I have never liked storing thread on the wall, but I saw this positive aspect to storing thread on the wall. I know this is an extreme close-up, but the wooden part is a wooden wall mounted storage rack**. The storage rack in the link is not the exact one shown in the photo. The one in the photo is just an example. There is thread on it and a bobbin minder** holding bobbins.
I love the bobbin minder idea! It is really a great way to store bobbins so they stay with your thread. Then when you take the thread to do, you can take the bobbins on their minder and go to class or retreat.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
All I can say is what a mess! I have just been dumping projects on my cutting and sewing tables, then leaving them. I have been busy and haven’t had a chance to sew, so the piles just grow.
Part of the problem is that I don’t have enough space store in process projects. That pile of interfacing right next to my sewing machine are some half cut bags that Angela gave me. I know I don’t need to make them, but I really like the design. I should just get them done and out of the way. I haven’t yet.
Cutting table mess
Any clear surface becomes a dumping ground lately. I try and keep everything clear, but it hasn’t worked for the past little while. I’ll have to tidy up sometime.
After writing the last I Spy post, I decided to take a look at the I Spy pouches I had made. I didn’t pull all of them as some are in project boxes with the supplies for projects I want to make.
I was surprised to find that most of them were made with the same coneflower colorway. I have other colorways. I thought I had used multiple colorways to make these, but I have stuck mostly to the one. Interesting.
I quickly cut more pieces for another I Spy and finished it over the weekend. I think I have a sewing routine for this pattern down pat now.
One of the reasons I made this one is that I liked a piece of fabric I pulled for the Pink Strip donation quilt back. I decided to use it for the lining, which shows up nicely through the window. It is a good way to be able to see a fabric I enjoy.
I Spy with Pink Batik
This one will replace the one I gave as a gift. It will hold the Friesan Pouch acrylic templates. I’ll save the Grey Cross I Spy for something else. I kind of like having all of my acrylic templates in pouches that match.
I was pleased to see that I lined up the top strips around the zipper very well.
I Spy with Pink Batik back
I just love making these pouches, as I have said a million times.
Yes, I made another I Spy pouch. I don’t like this one as much. It doesn’t feel as substantial as the last one and I am not sure why. It has to be the fabric. It is an Art Gallery fabric, which I really like, but I don’t think it is right for this project. Since I am storing acrylic templates in them, then need a little heft.
This doesn’t mean it is terrible or anything and I do like highlighting the lining fabric through the window. It is like a fun prize. I’ll probably use this as a gift.
This is the small size. I also use the glitter vinyl. I like that glitter vinyl. Not only is it easier to cut, but it is fun. It does make the peony look a little blurry in the photo. It doesn’t look like that in person.
I went on another organizing rampage this morning. I decided to gather all the fabrics and supplies for several bag projects I have planned. This task has been on my list for awhile, so I decided today was the day. In the course of this effort, I tidied up some project bins that were stuffed full of fabric, patterns, etc.
I-Spy / Roadtrip pouches
In one of the project bins I found two of the smaller, completed Crafty Gemini Organizer Club projects. I know I left them there so I could put them together with the last two projects. The last two projects, the Retreat in a Bag and the Ultimate Project Bag have not yet been made, but are on the list. Thus, they were two of the projects for which I gathered supplies and materials.
One of the projects I found, which will be clipped into the Ultimate Project Bag was the Roadtrip bag (right, photo above). Seeing this project again made me think of the templates for which I made a number of pouches.
The Roadtrip bag (pouch) was not used for the templates, but it could be. It looks very similar to the I-Spy pouch by Sew Sweetness (left, photo above), which I did use for the templates. Not counting the size differences, the main difference is the side strip on the Sew Sweetness bag. I made several of the I-Spy pouches for acrylic templates.
The reason I am talking about these is that I thought I would make a larger one, adjusting the size, to suit two sets of templates which don’t fit in the sizes given in the pattern.
