Unveiling the new sewing room

Sewing room

Hello boys and girls, a very exciting post tonight! I’m finally unveiling my new sewing room!!

You might have noticed on Twitter that I’ve been in Ikea flat pack heaven at the weekend.

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I do love myself some power tools, such a sense of empowerment! This has been so long in the planning, I could hardly sleep on Friday night! My fiance went back to school this year to do his second Masters, so we had been sharing the spare bedroom/sewing room/study/storage for the past few months, not fun at all!! So exams finally over (not a moment too soon for both my social life and my sewing life!), I banked on my capital of guilt and made Carl drive me to Ikea to get what I needed to turn the spare bedroom into my nice tidy sew heaven!

And ta dah!!

Sewing Room

 

We still need some sort of an office, so I had to keep some ofice-y stuff. But what I wanted most was tidiness, a nice working surface for my beloved Hildi (my Select 4 Pfaff sewing machine) and her new brother, the Coverlocker (on which very soon). I also wanted a nice cutting surface, which was high enough to use without back pains. Plus a lot of storage space to put all my countless bits and bobs away. Don’t open any of the drawers, it’s all shoe-horned in, but at least it looks clean and tidy :).

Sewing Room (2014) #15

 

So, what did I use?

2 x Linnmon table tops (1m and 2m, 60 cms wide)

2x Kallax cube shelves (former Expedit)

2x Olov extensible table legs

A lot of Drona boxes (white and blue) and a few Tjena divider boxes.

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A Skalberg/Sporren swivel chair

The wall shelves (Ikea Lack shelves) and the blue drawers (Kallax drawer insert) I had from the previous incarnation of the room, and they were painted to match the wall (what, did you think that was a coincidence?!?)

Sewing Room

 

The cutting table used to be my sewing table/desk for Carl to study on and it hasn’t been so clean and tidy for at least a few years.

Sewing Room (2014) #08

It is an old Linnmon pinewood table top (1.8 x 75 cms), on trestle legs, all from Ikea. Not sure if the legs are still available in white, I have had them a while now. The desk lamp is also from Ikea and I painted it blue to match, you guessed it, the back wall.

The Variera sorting basket was great to keep my pattern paper and all other papery bits and pieces. It is hanging from a Bygel kitchen rail, that Carl handily screwed under the table. I also used bulldog clips to gather and hang my rulers to the same rail. Very handy storage solution! The tube thingie bob on the opposite side is also a Variera, used for storing carrier bags, but in this case it’s my new fabric scrap bin.

Sewing Room (2014) #14

Another really important part was pattern organisation. I used the Pappis boxes, cheap and cheerful, but oh so perfect for storing patterns, both cut, uncut and PDF. I store my cut patterns in Ikea freezer bags, they are the perfect size.

Sewing Room (2014) #13

 

I’ve added card dividers to help me find various categories of patterns. OCD, what OCD?!?

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Sewing Room (2014) #02

 

Next, thread organising. I already had the blue drawers and realised that my overlocker cones will fit in them perfectly, as well as the box I used to store the regular spools in.

Sewing Room (2014) #10

Sewing Room (2014) #11

 

And last, but not least, using Tjena divider boxes for all other odds and ends, in this case, buttons. Not looking too pretty, but I wanted to keep them in bags, so they don’t roll about.

 

Sewing Room (2014) #12

Sewing Room (2014) #01

Overall, very pleased with the outcome, the space was really well utilised and I got all I need for my sewing necessities, but also I can still share the room with Carl when he needs to.

So I’m leaving you with a teaser of new exciting sewing projects that are in the pipeline. It’s June already, so let’s Jump into June, here’s my first contribution!

Sewing Room (2014) #16

 

Happy redecorating!

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17 Comments

  1. 2 June 2015 / 7:55 AM

    Wow! I want your sewing room!

    • Alex
      Author
      2 June 2015 / 8:15 AM

      Ha ha, thank you! I spent a long time wanting it! Now it’s finally here, hurray! Now let’s ser how long can I keep it this tidy!!

      • 2 June 2015 / 8:22 AM

        I’ll bet 3 projects and chaos returns! My max is 3 projects before all returns to normal😄

        • Alex
          Author
          2 June 2015 / 8:24 AM

          The purpose of those drawers is to keep the chaos at bay, it’s all stuffed inside them… I think I’ll have more motivation to tidy up, it’s just too pretty!!

  2. Julie
    2 June 2015 / 11:14 AM

    How did you achieve the small L-shape on your sewing table and what Ikea product was it?

    • Alex
      Author
      2 June 2015 / 11:19 AM

      It’s actually 2 table tops, 1m (£5.90) and 2m (£15) long on a Kallax cube (former expedit, £20). Because the cube is 77 cm tall, I had to use adjustable legs instead of the regular ones, they are called Olov, £10 each. And I used another Kallax at the end of the long table top for balance. And that was it, £80 in total.

      • Julie
        7 June 2015 / 4:24 PM

        Thanks Alex I will take a look at those.

  3. 2 June 2015 / 1:23 PM

    Wow, great sewing room. All the organisation is perfect, the freezer bags and dividers for storing the patterns are a great idea. I’m hoping to have a sewing room in the next few months when I move, so any tips are much appreciated. Thanks for this post.

    • Alex
      Author
      2 June 2015 / 1:49 PM

      Thank you! This little piece of sewing heaven was long overdue :). My teacher taught me aboutt the freezer bags, it makes a lot of sense. Wilko ones are better, as they are all clear, but I can get to Ikea easier and a box last forever.
      I know I sound like an Ikea ad, but really they have everything you need to get organised. Plus I live 10 mins away and it’s so easy to just pop by when I get a new idea. They have a magnetic rail for knives that can be used as scissors holder. I didn’t get that because my fiance won’t let me put any more holes in the wall, but it’s very handy if you don’t mind that. Also the Variera and Sortera boxes are great for scraps and stuff. Just browse the catalogue and see what combinations would work with your space.
      Hope your sewign room turns out great!

  4. 2 June 2015 / 7:59 PM

    Alex 🐝 that looks great!!

  5. 3 June 2015 / 1:18 AM

    It looks sooooo good!!!!! I’m so jealous of your ikea decorated haven! I am so excited that they are building an ikea soon here in Las Vegas and then I will organize my sewing room!!!! I really need a taller cutting table first so I think I will copy your set up!
    Beautiful darling! So excited for you!

    • Alex
      Author
      3 June 2015 / 7:21 PM

      Ha ha, you watch out girl, your BF will not like it you if you get hooked to Ikea :). I have to use all my brownie points to get Carl to drive me 🙂 Hope it turns out just like you’re dreaming!

      • 4 June 2015 / 12:36 AM

        Haha Ok ok I’ll be careful! You’re right my husband would not be happy with me wanting to get all the fancy matching stuff!! Plus I love putting bookshelves and desks together so it would make me want to buy even more! Lol

  6. 3 June 2015 / 8:35 AM

    Very cool! I love the freezer bags idea for storing patterns, perfect! 🙂

    • Alex
      Author
      3 June 2015 / 7:20 PM

      Thanks! My teacher taught me that, never looked back 🙂

  7. 11 January 2016 / 1:24 PM

    I just finished my sewing room as well using Linnmon table tops and Kallax units. I would like to send photos but can’t see how I can add them to this comment, using my iPad.

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