Hi Everyone! Welcome to 2019! Not only is it a new year, it's also a new month and time for us to kick off another Sewing With CInnamon topic. The holidays are over. The Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and 12 Days sales are over. We've all shopped til we dropped or maybe even received some sewing supplies as gifts. Now it's time to get it all put away, create some new habits, set up some project goals, and increase our productivity!
Organizing For Productivity - is our #1 most requested topic and over the next four weeks, we'll work together to get organized, streamlined, and mentally and physically prepared to sew sew sew. Sounds fun, right? This is one of my biggest challenges, so I'm super excited to learn and grow with you!
We are revisiting the topic that was originally posted in the summer of 2017, but with added content throughout the month. For some of you, this will be a bit of review, but honestly, I have been re-watching these videos, listening to the great advice I'm giving and am thinking... "Ok, Cinnamon - there's some great advice here, time to put all this into action!" (especially, the clean it all up and put it in its proper place when you are finished, part... haha!)
In the videos posted below, I share with you an overview of the month-long topic as well as take you on a tour of my personal sewing space! So grab a cup of coffee (or tea) and come on over for a visit to sewing room :) I'm also excited to show you how I've transitioned my space into a new room in my house in the last follow up video.
Organization Tip - Dress forms are a great way to create beautiful display pieces! We have them available in several sizes. 18-Inch dolls, 14.5- inch dolls, BFC, Inc dolls, and Ellowyne Wilde Dolls. The BFC, Inc size works perfectly to display the 16" A Girl For All Time items too!
Resources:
- My Sewing Room Inspiration Pinterest Board
- Pegboard Hooks
- Command Strips
- Thread Rack Wooden
- 10 Drawer Craft Cart - Tall plastic drawer unit for storing "projects in progress"
- Cascading Wall File Organizer - Plastic Inexpensive
- Metal Grid Magazine Wall Holder (just like mine in the video!)
- Desktop File Box (clear -change it up with new decorative file folders!)
- Fabric Organizer Boards - Mixed size set
- Art Bin 12x12x2 Storage box - Great for storing "projects in progress"
- 25x35 Bulletin Board - Cute & Stylish!
- Portable Kitchen Island (similar to the one shown in the video, a bit larger)
- Drawer Organizer Insert
Week One task:
- Watch the video :) Then share your tips and suggestions with me and the group! If you have pictures of your own space that you want to share - please do! We'd love to see where you work! If you have questions or need help in specific areas, ask!
- Post questions as comments under the Facebook Group Post
Next Tuesday - Week 2: Sewing Essentials
26 Comments
Where did you purchase the 6 tier acrylic storage unit on your desktop? I have looked on Amazon and finding variations but I like that one. Love the videos…great ideas, which I desperately need too since I’m in the process of organizing my studio!
I’m a bit late to the conversation but wanted to share a note about my sewing space. When we had our basement redone, we installed a kitchen with a refrigerator, sink and counters (we live in Toronto close to the subway and could rent out the basement if we wanted so renovated accordingly). There is a space where at some point we could install a stove but haven’t done so yet so I am using this as my sewing/office space. I can stand while sewing and using my computer. I can push these items out of the way to cut fabric for doll clothes and I have a stool so I can sit if I like. I really like that the counter space is large enough for these activities and I like that I can stand (it uses up a few more calories than sitting and my bum doesn’t get sore). I am obsessed with organizing and enjoyed this months topics. Thanks for sharing.
Wow! Cinnamon, I love your sewing room! Since I just got a little sewing space in the kids’ play room, I’m at the beginning of this space organizing journey!! My thread, velcro and elastics have always been stored in a toolbox; ribbons, embellishments and trims are in a clear plastic bin. For the moment, my fabric is piled in many clear plastic bins, so it stays clean, but I have to dig in to find what I need for a specific project, and of course I lost track of what’s in there. I plan to use the comic board method, and sort it by colors in the bins. It’s my task of the day!! My printed digital patterns are numbered and sorted by doll types and pattern sources in binders on my sewing table. I use sheet protectors to store the pattern pieces and each binder has a table of contents. I also keep digital copies on a USB key. Now, I plan on listing them all by categories (dresses, pants, etc), noting where to find them of course. I heard somewhere that scraps of fabric can be stored in small photo albums. I might try that, finally putting to use those albums that have been useless for so long!! Thank you very much Cinnamon for the tips and inspiration!
This is just what I need. My craft space is a nightmare, with fabric everywhere and me having no idea where to find most of it. There are drawers full and bins full. I can’t wait to try the cardboard method! My problem is complicated by the fact that I don’t just sew, but scrapbook, make hairbows, knit, crochet, etc. I have supplies coming out of my ears! I do have some things organized though. My thread is on an organizer on the wall and my basic sewing tools (and for some reason, my elastic) are on a pegboard. Zippers and bobbins are in the top drawer of my sewing desk, glue of every kind is in the middle drawer (or is supposed to be), and old unfinished projects are in the bottom drawer. My commercial patterns are in a file cabinet, organized according to who or what they are for. My PixieFaire patterns are in binders according to what doll they are for and then what type of clothing they are. That works really well for me. I keep cut out projects in with the pattern until I am ready to sew. I just don’t print every pattern I own, but wait until I plan to make them in the near future. I have a Doll Clothes folder on my desktop that contains folders for each type of doll I sew for and that’s how I store my digital patterns. I also back all of them up to Dropbox and keep them stored on disks. If I could just get my workspace to be workable again, I would be so happy! I just wish I didn’t have to share my workspace with the cats’ litter boxes, but that’s another problem for another day.
Love this series. I’ve always been very organized but recent events left me in a wheelchair. Now everything has to be moved down to a level I can reach unless its light enough and a form I can pick it up with a reacher aid. This is causing a major change to my sewing room, losing half my storage space or basically anything above 4 ft above the floor. But it will work out!