Sunday, February 12, 2012

Sundays Sewing Space: Ellison Lane Quilts

Time for another snoop, this time we are nosing around the lovely Jennifer of Ellison Lane Quilts work space. This is a wonderfully colourful space, lots of eye candy coming up!

Thanks so much Jennifer for letting us peak in


Where is your Sewing Space?
 I sew in what is technically my formal dining room, which is just off the kitchen and flows into the living room/ playroom. 

What 3 words do you feel best describes it? 
Location, location, location :)  It's the only free space in our house- we use every inch of our house! 

What are your most important things in there?
My new sewing machine- without that nothing would get done! Also, my iron and my fabric. The dollhouse is just an extra bonus. The kids like to be in there with me all the time so my sewing table is usually cluttered with princess barbies, trains, baby dolls and crayons. 

How is the room laid out?
 I sew on the dining room table facing the playroom. I only iron when the kids are not around because my children are so young and my little boy pulls on everything. When they are napping or at night, I use a small portable table-top ironing board which sits on top of a rolling cart near my table. My design wall is to the right of me, and it is just batting pinned to the wall. At some point I would really like to have design wall boards but at this point, this is working. 


Do you have anything in the room for inspiration? 
I am working on that! I have two minis on the wall and have another one in the works. I would like to have a bulletin board of pictures that inspire me- one of these days I will get to it! 


Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it? 
I keep my fabric in a big rolling drawer cart. I am pretty sure it should be hidden from the light but I am not sure where else to put it. I have it sorted by color and if it is big enough to fold then it goes in the drawer. If it is about 10" or smaller, it goes in the color-coordinated scrap tubs. Really small scraps go into a central bin.  The bookshelf is a catch - all for notions, scrap bins and patterns. 

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?
Gosh I wish! I need someone to come redo my space in a proper work zone. Seriously though, I am grateful to have the space to sew and a husband that doesn't mind and encouraged me to turn our formal dining room into my sewing room.  I love the light my sewing room gets.  


What would your ideal workspace look like?
I would love to have one that had a table in the corner for quilting big quilts. 
A big design wall and enough storage for everything. I am really a tidy, organized person by nature so lots of storage space would be great. A comfy chair, a computer, and iPod speakers would be great too! 

Jennifer all those projects around your space look amazing, and your fabric stash certainly looks like one I would love to have a rummage through. Thanks again for sharing, its been lovely

20 comments:

Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane said...

Thank you for asking me Charlotte. It was lovely to be here!

Sarah said...

Lovely space, obviously inspires you going by that fabulous colourwheel mini!

Katy Cameron said...

Cool, thanks for letting us poke around in there!

Dollwood Farms said...

I use my dining room too! Yours looks much more organized though, lol.

Go-Go Kim said...

So pretty and bright! I wanna see the machine! up close and personal!!!! My formal dining is my formal sewing space/playroom too! My sewing stuff is starting to push the play stuff more to the basement and kids bedrooms though ;o) Thank you for sharing!!!!

♥Duff said...

what a great space! i'm glad you can be with the kids but do your own thing too ☺. is that really all you have in stash? that's like.....nothing. i thought for sure, given all your amazing projects, that you have a ton of fabric!

Neabear said...

I know someone who uses her dining room also. I use the extra bedroom for mine now that we are empty nesters. It is a good size room, but it is still a little crowded in here.

~Linnea

Sarah @ FairyFace Designs said...

ooh so nice to have a little peek in your house! I would so love a room to sew in, our "dining room" got turned into a playroom so there's no extra space...I live in hope of an extension!

Joanne said...

Nice area! I love seeing how others arrange their spaces. I don't the guts to show my unorgainzed area on my blog yet, but maybe soon. :-) My design wall is behind me and I really wish I could have it in front or to the side like you. I admire your fabric storage also. I'm working on organizing and condensing my stash but right now I have too much to have it all in one unit like you; but that is my goal. I have fabric that I loved when I bought it years ago, but I'm not feeling the love now, so I'm trying to destash by using, gifting, or giving away the excess. Again, thanks for sharing!

Shannyn said...

Wow. I love all the light you have; and I'm SUPER impressed that you can actually see your floor!! (Not at my house, lol) Always impressive and inspiring. Thanks for the peek!

Trudi said...

That's a fantastic light room! And so organised, please come play in my space, you can teach me to be organised! hehe!

Mrs Flying Blind... said...

Sooooooooooo big!!

jlk said...

What a great space!

Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane said...

Aw, you all are so nice! Thanks for the wonderfully kind comments.
I really appreciate it. :)
xo

felicity said...

Gorgeous space! I know sunlight is the enemy of fabric but oh boy would I love to have that natural light in my space!

needle and nest said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
needle and nest said...

What a wonderful space! I love that you can face your play room and watch the kiddies play while you sew. I would loooove to have a space like that! :)

Marg said...

I use my dining room table too, although I've moved a lot of my books out of the spare room bookcase so I can store my fabric stash in there. It's great that you are able to be close to your children while you are sewing.

Lucy | Charm About You said...

Love the space! Are you sure you don't want to wheel those drawers over to mine ;)

ErikaB3 said...

I also use my dinning room as my sewing space. I am not sure my husband likes that so much but its my only option.