Organizing Your Sewing Space: Designer Studios

This weekend, I decided it was nigh upon time to finally re-organize my studio, now that the bolts of fabric all live at the new shop.  I figured, an hour or two, no worries!  Right?  Right.

It took most of Saturday.  And it still needs work.  In my defense, a large part of that is the fact that I’ve “misplaced” all the pegs that hold the additional shelves in my Ikea bookcases, but still.

So when resting from nesting, I went to some of my favorite fabric designers for a little studio inspiration:

The always amazing Anna Maria Horner showed off her studio recently on her blog.  How fantastic are all those colors?  I love that she has departments in her studio, sections for the parts of her life that take place there: a couch, a work table, an “office.”  And I love that her work is so integrated into her everyday life.

Then there’s the fabulous Patty Young, designer of the Mod Kid patterns you’re all clearly crazy about (and set to release an amazing line of knits that I can’t wait to get my hands all over).  Her light, bright, organized studio makes me want to categorize and fold and stack all my fabrics into tidy little color-coded piles.  I am convinced that once I do, I’ll be at least nearly as productive and creative as she!

And of course, there’s Amy Butler, with a whole other feel and look to her studio.  It’s modern and chic and clean, and looks just like you’d expect from her.  It’s such a clear reflection of her sense of style, of her identity as a designer that you take one peek at the photos and you just know it’s hers.

I know not everyone is as fortunate as these big names, and not all of us have the space and the time to dedicate to a complete studio for our sewing.  But shouldn’t we all have a place to call our own, a place that inspires us and encourages us to create and attempt new things?  This week is all about tackling Sewing Goal #1: Organizing Your Space.  I want to explore small spaces and huge spaces and everything in between, with the hope that each of you will discover exactly the configuration and solution to give yourself a refuge and an inspiring spot to call your own.  Worked for Virginia Woolf, after all!