The Sew Sweetness I-Spy pouch comes in 3 sizes. The largest size is 10.5 in x 8.5 in high, which is great except that it will not fit the larger templates that need a home. I want to make a pouch for the Chickadee Backpack templates I bought last year when the pattern came out. The templates need a pouch that is about 8 in by 19 in.
Yoko Saito’s Natural Patchwork bag
I know I talked about the bag from Natural Patchwork**, which I still want to make, but I don’t think today is that day. I do like the idea of handles (makes me think of the Grab & Go pattern, also from the Minikins patterns) and I may use foam instead of batting since the templates are quite large and I don’t want them to break.
What did I gain by today’s organizing effort? 1. I have everything ready when I decide to cut new projects out; 2. I have zippers on order, which weren’t already in my bin of zippers; 3. I have more of an idea for securing some templates; 4. Bins with less junk in them.
**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need at quilt shops, I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
I am disappointed in the IKEA bookcases I bought. The Billy bookcases are very popular with a lot of people. I liked the options, look and feel.
Billy bookcase damage
What I found, however, is that the 66 lbs each shelf is supposed to hold isn’t true. The shelf holders are very substandard and have damaged the inside of my bookcase sides.
The shelves involved are the ones I can easily access. Those are the shelves I use for my block dictionaries, class related references and color books. I use these particular volumes all the time.
New fir shelves
My DH looked at it and had a plan to fix it. He is really busy, though, so I called my handyman. After taking a look, he brought some new L brackets and some new Fir shelves to try. I installed them. They look ok. Not bright white like I wanted, though we will paint them if we decide they are the ones.
Shelves refilled
They work ok and the bowing of the outside pieces has stopped, but I lose and inch or two that I need, so I can’t fit the books on one whole shelf. I put the books sideways, but that doesn’t help me much since I can’t see the spines.
DH checked Home Despot for other shelf holders and we have a few options. I am really annoyed that these shelves have only lasted for one year. Yes, I have filled them full, but each shelf is right around the max weight, so they should work fine.
One option I have is to get bookshelves built out of wood rather than particle board. My handyman told me about a place in the City that will make custom shelves. Stay tuned.
I finally figured out what I was cutting during 2022.
This guide details many fewer pieces than previous years. I have a lot of pieces I have cut and need to make into quilts, so I am scaling back.
3 1/2 x 12 1/2 – this piece is for the Half Hexie Star quilt
2 1/2 x 4 1/2 – blue gradation quilt
2 1/2 x 2 1/2 – FOTY 2022
2 1/2 x 2 1/2 -I cut 2 1/2″ squares to have them handy in case I need them. I can’t seem to give it up.
1 1/2 x 2 1/2 – pieces for another Scrap Dash. I am not sure I am cutting all the pieces I need to be ready.
1 1/2 x 1 1/2 – More for another Scrap Dash
I am not sure what happened to cutting charts for 2020 and 2021. Can we blame that on COVID? Based on my 2019 cutting chart, I may need to cut more for the pink gradation quilt. I also need backgrounds for the Spin Wheel quilt, which I’d like to get off my to do list this year.
I spent time filling my shelves and emptying boxes. The boxes went out with the recycling (except for some DH hid from me) and my shelves are now filled with my quilt books.
I am really happy that my books are more accessible. Before, some of them were on the floor in big stacks, which was not conducive to browsing.
Last week after I had done some of the work, I spent time leafing through some of the books that were more accessible to me. I also leafed through some while on work calls, though I have to be careful, because I tend to tune out work and focus on quiltmaking, which is not what they pay me for. 🙂
Shelf replacing old desk
Before this whole workroom redo I had collected books, run out of space which meant all the books on one topic were scattered. As I was putting books in boxes, I made an effort to arrange them so that like books were together. All quilt history in a group of boxes, all art quilt books in other boxes. This made it easier to shelve them all together when I unboxed everything.
