Five changes that will affect my sewing in 2019

This is what my sewing room looked like at the beginning of 2018. Many things have changed, both in- and outside the sewing room and these changes will all affect my sewing in the coming year.

I'm not much of a planner so I thought that instead of doing a #makenine or show a list of patterns I want to make any time soon I'd tell more about those small and not so small changes to picture the context of my sewing choices for 2019.

#1 Changing the layout of my sewing room

At the beginning of the year mr Foxgloves helped me create a cutting table by changing the legs of one of my tables for Ikea Skarsta sit/stand height adjustable legs. More on that here.
This makes me more productive as my back doesn't need a few days to recover from tracing or cutting.

What else could be improved? I'd been using this room for six years and I decided it was time for a comprehensive evaluation. I started by moving the furniture around.

The L-shape worked much better! I always thought I wouldn't like looking at a wall but I was wrong. It feels like my workspace has doubled, since I can use the cutting/handsewing table for extra bits and bobs while I'm sewing.

I also moved my sewing books. They were out of reach behind the ironing board, not the best place for easy access. So I moved some wooden boxes with older pattern magazines to that spot and now have my reference books right where I need them. It only took me six years to come up with this brilliant plan.

Next. Well, you can't overhaul the sewing room and ignore the fabric collection, right? So I took everything out.

#2 Sorting and measuring my fabrics

Back in the days when the systems weren't as refined as they are now, I had my colours done and one of the things I took away from that was that blue was a good colour for me. Over the years I bought all kinds of blue fabric. I loved them all, but they didn't all love me back. I found out the hard way when 100+ hours of handsewing on a Chanel jacket ended in a garment that looked better on the hanger than it did on me.

Last year I scheduled a new appointment with a colour consultant who asked me to bring a few garments. I bended the rules a little by bringing a suitcase of potential garments in the form of fabrics. She had never had a dressmaker come in for a consult before and we had some interesting discussions about the freedom to create your own style and the challenges that come with making a garment from scratch. She acknowledged it was a waste of precious sewing time to work with fabrics that did not fully suit me and we tackled that suitcase, one piece at the time. At the end of the day I knew the distinction between warm and cool blue, muted, bright and dark blue and what worked for me and what didn't. And of course I learned a lot about other colours, colour depths and levels of contrast as well.

I used my newfound knowledge to sort my stash. I put fabrics aside to use for toiles and donated a few pieces to friends with different colourings. Some of these fabrics had been there for two decades and I knew I'd never use them. Can you picture me in beige? Me neither.

While all the fabrics were out of storage I thought I might as well measure everything before it went back into the closet. I now have a binder with swatches, lengths and other relevant information of all pieces. After 42 years of collecting fabrics the penny finally dropped.

My fabric cabinet is an old baby dresser that is 60 cm deep. I fold the fabrics over a piece of cardboard to make the best use of the limited space.

The curated collection. Not perfect yet, but slowly getting there. (These are all woven fabrics, there's also a smaller cabinet with knits)


#3 Joining Susan Khalje's Couture Sewing Club

Then, at the end of the summer, I realised I didn't challenge myself enough sewing wise. As nice as it is to have well fitting tees and cardigans in my wardrobe, making them hardly gives me a sense of accomplishment. I wanted to learn new skills and make better use of the skills I already have. Right at that time Susan Khalje launched her Couture Sewing Club. I jumped on board immediately!

So far it's been wonderful to be part of this group and I have learned a lot, both from Susan and from other members. The reason I have not started my first project, a couture skirt, has to do with yet another set of changes.


#4 Weight loss

In July I made a few lifestyle changes. As a result I have lost over 10 kg/22 lbs during the second half of 2018. Although I don't think I look that different, I can go in and out of my jeans without using the zipper. I have put off using my best fabrics for a while, but now I really need to make a few things that don't fall down when I move. The question is: will I make a fitted skirt, at least one that fits temporarily, or shall I wear wrap dresses until I know where my waist measurements will end?


