Please tell me about your cutting table
 

I think I need a revamp. Currently I have a 2' x 4' piece of plywood over sawhorses. The size is perfect for my 24" x 36" cutting mat. However the sawhorses make the table too low and if I cut too much, my back hurts. I've read it should really be 36" high, like my kitchen counters.

A couple of caveats. Due to lack of space I have to keep my table in front of a set of drawers which I occasionally need to access. Right now shifting the top off the sawhorses is pretty easy. I don't even have to lift it up, just slide it to one side.

One option I've been looking at is a wheeled cart. Then I can move it easily to access the drawers. But so far the more reasonably priced ones are no where near the size I need on the top.

I found a table that is 2' x 4' (perfect size!) on Amazon. The height is adjustable and can go to 36". It's only $40. However, this table has become less appealing since I thought of using a cart with wheels because it would be harder to move. Plus the carts have bins to store things underneath.

Last, I use this table to pin my borders on and do some prep work. In those instances it's nice that it's low because I just pull up a chair and sit down. Any advice on how to do these tasks with a 36" high table? Bar stool maybe?

Please tell me what you have and how it works for you. Thanks!!

First I would suggest rather than go with the standard, generic, recommended height of anything, do a bit of research on ergonomics. Ideally, you want your 'working' height to be the distance from your bent elbow to the ground if I am not mistaken.

Not that that is the configuration I have, mind you! I'd be wary of something on wheels due to lack of stability. They would have to have some very positive locking mechanism before I would consider a wheeled anything.

If you could find, perhaps, a low-cost/free smallish bedroom dresser? Put locking wheels on yourself (Lowes/Home Depot carry these) you would get additional storage as well. See if your current bedroom dresser is a more comfortable working height for you than your kitchen counter. I have issues rolling cookie dough, for example, at standard kitchen counter height because I'm short so I know that would not be a comfortable cutting height for me.

I have one of the tables similar to what JAF carries that the two sides fold down and is only about 12" wide when sides are folded. It is wheeled but I have it on carpet. Can not tell you at the moment if the wheels lock or not but I think they do. I like the size of the table when extended and use for cutting; ironing (with just towels on top); pinning borders; basting quilts. Height is not ideal for me but it's workable.

Thanks. A quick google search for "ideal height of cutting table" brings me right back here, to the QB. (I don't know about you, but I find QB articles much easier using google than the QB search feature.)

Here's a link.
http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...e-t170778.html

This is a good place to start my research. I'd still like to hear what great ideas you all have come up with for your cutting tables!

I have a bona fide Joann craft table I bought. But I have the space. Are the drawers that you mentioned in a dresser that's a height you want? Could you put a piece of wood on top and secure it somehow to prevent slipping? You'd want some overhang so you can put your feet under.

Thanks for your help.

The drawers are in a metal cabinet. I have another shelving unit on top of that holding a lot of fabric. So the top is already spoken for. Darn.

Can you somehow reconfigure the area so the table would not be in front of the drawers?

Lower kitchen cabinet (can be found at recycle stores) add rolling casters ( would use the kind that lock). place your wood on top. Gives more storage under table, easy to move. I have a stool on casters that I cut down to the right height for sitting at my cutting/craft table (got it from a recycle store)

To answer both questions - space is tight. I can't move the drawers. I was considering a lower kitchen cabinet. Good idea!

if it was me i would go to walmart .home depot or the local big lots and get 2 of the small 3 shelf bookcases and reuse the plywood i already have ....try it that way ...i am a little bit taller than most so i got a few 2x6's and built a base for the bookcases to set on ...perfect height for me and bonus extra storage

a bathroom cabinet is a bit shorter than most kitchen cabinets

I use a butchers cart which has wheels on two legs easy to move storage underneath, I got it in IKEA and was about £40 sterling it's the ideal height.

When we remodeled, we had an upper cabinet left over. My husband added legs with castors. He then added the top. Love, love, love it!

