Junk Gypsies on GAC is great to watch, also.

Tartan, I like the way you think. Something "repurposed" is so much fun.

like this one, that's my motto also:

Heck, that is a great idea now!

Habitat for Humanity is a Great Store!!!

I picked up an old green desk there and a large piece of wood that has a slick surface. We set the desk out from the corner, leveled the piece of wood and put it on top. The area is large that it holds small shelves on the back where I put all my books, patterns and odds and ends. I still want to recess the machine, but it works for now. I also have an old four drawer chest that the DH put a 2x12 on top for my cutting mat. I covered it with some fabric and it works great. Although lately I use a small utility table by the machine for my mat at the other thing is a catch all. LOL

Here are some messy pics!
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Bought a computer table with lower keyboard area that will hold machine, less than half ($50.00) price of new one, then tennants moved out and left a big computer table suitable for cutting, no lower keyboard area, but other than fact one folds and one does, same color and height. Just wish I had a place to put them in our house. Still working on that.

I brought in a wooden file cabinet that is in three sections. It was full of old eye glasses, correspondence from the early 1900's and all kinds of goodies. Most of the old stuff is still in the cabinet but the small drawers (6 in all) hold my bead collection. In my sewing room I have base cupboards from Lowe's on top of that we brought in an old kitchen cupboard with glass doors, complete with cup hooks - it holds most of my small sewing items. Each piece is probably 75-80 years old.

I have one of those revolving kitchen "thingies" too and it works great for pens, scissors, seam rippers & just all kinds of little things.

We did the same thing with a very large desk. My dh also made a cover that will fit into the cut out area in case I need to take the machine out and use another machine on top of the desk. er - sewing table LOL.

I am so inspired by all your ideas! Can't wait to go treasure hunting!!

I got an ironing board that hangs on a door at a yard sale & the folding part was no good. I took off the cover & pad so now it lays over 2 brackets ( meant for a shelf ) & I use s-hooks to hang my rulers, stencils, & other items on. It hangs over my cutting table.

I have used SO many thrift things in my sewing room. I just LOVE to take something that in no way looks like it should belong in a sewing room and make it "fit" in my room. I have: A tin box lid inside a fabric frame that I made, using the inside of the lid for a white board; a batter bowl holding 1930s hexies; a candy jar holding buttons, a cookie tin holding other hexies; the bottom of the tin box holding envelopes; a milk jug holding pens and my paper scissors; an old brass trunk holding cut up jeans; an old picture made into a pin board; a Brighton tin holding pins (held to the pin board frame with a magnet); a stackable gift box set painted to match the room and holding sewing accessories; a glass jar holding colored pencils; a lumbar pillow stuffed with unused old knee high stockings; a six sectioned carrier with a drug name on it painted to match the room and holding sewing tools; two shotglasses wth the magnet from inside a computer hard drive epoxied on used to hold pins; a "wet wipes" container to hold water to remove marking pen quilt lines; an old galvanized bucket to hold my scraps at my cutting table; plastic peanut butter jars to hold basting pins, hair ties and pony tail holders; a toilet paper dispenser to hold binding; cookie tins to hold older spools of thread and zippers; a small cutting board to use for gluing; a utensil tray to hold small rolls of ribbon; a day of the week pill holder for small findings and grommets; clear plastic containers (the lids all spray painted to match the room) to hold scrap pieces that have been cut to specific sizes; a rolling kitchen cart to hold more sewing stuff. I know there are more "redone" items, but I'm not thinking of them!

52 oz clear plastic containers from Kirkland brand peanut butter filled pretzels for strings, separate one for each color. See previous post "WIP string quilt"

I'm with u Tartan! I always told my 4 boys "what ma wants, ma gets."

Oh and as far as vintage and purpose - by all means use a vintage sewing machine of some kind!!!

Don't forget the garden. Anything that can hold dirt is a planter, toilet, bedpan, old shoes, chicken feeder.

Marcia

I'm getting tons of ideas on Pinterest for reusing. I am a junkaholic/thriftaholic. They are using old doors, shutters, empty candle jars........great ideas to reuse instead of trash.

http://indianapolis.craigslist.org/zip/3686134398.html
Wouldn't this make nice in a sewing room! and it is free!

Oh my goodness miriam, that just makes my thrifty heart go all aflutter!! If I lived near Indianapolis I would be all over that, lol.

If I had room for it - I think if I could get rid of 40 sewing machine tables today - those would be mine....

We had some leftover PVC pipe and we cut that in 4 equal lengths and put table legs in them to raise my cutting table. Works great and one more thing gone from garage storage!

I have a primitive gift shop and I sell things I buy at yard sales, flea markets, and auctions that I bring home and restore. I have also been known to visit the streets when the town has pick up day!!!! You can find me on Facebook at canal Country Cupboard. This is what I love to do!!!!

My sewing room is my guest bedroom, so I have a roll-away bed in there. I used to pull the bed out and make it up when needed, and then put it away again. Now I just put one end up and leave the other end flat. I don't have to move anything when needed. The flat part is used for projects completed and in waiting, the the part standing on end is used to hold "next" projects, and parts from current projects. When I'm sewing on a binding, the long strip is hanging over the bed, as it is behind me. As I cut fabric for current projects, I put the fabric left-overs there, as I don't want to put it "away" away until I know for sure I won't need it again for that quilt.
When I need the bed, everything on it gets piled on my sewing table for a day or two. Then it's back on the bed until the next time.