#5 A new sewing machine

While I couldn't decide on what to make next I made another big change, at least for me it is. After sewing on my (mechanical) Bernina 1030 for 31 years I bought a new Bernina 570 QE.

Here she is, right after the unboxing ritual. Protective plastic and all, oops.
It's my first computerized machine, and there most definitely is a learning curve. We gave each other the side eye more than once, but after a few weeks I can say we're bonding.

I've made a start on creating a stitch library and am now exploring the endless possibilities of this beautiful machine. Dual feed, adjustable and automatic presser foot pressure, the pivot/hover function, it's all new to me. I'm working my way through the manual and I found a workbook and plenty of videos online, which is a nice way to get acquainted with this machine at my own pace. My dealer suggested I'd schedule my lessons at a later time so we wouldn't waste one-on-one time on the basics that I could easily find out myself. Sound advice! I'm creating a little list with subjects I'd like to delve in deeper during my lessons. I will write a sewing machine review, as some of you have asked for on Instagram, in a few weeks time when I hopefully master all ins and outs.

Now how will all these changes influence my 2019 sewing plans?

With the improved sewing room flow, sorted stash and new machine everything is ready for action!
The weight loss means I need to take in my clothes where possible and start building a new wardrobe later on. Ideally I'll alternate quick and practical projects to fill wardrobe gaps with more involved projects and I aim to use couture techniques on a few timeless pieces.

I'm really excited about this new sewing year!

Sewing room improvements

Last month a small parcel from Ikea completely changed my sewing life. Below you see the before picture. Can you spot the difference?

Apart from a few bits and bobs (and way more fabric) the set up is still very much the same as when the room was featured in Love Sewing Magazine two years ago. I absolutely love the two Ikea Melltorp tables. Stable and indestructible with iron legs and a melamine top that is moisture and stain resistant. During projects I write little reminders about seam allowances or top stitching directly on the table top, knowing it's all easily removed when I'm done. So far tracing wheels, scissors or other tools haven't caused a single scratch since I started using the table twins five years ago. Why two identical tables? One is holding my sewing machine and overlocker while the other one is used for everything else.

Planning new projects, pinning, basting, hand sewing, tracing patterns and cutting fabrics.

So far I didn't have a cutting table. What I do have is a herniated disc. Usually it's not causing me much trouble but certain movements can cause severe pain in my left leg. Or worse, numbness and muscular weakness. Tracing patterns and cutting fabrics on a regular height table is certainly a trigger. Sometimes cutting out a coat means walking like an employee of the Ministry of Silly Walks for the rest of the week, battling with a leg that's making unpredictable moves. Luckily I'm not a speedy sewist, so most often there's enough time to recuperate before I reach the point where I have to cut out the next project.

In December I cut out several patterns with only a few days in between. Things were spiraling out of control and I knew I had to find a solution before the pain was killing my sewing joy.

A few years ago I saw a picture of someone using bed risers to raise an existing table. I experimented with cans of beans and tuna to see if that would work, only to find myself limping for the rest of the day. Apparently crawling under a table with canned food was another trigger. I did post a picture on Instagram of my temporarily raised table and Christina, a sewing architect from Norway, suggested to look into Ikea's sit/stand desks. Which I finally did, 110 weeks later. Yes, my wheels turn slowly.

I checked the Ikea desks and really liked the Skarsta, which can be easily adjusted in height by turning a crank handle. It comes with a 120 x 70 cm particle board top, finished with paper and acrylic paint. Bummer. I was not ready to give up my melamine Melltorp top, which was also slightly larger (125 x 75 cm). That may not look like a big difference, but when you're cutting 150 cm wide fabric on the fold it is!

After studying the assembly instructions mounting the Melltorp top on the Skarsta legs seemed possible, although the pre-drilled holes would be useless. Enter Mr Foxgloves, my beloved engineer in residence!

