same thing, with two Fons & Porter design walls and the tiny clear command hooks. They hang next to each other and there is room for all of my ongoing projects.

I just used 1" insulation from Home Depot and cover it with flannel. I had used batting before but flannel is much easier to cleans off all the bits of lint and thread that collect over time.. T pins in the edges works well if you ever have the time or need to wash it. I would hate to live without my design walls and EQ. They both make quilting so much easier. :)

I covered two 8' x 4' insulation boards with felt using a staple gun. I then stapled the covered board to the wall. It is easy to remove and the tiny holes left in the wall are easy to cover with a dab of paint if they do show up. Not having a design wall would be very frustrating for me. Everyone has one wall somewhere in the house that a foam board can be propped up and stored under the bed when not in use.

I too used 2 pieces of 4'x 8' foam insulation form Home Depot and duct taped them together so that the design wall could be folded when not using the full space. My studio is very small and this gives me more options. A friend came over and we gridded the wall with ribbon at 12" intervals and diagonally ... on both the half wall and the full wall. I hold the wall in place with ribbon from eye hooks screwed into the studs of my studio. I also made a vinyl footing to keep the bottom of the wall cleaner and more dust free.

There are a few tutes on the QB about the making of design walls.

My design wall is that blue foam insulation board from Lowes/Home Depot, two 4' x 8' panels covered with flannel, attached to the wall with screws. I have also use Hobbs all cotton batting to cover them in the past.

This might seem a little cheesy to some but I just took a flannel backed tablecloth and used thumbtacks to hang it on the wall in my sewing room flannel side out of course. It works just as we'll as one a friend of mine has that her husband had to construct for her LoL. I always have something on it. The fun part of mine is it is hanging between 2 bookcases and when I need that room for company I just unroll the quilt I have rolled around a long dowel that sits on top of the bookcases and viola a finished quilt hangs in front of whatever I'm working on so the room looks more polished. It's a win win for me as an interior designer.

I covered two 40" x 80" foam boards with white flannel. The Internet suggested a light colored fabric.
They are lightweight and fit nicely behind the door in my sewing room when not in use.
When I need more width, I merely use them side by side. I now wonder how I functioned without them.

My design wall is very portable, removable and can be folded down to a 12" square. All I have are 2 flannel backed tablecloths that I got at the thrift store for 99 cents each. My DH installed 3 hooks at ceiling height on the wall for me to hold 3 clip hangers. I clip the table clothes together with the hangers and hang them on the hooks. I can use one for a smaller project or both for something large. If I want to take them down, I simply unclip them and fold the tablecloths up. The hooks are not noticeable. I have been using the same 2 tablecloths for 3 years and so far they are still working great. Total cost of my design wall? $3.00. I already had the clip hangers. They are the kind you use for skirts or pants.
Oh, and if the project becomes too heavy to stick to the flannel, I can clip it to the hangers themselves rather than the flannel.

I don't always use a design wall so I take mine down when it isn't needed. I have a designer drapery rod attached above my sliding closet doors. I slip on a king sheet when I need to use it. The nice thing is, I still have use of the closet behind it. The sheet moves on the rod like a curtain.

I have very little extra room to work with so this was my only option.

My design wall is portable. I just bought to flannel back vinyl tablecloths and attach skirt/pant hangers with swivel hooks. The design on the tablecloths are one inch grids. I don't have a wall big enough but I can use the command hooks and I can also use my curtain rod on my sewing room window. The window is a double at 6 ft. across. My design wall is easily transportable. Works for me. I saw where Eleanor Burns son Orion covered her wall with headliner material for vehicles.

Same for me, you ladies who are using the flannel back table cloths. And when I gave my quilting lessons recently down in Texas, this is what I showed them (4 young ladies and their mom) and they were amazed. Spent the better part of one afternoon building their quilts on it. I was stunned at how cooperative they were with each other--these being 30-something year old young professionals.

I really like the idea of using headliner--it has a foam backing so would be easy to pin to. I have a"portable" design wall made out of flannel backed plastic table clothes. I have it marked for different sized quilts so I can take it with me when meeting a T-shirt quilt customer so they can see what the lay out of their shirts would be size-wise. My quest bed tends to be the home design wall, but I plan to figure a way to hang this portable wall.

Mine is made of 2 sheets of 4'x8' foam insulation board that I cut to 7'x7' to fit the space I have. I covered it in Warm & Natural by stapling it and duct taping it it on the back. Then attached it to the wall with Command picture hanging strips. They're like Velcro so I am able to take it down if I want to (but I haven't, so far). Works great and cleans up with a lint roller. :-)

Mine is just Command strip hooks with binder clips and a piece of batting. It has lasted for 2-3 years so far and works great for me.

I have a portable wall hung on the wall...It is from Fons and Porter and it is great...

That's what I did. Easy, cheap and I can use them anywhere.