A couple of weeks ago I sent my 3 sons an email. I started off 'At the risk of sounding like a hoarder..' :) I asked them to save me their old t-shirts, jeans, socks etc. I have been making rugs and can use all of those things. They all sent back a note (with laughter) saying that they would.... But they all got a rag quilt for Christmas that had a lot of their jeans from when they were growing up, so I THINK they know I will use the stuff... pretty sure.... Anyway, I love reusing and re-purposing everything, so thanks for all the great ideas everyone!

Necessity is the mother of invention.. LOL We find what we can find first then we go shopping for something if we can't make it .. We have always been that way after I went through a box of stuff and found duplicates, triplicates of something the DH had .. hmmm no more .. LOL

my husband took an old door, gave it sides put legs on it recessed an area for my machine and made me a beautiful sewing table. I really love it... it is big enough for my cutting mat and large enough when I need to put my quilt on it to quilt with my machine.. Best thing he ever did for me.... well almost...

I have two wooden tables with leaves that my work was going to throw away...got them for free if I hauled them away "today"! Called dad with a truck and put one up on the bed risers (already had them) for the cutting table. Have a lawyers cabinet with the glass doors for free from a friend for fabric. Another bookcase ($15) at a yardsale for books. A 4 drawer file cabinet (the long kind)-another freebie from work when renovating. It pays to keep your eyes open! Someday they will all match, but function outweighs beauty at the moment.

Until 4 years ago I never stepped foot in a thrift store, then my son was showing me some chests he found at a local thrift shop, so I began checking it out. At that time they were selling silver plate and crystal for really cheap like one or 2 dollars a piece. I have repurposed several crystal cut work glasses for pens and pencil, small rulers, and scissors, My husband found a storage tray used for storing photo negatives(35mm slides) it is perfect for threads. On occasion I have found lovely sewing baskets and all kinds of cute shelves and containers. Even though cheap if I cannot see an immediate use for it it doesn't come home. The really big find was an entire wood wall unit entertainment center for $167.00 which holds all my fabrics, extra machines, tools, books and some vintage pieces I want to display. These days because of the economy there are too many people depending on it for extra income so the really neat stuff just isn't there anymore, they are waiting at the doors at 9 am and you would think they were giving the stuff away. I still love to go, but don't find so much anymore.
Pat

I have a narrow sofa table from a yard sale ($5.00) thats holds my FW.
A metal typing table from Salvation Army ($3.00) that holds one of my less used Singer machines (its is for sale).
A treadle base (no treadle) from an auction ($2.50) with a Free top from a cabinet shop for my 301A.

I have a real hodge podge of useable/repurposed items.

I use a large silverware tray in the drawer of my Horn cabinet to hold various sewing implements, keeps my drawer organized much better.

This is fantastic way to see and cover your thread.. like that turntable idea too...

When my neighbor redid her kitchen, I put her old cabinets, sans doors, on the walls of my sewing room. All the Tupperware & Rubbermaid containers that have 'lost' their tops hold sewing notions. I cut up a cutting mat I bought on sale & made a rotary mat by putting it on top of a kitchen rotary I found at a thrift store. I use another part of the mat at my sewing table when I'm paper piecing for triming. I cut a small piece to take in my portable kit to classes.

My work table is an old tobacco grading table I found in my parents barn. It was 6 foot and has a bench on one side. Just the right size to sit at and work. A friend has some counter top left from a job & put it on top extending the top to 48 inches! Makes a great table to work or sit at.
SandyGail

I have 2 sets of bed elevators that I got at Good Will. They were under two dollars each set....I find a lot of treasures at the thrift stores...my neighbor and I go every Wednesday, senior day...Good will is 25 percent off...

Thanks for the idea with the bed risers, I was watching my painter like a hawk for empty cans, I'm thinking the risers will be better support than the empty cans.

That is a good one.lol hehehe

Dishwasher in Sewing Room
 

Purchased a "hook to sink" dishwasher on wheels cheap to have installed as soon as my built -in died. Well, it is still going, but the new one has rolled into the sewing room. It makes a wonderful cutting table with its wood top, but I also have an old formica table top which I add for big projects. It is wonderfully stable and rolls well. There is storage inside, also. I have old dishwasher racks on the wall to hold spools/cones of thread.

HHHMMMMM me thinks you could hide your valuables in there - no crook in his right mind would look in there... well, maybe.

practically my whole house is full of re-purposed items.
Come to think of it, I used to be something else too :D

I bought an old drying rack I put in my sewing room to use for strips when doing a log cabin. I've never taken it down, I hang cut pieces of fabric for projects, whole projects ready for quilting and leftover pieces from quilts in progress, so I don't use up the parts in case I need them. It's become a necessary accessory to my sewing room. I love thrift shop finds, I get template plastic, wire baskets (3 holding fat quarters), this weekend I got a Olifpa (not sure that's how it's spelled) ruler 5"x24" the one with the lip for the side of the cutting table for $.50. This girl loves a bargain.