I went a bit extreme because of the many uses of this room and had something custom built that folds down. The top and two sides of the picture frame fold out to become the legs of the table. When I don't need to use it it folds up and is a picture on the wall (sticking out a bit so there is storage in the cabinet behind the photo). I had a large cutting mat from Joanne's that I cut to fit the size of the desk top with a pair of kitchen scissors.

I have yet to make a pressing board that I can fit on top. But am looking at making one using this youtube video as my guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LGb...&feature=share I think I'm going to add some loops to the pressing board so it can be hung in the closet when not in use.

Don't mind the clutter in the photo :$

I bought mine from Joann's Love it.

I have one of those cutting tables from Joann's, it folds down to only 12" X 36". Doesn't take up much space. I think it's 36" high. Opened it holds my 33" X 58" cutting mat. Sometimes I cut on my DR table , but it does bother my back.

I use a long section of my kitchen counter that doesn't get used for cooking or food prep... so my cutting mat usually lives there unless we have company. Hopefully next year I'll be working on my own sewing room.

I Love my mobile kitchen island. Casters, storage below.
sandy

Thanks for all the replies. There were some great ideas.

I'm lucky though. My talented hubby found some particle board in the basement and set to work building for me. He's essentially making a cube - 36" high, 24" deep and 48" long with one shelf inside. I'll plop my 2' x 4' piece of wood right on top because it's the perfect size for me and my space. He's going to put the whole thing on casters so we can move it to access the drawers occasionally. We will have locking casters in the front. Because he's being so nice about this, I told him he can use all the newly created storage space for his tools. Heaven knows if I get that space, I'll just acquire more unneeded fabric!

I have a six ft banquet table that I got at SAMs. My husband made risers so it is the right height for cutting. I also use the Go on this table. For big occasions with lots of company...I take it upstairs without the risers and have extra space for people to sit at. It sits against the wall, so I do not need to move for any other reason. My sewing machine totes sit under the table.

I bought a fairly inexpensive desk (table) at Walmart and set it on bed risers. It is almost exactly the size of my cutting mat, the perfect height for me and doesn't take up much space in the corner.

Looks like you have lots of ideas now for tabling ... and even have your husband working on it already. If you need more ideas, as to what to do with the under area of your new cabinet, take a look at the many previous threads of how other quilters personalized that area for storage that works. One of the best to me are those that have nails on the ends to hang their quilting rulers.

Being that you like to sit up to your table, when pinning, you might want to consider enough overhang, so that the chair (and you!) can sit up to it, without your knees/legs getting in the way!!!

For a chair, a stool can work fine or look at adjustable drafting chairs. I have one for my sewing machine, as I found that the upper limit of a regular desk chair, was still a bit low (ergonomics come into play again!). The drafting chair lowest is about the same as the highest of a regular desk chair .... and then you can go higher! When I need a chair at my cutting table, it works perfect.

I have a desk and placed a premade 4 ft counter top from Lowes on it for cutting. Since it has a rolled edge, it doesn't scoot around while in use (pushed against the edge of the desk and wall). The desk drawers are used for storage and knee area for additional storage container. If I change the color of the room, I can easily repaint the desk. I am in an apartment so it fits snugly into a living room corner without sticking out. My pegboard sits on top for upright storage as well.

Without reading the other posts, I have an old large buffet type folding table. I am short but using it for cutting still hurts my back. I've solved that problem by simply removing the rubber feet from it and using 6 inch lengths of pvc pipe to raise it. I've added endcaps to protect my carpet. This way I can have a standard height table if I want to use it with my sewing machines to give me more free-motion space or add the legs whenever I want it higher. Cheap remedy that works for me.

Shoot, forgot about that part when I told hubby my needs. I'd better update him.

Would not be hard to add casters on the bottom.

NJ Quilter,
My DH built me a wooden version of this Joann's table with rollers. I have it on carpet and it does not budge-sometimes even difficult to push it aside. The table at Joann's was unstable so a friend copied the dimensions and made one from wood for his daughter and we copied his dimensions. It has 2 lower shelves and it opens to be 36' x' 60 ". Big enough for one of those huge cutting mats!! It folds down to 16 inches and get shoved aside when company comes and sleeps in that room. DH made it high enough so that I don't have to bend for anything (I am 5ft 8 in tall). I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!!!

