here is my "big board" I think I have posted before

One thing I've learned about ironing and quilt blocks. Have a solid hard surface to press the piecing. A soft spongy surface will distort the cut fabric. One layer of cotton batting next to a hard surface with a piece of cotton canvas or muslin is the best for pressing cut or sewn fabric. Cotton canvas will shrink so wet it and let it dry in place on the board and it will become drum tight. I found one of the old pressed wood table top ironing boards (heavy thing) and had DH cut off the tapered end. I covered it the way Sharon Schamber describes and have it sitting on a wooded tv tray next to my sewing machine. It makes a big difference using the hard surface then the soft one on my regular ironing board.

I bought ironing board fabric at Hacock Fabrics.

Joanns has some:

http://www.joann.com/joann/search/se...questid=773395

peaceandjoy, when i made my big board i pulled that muslin soooo tight my nails almost came out of my fingers. actually, my husband and i pulled with clamps and stapled as we went. i think the answer lies in better muslin. and i think two layers. i have a small, hard pressing board for blocks that has a handle and i hang that up when not in use. that one is about 20 x 20. i use the big one for garment pressing and whole top pressing. and piling junk on.
i'm now on the hunt for another dresser that's 30" across and has good drawers. in my town, people put out furniture they don't want the day before trash pick-up, so 'cruisers' can 'find' what they need. sooner or later i will have a dresser for free, scrub it, paint it, and fill it with more something or other. that way, i can replace some of the smaller cubbies and have more usable storage space. if you paint everything white, it takes up less space, right?

butterflywing, I agree with you on the silvery ironing material. In the ongoing discussion of steam or dry irons, I'm a steamer, and I want that steam to penetrate so that any block that is thinking about not obeying WILL :twisted: ! I don't remember where I read about using Isulbright for an ironing board, but it seemed to make sense. While it has the ?(whatever metalic) woven through it, it is mostly like a cotton batting. I thought it would be the best of both worlds. So far, so good. I will say, though, that I don't love the curtains I lined with it - too stiff... But they do block the cold - and later the sun - from my westward facing window, so they are effective even if they don't drape nicely.

The Robert Kaufman muslin I get at Joann's w/ a coupon. It's really, really nice. I hadn't tried it until last fall and was surprised they had it. Not as inexpensive as their regular muslin, but a much nicer quality.

Is your "cave" in the basement? I joke about DH's cave, which is actually our living room. It has one large window, but b/c of the porch overhang, it is very dark. Suits him well, I guess, for tv watching! I've taken over the family room for my sewing, but no place to call my own. It's very open, so everyone sees my "creative work space." Fabrics are stored in nooks and crannies wherever I can find/make them, which is a problem in that I can't see them and it's so frustrating to try to find a particular piece I know I have that I often give up. I'm hoping to get some shelving put in the family room, but DH is reluctant to make changes. It'd be so nice to have all in one area.

What luck that you can repurpose furniture from curbside! When we were first married, we lived near a college apartment complex. Many of the students just put everything outside when they were done for the year, it was unbelievable what they were throwing away. Someone on another thread had a picture of a glass front cabinet she got from a friend's garage. She is now using it for fabric storage and it is gorgeous. Here's hoping you find something as lovely, or something that is sturdy that you can decorate yourself, that will work well for you.

yes, i do work in a basement and the room is not really small. it is about.....mmmm.....12 x 13. but is does not have 3 walls. one side is up against the stair so that's only a triangular wall and where the stairs end there is no wall at all. one wall opens into the laundry area with a double folding door that wont stay closed (warped), so i don't have that full wall either. one wall has a wall-hung gas heater. toasty, but i can't put anything too close. and the last wall runs back into the stair opening at the bottom of the stairs. i have collected, over the years, a factory blind stitcher attached to a bulky table, a janome 8000 on an antique sewing base with an new dh-made top ,a viking #1 on an antique base with a dh-made top, (that's 3 machines), the big board sticking out in the middle of the room, and chairs for every machine. every possible wall and door space is used, including under the board. the room is very crowded. since this is a ranch with a full sized basement, there is a larger space under the lr, kitch and dr, where there is a tv and lounge chair where my dh sometimes keeps me company, a fishing rod and reel repair and build area, a book, magazine and music collection, AND my quilter and 10" frame. past the laundry area my dh has his shop and there is a pantry for canned goods and kitchen appliances tht are seldom used (it was here when we bought this house). the last owners also built a cedar closet, almost as large as my sewing room, in the basement. we store luggage, outgrown baby clothes (there will never be grandkids), all my threads, my mother's knitted afghans, etc, in there. so you can see, i'm very close in that room with no ALLOWABLE space to go. very excellent ceiling light, but no windows. it does feel like a cave. considering what a lot of you have to deal with - or without - i count myself very lucky. it was one reason we chose this house when we moved down in size after the kids left.

tell me about insulbright. is it totally silvery? or mostly cotton with some silver in it?

Wow, you're making great use of your space. Our basement is full of DH's "stuff." Now that I'm thinking about it, if I could get him to clear part of it out... it'd be nice and cool down there... But dark, too.

Here's a link to Warm & Co's blurb about Insul-bright http://www.warmcompany.com/ibpage.html. I bought mine from Joann's, by the yard, but the only pic I could find of it was in a pkg; at least you can kind of see what it looks like http://www.hsn.com/insul-bright-whit...67553_xp.aspx. It's actually some kind of poly w/ "reflective metalized poly film" - guess that's why you have to use it w/ at least one layer of cotton batting.

Hope that helps, and that you get to spend some time in your space today!

thanks for the links. i couldn't get the second one to work at all, but i got the first by typing in by hand. it's hard to visualize, but i'll look for it at joann's. do they sell it by the yard? my board is 30" by door height.

Joann's has it by the yard, it's the same width as a bolt of fabric - so 44 or 45 inches. It is near the interfacings and fusibles at Joann's here. Sorry, I don't remember price at all - I never buy at Joann's w/out a coupon!