After 20+ years of working out of my house, sewing, dyeing, and writing in the midst of my children and laundry, I recently moved my studio to another location. It was scary on several fronts. First, of course was just general unfamiliarity, then expense, and finally a concern that I might not be as inspired to work in a new and different place.
All these concerns have proven to be unfounded. I love my new studio and it has been so helpful in terms of productivity and the ability to plan for my business on a larger scale. That and I now feel like when I come home I'm "done". Work, as much as I love it, is finished for the day and I can focus on other things.
Yet, despite all the positives and what I just wrote about the joy of separating my work and home life, I've started to crave a place to sew in my home. That's partly due to the fact that my studio is located in an industrial part of Austin and it feels a little weird to be there in the evenings. Partly it's because, if I sewed at home, I could always take a few moments to have a glass of wine or eat a snack and that makes the whole experience feel more casual. And, if I sewed at home I would make items that weren't exclusively about my work.
So, I created a sewing space in our home office. It's very modest: a table big enough to accommodate my machine, a cutting board, and a desktop ironing board. Yet, despite it being a humble space, I'm excited about the possibilities it represents: late night, or even better, early morning garment sewing and a comforting place to piece a quilt.
I'm also looking forward to adding a space for inspirational images as well as a hanging line or design wall on the wall behind the desk.
To that end, I've gathered a few images, via Pinterest of course, to help me craft that space. If you're curious to learn more about these images, scroll over the image and you can click through to their website.
What a simple and effective way to display inspirational images.
Great use of space for storage and easy reach of materials.
Vintage mirrors pair so well with vintage desk and the space is still very useful.
Love this industrial hanging system for keeping supplies and sketches close by.
I have an entire Pinterest board dedicated to crafting a studio. It's an ongoing and probably ever-evolving task. If you'd like to see those images as well, click here.
I'm off to actually sew in my new space. :)