Et voila!

When not in use the crank handle slides under the table top. In a few seconds the height can be adjusted from 70 cm to 120 cm. Even at maximum height the desk is still very stable. This type of desk is also available in a larger size (80 x 160 cm) or with a motor if you prefer to adjust the height electrically. I can see how that's a nice feature in an office setting, where you'd adjust the desk multiple times a day to change between sitting and standing. In my sewing room I'd rather use the crank. Piece of cake, no strength required.

I'm very happy with the new multifunctional desk. Most days it is functioning as a regular table, like in the top picture. When I'm cutting fabric or tracing a pattern I raise the table to a height of around 98 cm. Cutting at an ergonomic working position makes all the difference in the world! I can really recommend the Skarsta desk. When your sewing space is limited it could double as sewing desk/cutting table, while only taking up the floor space of a regular size desk.  Legs and table top are sold separately so when you're willing to do the maths and drill a few extra holes you can mix and match or keep an existing top.

Total cost of this improvement: 169 euro. Result: priceless.

Sewing room swoon!

I'm sitting in my sewing room, reading an article in a magazine......about my sewing room. I'm tempted to do a 'spot the ten differences'-game. I notice a different variety of tulips, some extra pattern magazines on top of the shelves, red thread cones on my overlocker showing the progress on the pattern I'm tracing in the magazine picture. So meta!

A few months ago I received a mail from Amy Thomas, the editor of UK-based Love Sewing magazine. She wondered if I'd be interested in having my sewing space appear in the Sewing Room Swoon feature in the magazine. In case you wonder how the UK's no.1 sewing magazine spotted a Dutch room, Amy (of the Almond Rock blog) follows my Instagram feed. I incidentally post pictures of the room, mostly during challenges like #bpsewvember or #sewphotohop.

So far it had never occurred to me to write a blog post about my sewing room set up. Yet I like a good peek into sewing spaces! In fact, all of you out there provided so much inspiration when I was searching the internet for storage and lay-out ideas for my first dedicated sewing room. Who knows, maybe someone would like to see my fabric stash or my button organization? Amy's request was just the little push I needed to take some decent pictures (easier said than done on a dark and drizzling January day). And here it is, a pretty compilation of my happy space. Thanks, Love Sewing!

For someone who works in publishing it has been a very useful experience. How often did I think people got a little carried away when I wrote an article about them? Relax, it's only the newspaper! And here I was, impatiently looking forward to seeing the pictures of the room I'm sitting in on a daily basis. I'd already seen the pdf's of the spread, but  I just couldn't wait to see the article in print. So exciting! Food for thought and lesson learned :)

Love Sewing issue 24 page 44

Love Sewing issue 24 page 45

I'll write a follow up post soon with more pictures and details. But that will have to wait. I have a shiny new magazine to read!

Sewing room organization

My thread stash was outgrowing it's dedicated space. Well, not just the thread stash, but for the sake of the year of No Rules in the sewing room I will deal with my fabric stash in due time. Promise.

I prefer to keep my thread in boxes, unfortunately the ones I picked last year were getting overcrowded to a point where searching for the right colour became a nuisance.

Luckily I found some much bigger boxes at the sale of HEMA, a Dutch department store. I have no idea what these boxes were meant for (definitely nothing sewing related) but they proved to be the perfect height for Gutermann spools.

So after spending some quiet time near the pond I came up with this improved arrangement. 

I also rearranged my machine needles. Am I the only one needing a magnifying glass to check the numbers on those unidentified needles that wander around my desk?? 

From now on I keep needles that have been used for just one project on a piece of pinked silk, next to their same sized pals. The yellow note on the cover tells me what needle is on duty in my machine right now.

It looks like Schmetz is finally adding colour codes, but until all my needles have been replaced by this new type I'm relying on this system.

Sewing wise this was not the best of posts, but after our summer break both my sewing room and I are prepared for new adventures, starting tomorrow!