The very top shelves are less useful *to me* because I can’t reach them without a stool. I wanted them (the top shelves are add-ons to the Billy bookcases not part of the shelves) for two reasons. First, stuff will get crammed up there anyway, so I might as well have a shelf. Second, dust. I prefer cabinets and bookcases to go to the ceiling because that open space just becomes a dust collector. With these shelves, I put books and stuff up there that I don’t access often. For the books housed there, they may be candidates for weeding in the future. We’ll see.
My shelves are not 100% crammed full, which is great. I am glad to have some growth space. I do feel like there are a few books missing, so there may be another box somewhere.
Next project is to put up the design walls. I want to work on some quilts again soon, not that I am short of bag and other projects, so I can mark some fabric off my ‘fabric used’ list. DH is busy with clearing out his parents’ house (still) so I have to fit this in or get the handyman in.
DH came home from the football game Saturday night and put together the second shelf. My room has that new paint or furniture smell again and is a complete wreck.
I really like the clean, white look of the bookcase next to my desk. It is beautiful. It is also a lot better than a pile of cardboard boxes.
Big mess in the workroom
Cardboard boxes don’t just magically unpack themselves, though I wish they did. The rest of the room is a wreck. I have a lot of work to do reshelving books and arranging stuff on the shelves.
DH has to get some anchors, so I am not allowed to stand in front of the bookshelves during an earthquake for the moment.
See that computer set up in the picture (above right)? That is where I spend my days. That particular computer is my personal computer. I swap it out for my work laptop at about 8am every morning. One reason I need to clean this area up is that I have to get that blue chair out from the boxes, so I can “go to work” on Monday. Currently, it is stuck behind some of the boxes because we quickly moved the boxes out of the corner of the room so DH could install the second bookshelf.
Some progress is being made on my workroom. I retrieved the purchased bookshelves about two weeks ago. It seems like an eternity.
I asked DH if I should get the handyman to put these shelves together. (I am sure they are relatively straightforward to assemble, but my shoulder can’t handle such work.) He said that he would put them together. Time went on, we went to San Bernardino ? for an event (it was a good event, but an icky town) and still he insisted he would put them together.
When DH told me he had to go work at his mom’s house over the weekend, I asked him when he was going to put my shelves together. While I was gone at Sew Day, he put the first one together. Then he came home from the football game later the same day and banged around putting the second one together. He is a really great husband.
My friend, Cyndi, sent me a text saying that the bookshelves were in at a local IKEA. I couldn’t get them delivered, so I had to arrange to go and pick them up. The packages were longer than my car so I had to borrow a van.
Bookshelves to be
Now the boxes are laying on the floor of my workroom and DH is studying the instruction manual.
The bookshelves are delayed again and I am getting annoyed. Well, I was already annoyed, but now I am more annoyed. Pandemic. Supply chain. First world problems. Blah blah blah. I know. I know.
Gammel bookcase
Scandinavian Designs has some very basic bookcases, which might be a good solution if they are in stock. They do not have the added height shelf that the Billy bookcases have. Also, one thing I like about the Billy set is the accommodation at the bottom for the baseboard. There is a little cut out so you don’t have a gap against the wall. Also, apparently, they no longer have white in stock and I refuse to introduce anything even approaching life-sucking beige into this room. Finally, they are much more expensive. On the plus side, we have an entertainment unit from Scandinavian Designs and we are very happy with it.
Why hasn’t anyone tried to copy the Billy bookcases? I know I should be promoting intellectual property theft. I really want the chaos in my house to end.
I worked on this project in a desultory manner, but the project just got real. DH said he wanted to paint the room instead of me hiring someone and he took time off work next month to do it. I spent time last weekend clearing off more shelves and putting my workroom stuff in boxes.
Books and other Workroom stuff
The YM’s room is looking pretty full at the moment. Good thing he doesn’t need to sleep there as more stuff needs to be stored there. I am out of the boxes I have been using boxes that stack up nicely together and need to find others.
