There a comes a day in the life of every sewer when he/she realizes a sewing room would probably be a great idea. It might be when your son dribbles strawberry jam across your half done windowshade project, or maybe when your spouse pays the bills on top of a carefully laid out pillow design. However it happens, you realize you need a place to safely keep your machine, store your supplies, and spread out a project without your family eating spaghetti over it. You need a sewing room.

Not everybody has the luxury of an extra room in their house or apartment. Lots of homes today are built without basements or attics. But even if you can simply claim one end of a room as your dedicated sewing space, it will make your projects so much easier. By correctly organizing this space, you'll end up saving money because you'll finally be able to find all your fabric, notions and thread when you need them. Our thanks to Heather Bailey for allowing us to use the beautiful photo above of her sewing studio.

But the biggest benefit of a sewing room is being able to leave your project as-is, like a crime scene, until you have time to come back and work on it. Getting it all out and putting it all away over and over wastes valuable sewing time, and it's easy to forget exactly where you left off.

Work Areas and Storage

Like your kitchen, your sewing room should be set up so you can switch easily and logically from task to task. You need to move from measuring and cutting to pressing to sewing. And also like your kitchen, you want your most-used ingredients well-organized and within easy reach.

Below are some suggestions for outfitting your sewing room, starting with a low budget and going up to cost-is-no-object.

Bargain Basics

Measuring and Cutting

A large table can work fine for this. However, most tables are around 30" tall, because they're designed for sitting. It's so much nicer to have something you can work at comfortably while standing. For instance, your kitchen counters are probably 36" tall. You could make up this difference by setting your table on blocks, but that could be a bit wobbly. Here's my low-cost solution for a work table: I bought metal folding table legs at Home Depot, a 4' x 8' piece of smooth plywood for the top, and wooden dowels to fit into the hollow tubes of the legs.

I removed the rubber feet from the table legs, revealing the open end of a hollow tube. I cut four dowels to 7" long, slightly tapered one end and inserted a dowel into the bottom of each hollow table leg.

I then put the rubber feet back on the end of the dowels. By working in each dowel a full inch, the leg extensions were very secure and I gained 6" in extra height. Finally, I covered the plywood top with quilt batting and a sturdy fabric so the surface was nice and smooth.

Rolling batting onto plywood.

Stapling fabric to plywood.

Finished table.

Pressing

Make sure you have a standard ironing board. You can pick one up at a garage sale or thrift store. Just make sure it's sturdy. Don't worry if the cover is in bad shape. You can easily make another.

Sewing Workstation

Use a sturdy table or desk that allows you to sit directly in front of your machine's needle and gives you room to the left of and behind your machine to support your fabric. Make sure it has no rough surfaces, corners or edges that could catch your fabric. If you like antiques, you could find a fun old table or desk.

Sewing Chair

This is important. Buy an inexpensive task chair at your local office supply store. It should have adjustable height and back support.

Storage

Any old shelves will work. Also old cabinets with doors and drawers are great. The key is to carefully label what's in each compartment so you can find and put away supplies quickly. Of course, there's also the old standby: clear plastic tubs. For more ideas, read our article: Tips for Storing and Managing Your Fabric Stash.

Mid-Range Budget

If you have a few more dollars to spend, you can buy affordable furniture made specifically for sewing.

Measuring and Cutting

It's easy to find a basic, fold-out cutting table at a height that's comfortable to work at while standing. It'll probably be made of particle board covered in something like melamine for a smooth surface. Check that there are no sharp corners or exposed hinges to catch fabric.

Pressing

You'll always want an ironing board. For ironing out big things, you can also get a large ironing pad to go on top of your cutting table.

Sewing workstation

Look for a workstation designed specifically for sewing. You'll be able to set your machine on a lift that allows you to put it all the way down to store; raise it even with the work surface for flatbed sewing; or bring it all the way up so your machine is sitting on top of the table for free arm sewing. Your cabinet should also include some drawers and shelves to store the things you use most often with your machine. Many basic sewing cabinets also fold away with your machine inside to help you keep your sewing room looking neat. Find these at sewing retailers or order them online. Some popular choices are:

• Koala Sewing Studios
• Kangaroo Kabinets by Arrow
• Roberts Sewing Cabinets
• Sylvia Sewing Cabinets
• Horn of America

Sewing Chair

At this budget level, a nicer office store chair is a good buy.

Storage

Storage cabinets made specifically for sewing have shelves and drawers that are designed to hold fabric and notions. You open up the door or pull out a drawer and everything is at your finger tips. If there's a closet in your sewing room, consider buying a closet storage system at your home improvement store. It's a great place to stow fabric.

Lighting

It's worth investing in some specialized lighting. Everything's easier when you can see what you're doing. Look for nice, bright lights that can be positioned to shine right where you want them. Brands that keep colors true are more expensive, but usually worth it. Here are some options:

• Verilux
• Ott-Lite
• NatureBright

Sewing In Luxury

Let's say you just dropped seven or ten grand on a tip-top-of-the-line sewing machine. For just a few thousand more you can have a custom-made sewing cabinet to put it in and matching cutting and storage cabinets any professional seamstress would envy. Luxury for a sewer isn't having a diamond-studded foot pedal; it's having enough space to work with carefully thought-out features.

Photo courtesy of Koala Studios - Fine Sewing Furniture Custom Built in America

Beautifully designed sewing workstations, like the Koala Sewing Studio shown above can be pricey – $2000 and up. But the "luxury" details really add functionality. The machine lifts are sturdier and easier to use. Several of them accommodate multiple machines so you can move from your sewing machine to your serger to your embroidery-only machines. You also get larger work surfaces and more built-in storage for your notions and supplies.

When you sit at one of these cabinets in a showroom, you can immediately tell they're more sturdy and finished throughout. They're normally constructed from high end veneers or even solid wood. Some models can even be ordered in varying cabinet heights.

High end cabinets come with multiple-depth drawers, slots for big flat items like cutting mats, and casters to easily roll them into position. Many of them also do double-duty with large panels that swing up to give you sturdy work areas.

Before You Buy Anything Take A Field Trip

Whatever your budget level, visit a store that sells sewing cabinets and give them a test drive. Many sewing machine dealers offer one or more cabinet lines so you can shop and compare. You'll get a good feeling for how high your work areas should be and where you want your various components positioned. Also, it's a great idea to measure out your space and take the dimensions with you so you don't bring home something the wrong size.

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