Design wall
 

I have a small sewing room and have very little room to layout a queen size quilt. I would like to have a design wall, but want to spend as little as possible. Does anyone have a good but cheap suggestions?

Thanks, Beth

I do not have room for a design wall either. What I do is lay a flannel backed tablecloth on my bed and use that. So far I have not made a queen sized quilt using this method, but when I do, I will lay it on the floor. It folds up great and nothing comes off the flannel. I used to lay my queen size quilts on the floor, but never again. I guess regular flannel would work good too, but the plastic gives it good support.

I just hang a large peice of fleece on my wall with thumbtacks. You can do the same with flannel.
most things will stick to it and as the quilt gets sewn together and gets larger I use pins to hold it up on the fleece wall.

I have flannel on plyboard, works great.

My friend uses a roll up shade that she glued flannel to. Rolls up under the window treatment when not in use. Good luck.

I use foam board that I got at Home Depot.....you can cut the 4X8 sheets to any size.

I use a double layer of foam core that came in some package... mine only measures about 44x44 inches...

My next ones will be a roll up shade... I love that idea!

I covered the double closet doors in my sewing room with flannel.

A friend of mine had double closet doors in her room, but not alot of room for a design board. So she bought one of the Fons & Porter's design walls and attached it to hooks above her closet door. I think she may have attached a dowel rod on the bottom. When she's finished using it she just rolls it up and fastens it with ribbon. It stays unwrinkle and is out of the way when she's not using it.

Love this idea - I'm stealing it! Already have a set in place design wall, pink styrofoam insulation wrapped in felt. It's 4x8 feet and nice when I have to hang a whole quilt - I can pin to the styrofoam, but this idea is good for a temporary second design wall over my closet doors! thanks.

Check this out. Think I might like to make one of these.
http://www.favequilts.com/Techniques...-Tutorial/ct/1

Hope this comes through. Not real good at this stuff.lol

Betty

I bought a closet pole, attached it to the wall, above the sliding closet doors, put a sleeve on a large sheet and was ready to go.

I had my DH install a shower rod (sturdier than a curtain rod) on the wall and hung from it a large piece of white felt
with a casing at the bottom in which I installed a dowel rod. Hangs nice and straight and can be rolled up and tied up out of the way with ribbon when my son comes to visit and I put a twin bed in that space.

I started with a scrap of fleece and taped it up with painters tape, to see if it worked and if I liked it.
Then I went permanent ..... 10ft x 7-1/2ft!
From the off cuts I have several smaller portable design walls, ranging in size.

And now ... I can't imagine having ever done any quilting without a design wall!

I also have the Fons & Porter design wall. It is $29 but if you use a Joannes coupon, its quite inexpensive and works very well

Using ideas here, I made 2 design walls in 2 days! LOL
The first was 4 sheets of foam core boards (the kind for school reports 18x24) $1 each at the Dollar store. Taped them together with duct tape and covered with a felt backed tablecloth. This one worked like a charm, but wasn't big enough for the project I am working on. I also only taped on one side so I could fold this out of the way.
The second is a HUGE piece of fleece that got tacked to the wall near the ceiling. It's 60+" wide and hangs to the floor. It hold the pieces better than the table cloth--96 blocks hung over night without a single lost soldier! I also like that I can take it down and move it as needed.

Betty,
Thank you so very much for the link to favequilts. What a wonderful site and the tutorial videos are so helpful. I am going to join their blog, it seems there is so much to learn there. Happy New Year

I just bought one from Keepsake quilting. It's a huge piece of material, it was on sale. I liked it because you would have to piece to get something this big. Think it was 23.00. I'm on a budget too. Put it where ever you have room. Happy quilting

I put a curtain rod above my double doors in the hallway. I then hung a vinyl table cloth, I brought at the dollar store, that has the backing on it. Cheap and works very well for me. The curtain rod is big enough if I needed to use two table cloths for a king quilt.

I love this idea-I don't have any left over wall space but I have a 12x12 ft wall of shelves loaded with fabric. My quilts always wind up huge--made 4 king size quilts as gifts last year. I was planning on putting curtain rods with ring clips so that I can hang quilts awaiting quilting--I love to admire my work!!! I may do this behind the curtain rods-maybe just oilcloth--that has worked well for me in the past.-stuck to the wall with thumb tacks.