Whew! better now that too late ... and once you tell him, I bet he will agree that it would be important to allow that extra overhang. However, it will make it a bit awkward for getting into the underneath storage, so you may want to consider that too.

My table is approx3.5ft wide by 5 feet long. It has 9 cubby holes on 4 sides underneath the top. I saw it on this board and had a friend to make it to the height of my kitchen island, I had casters put on the bottom so I could move it away so I can get to the quilting frame. Normal location is in the center of the room. I have two of the large cutting mats covers the whole top.

You might try looking at a Habitat for humanity store or some place that sells used building materials. I have a kitchen cabinet that has a larger piece of plywood on top and is covered so I can use it as an ironing station or a cutting station the shelves and drawers are great for added storage. The added plus is that it is on wheels so I can move it easily.
Best of all it is an old cabinet so all solid wood construction!

The one I have was purchased from Keepsake Quilting and is quite sturdy. No issues with it at all except I wish it was a bit lower but I manage ok.

I have a six foot table from an office store that was less than $40 a few years ago. My husband raised the table by putting PVC pipe pieces with end caps on each leg. I have one end set up for cutting and the other half has an ironing mat.

A hint for others that want to raise their tables ... bed risers work perfectly!

I too had a hard time finding the right height for my cutting board... so finally concluded to counter height plus 2 inch lift... I find I do most of my work there... my machines are at desk height/ I am 5' 3.5" in height .

This is my cutting table. It is 36" x 60" and it is 36" from the floor to the table top. The table is plywood covered with formica. A couple of months ago he added aluminum rails onto two sides to hold the edge of my rulers straight when cutting or drawing lines on fabric.

My husband made it for me. He attached it to the wall on two sides and added a bookcase as a support.
I have storage underneath also.

I was blessed to find an ENORMOUS hardwood cutting table at a quilter's estate sale some years ago. The flaps fold down if need be -- and that's how I had it in our old home. Amazingly it stood up to the flood water from Superstorm Sandy and is the only piece of furniture we were able to save. Now, thank you Lord, we have a home that gifts me with a spacious two room studio in our basement so it stays open all the time.

My new table is done and in use!! I'd post pics but hubby says it's too "unfinished" looking! I don't mind. My previous cutting table was 2 sawhorses so this is a huge improvement. He could have painted it or finished it nicer but I wanted it NOW!!! That's the way I am. As planned, it's 2' x 4' and will be 36" high when the casters are installed. We have to buy them today. We will have locking casters on the front. It ended up being open on the front and back except for a 10" piece of wood on the bottom. Hubby built in during a blizzard and used whatever wood he could find in the basement. It's ok that it's open - that gives me the knee room I need to sit and pin. I think the table is absolutely perfect and I'm so glad to have a talented hubby to build it for me.

My cutting table is two bookshelves, open part facing each other. (holds part of stash) I have a 25" x 4' plywood over them. Under the wood, and on the book cases, I have plastic containers to raise to a "no-pain-when-cutting height. A large cutting mat fits on top of this. Also, to extend space in my small room, I place my desk and sewing machine at right angles to the wall so that they extend into the room, and back up to each other. Small, "cozy", yes, but very workable for me.

I found an old counter height dinning room table that has a built in leaf to make it wider that I use for my cutting table. I also have a very large cutting matt that fits on top. I actually had to cut the mat down just a little because it was longer than the table but it works great! My back is so much better now that I have this table. I found it at one of our local thrift stores and only paid 75.00 for it.

So happy you have a great, new, BIG cutting table.Kudoes to your hubby!

Thanks! I have had NO back pains since I started using the table. Also I discovered that I was only sitting to pin because it hurt my back to lean over the old table and pin. I find it is very comfortable to stand and pin and that I can reach much further too since I just move to where I want to be. It's all worked out perfectly!!