I was thinking about using an old window shade with flannel (even considering making it white on one side, black on the other), still haven' figured out how to suspend it from the ceiling in the basement yet. It will have to go in front of my bookcases, and roll up when not in use. No wall space to speak of, and just a small 'egress' window. But now I know it's doable, just have to work out the particulars. Thank you for the info.

I love this idea too. I don't have any closets, but the idea could be applied any are where you don't want a permanent design wall.

My design Wall
 

I have a closet in my cutting room that has double mirrored doors with metal frames I found 2 magnetic hooks (for hanging Christmas wreaths on metal doors) and used them on the top of the door frame, hung a curtain rod & hung some white fleece on the curtain rod & voila, there was my design wall. I leave the hooks on the frame & when I want, I remove the fleece, fold it & tuck it in the closet. All for about $10.00 as I already had the white fleece. I had found a retractable design wall, but by the time I paid for that, paid shipping it was going to cost about $200.00 to bring it to Canada. This was a much more reasonable alternative. Hope this helps.

For those that have the ability .... cover your closet doors! A double set would give you a lot of design wall space. Plus if they are installed far enough apart, you'll still be able to slide the doors with your pieces on them.

I don't think it's been mentioned ... there is a flannel yard good product with a 2" grid on it that is terrific for design walls/boards. Helps you get things on square and straight.

I have metal double closet doors. I bought flannel and sewed two pieced together and added the magnetic strip (comes in a roll and sticky on one side) to the back. When I need a design wall I put it on the closet doors. When not using it, I fold it up and store it in the closet on a skirt hangar.

i have plywood mind is quite large but you can makei it anysize you want i put batting and a fleese matiral over that and my son made this for me and he put two leggs on the back of the board and it leans up against the wall works great i just do my patterns then put them on the board so i know what the quilt is going to look like so
maggied

My husband put 2 - 4'x8' sheets of pink foam insulation horizontally on the wall. I covered it with a queen batting and and a wide backing of flannel, works great and low cost.

I have a storage cabinet with no doors, full of books and supplies. I hung a regular flat curtain rod to hide the mess. Then I put one of those real thin inexpensive fleece blankets on round clip curtain hooks. I can slide the "curtain" open to get to supplies and while it is closed I can attach my blocks with pins like a design wall. I have been using mine for about 2 years now. Just take it down when I think it needs a good washing and rehang. Provides a curtain that I needed and fulfills the second purpose for auditioning.

All great ideas. Now can anyone point me in the direction of how to make free standing folding screens? I currently live/share the family room of my son's home. It is a huge rec room type. Anyway, I think a design wall would be a big hassle unless I can fold it out of the way and it is not permanent. I hope to find a place and get moved by late summer. Anyway I am thinking a folding screen would work --one side design wall and the other a neutral place. This would also help with heating this huge space, by deflecting heat back into the used area of the room.

Great idea on the folding screen .... the neutral side could be done to match the decor of the room and/or be changed seasonally. Then later, you could have it as a double sided design wall.

Believe me ... you never have a design wall big enough!!!
(says she with a 10 ft x 7-1/2 ft! ... yes I could have it bigger and be happier!)

WilliP check out this site: http://www.favequilts.com/Techniques...-Tutorial/ct/1

Betty

Thanks, now to get to Home Depot for supplies

Love that idea!

I use the floor of my living room, which we never use and I can let my quilt lay there for days if I need to.

I just used pvc pipe and curtain rod hooks up at the ceiling. i didnt have felt but pinned a queen size sheet to it and pin my fabric to it when I need to layout. then when I am done I roll it up and leave it on the hooks out of the way

Here is a picture of a friend that used a roll up shade and using spray adhesive put a thick pad that you buy for very nice wood tables under the table cloth... this roller is 96" wide and cost less than $20 at Home depot my granddaughter bought one that goes over her closet door...

I went to the $$ store and bought two flannel backed table cloths. I have a "redneck wall bed' that I designed. When the bed is up the table cloths wrap the box spring. It's just great...and so easy to take down when we have company and drop the bed off the wall. Cheap*cheap* said the baby chick...LOL

I use a flannel sheet and nailed it up high on my room!!!It works great and is very inexpensive!!!