Organizing My Sewing Corner

I've mentioned in previous posts about the ordeal I go through when I decide I want to do some sewing or quilting.  If you missed it here's a recap... go to the bedroom to get the sewing box for whatever thread I need, grab the cutting mat, ruler(s) and the fabric.  On my way to the dining table I will hopefully remember to grab the rotary cutter and scissors. When it comes time to do some ironing it's back to the bedroom to get the table-top ironing board hanging in the closet, stop by the 'laundry room' for the iron on my way to the dining table to set up the ironing board on top of the cutting mat that's already on the dining table.  And my quilting books?  They're above the TV if I need them.  Whew! I'm 'bout wore out just typing this, ha!

So, I started thinking of ways to organize my little sewing corner to simplify my ordeal of preparing to do some sewing.

 

Here's a before shot of my little corner...

 

There's not a lot of room but it had some potential for some better use of space.  And, of course, I have to share my little corner with Hunter who loves to lay up there and look out the window!

In thinking about organizing ideas I also had to take into consideration that whatever I did in this area would need to withstand traveling.  I did not want to add to the list of things that need to be taken down, relocated and secured when it was time for us to move again so I had to come up with something that was more or less permanent.

Originally, this corner had a swivel, recliner chair in it so there was already a small shelf and a magazine rack mounted on the outer pantry wall.  But, when I joined CountryBoy on the road I knew I wanted to put my sewing table there so, I moved the chair over by the couch and is now directly in front of the TV.  It's all good (wink)! I still used the magazine rack to hold cookbooks and the shelf was a catchall for little stuff.

A few of the ideas I came up with were to find a new home for the cookbooks and use the magazine rack to put the few quilting books that I've acquired in there.  (I'm still trying to find a place for the cookbooks, sigh.)  And I'm using the shelf for the little red tray that holds some scissors, seam ripper, measuring tape and sewing machine paraphernalia.

I also decided that I wanted my threads near the sewing machine.  I saw this wooden thread holder at Hobby Lobby and thought it would be perfect mounted on the outer pantry wall.  But, it was a self-standing one with legs that swung out. While I love that idea I knew I had no room for it to sit on my sewing table and it would've had to have been relocated and secured when we moved so CountryBoy drilled some holes in it and screwed it into the pantry wall for me.  Perfect!

I also wanted my rulers nearby.  Since there is a hole at the top of each of the rulers I decided to hang them on the wall in front of the sewing machine using a simple screw.

Now, I have my thread right where I'm sewing and the rulers are mere steps from where I do my cutting.  Yay!

What's the metal bucket you may ask? It's for all those pesky threads and little fabric pieces I cut off while I'm sewing!

Eventually, I will figure out a way to hang the mini ironing board in the 'laundry room' so it will be by the iron and much closer to the dining table.

The cutting mat and fabric? I will probably keep them in the closet so I won't have to relocate and secure them when it's time for us to move.

I'm very pleased with how it turned out...

While I would love to see my fabric stash when I look at my sewing corner it's just not gonna happen for obvious reasons. But, seeing all the thread on the wall is just as good and puts a smile on my face!  All those pretty colors!  Makes me want to sit down and sew something (smile)!

Speaking of thread, I have several spools of thread that were my Mom's... 

Don't ya just love the wooden spool?  And 15 cents?  Awesome!  I will be saving these spools fer sure!

Till next time my friends...

 

The Organizing Reveal

For those of you who have been following along on our new adventure you know that I recently joined CountryBoy out west where we are living full-time in our 5th wheel with two cats and a dog while he works at restoring an old mine.  Along with me joining him came a lot of stuff that we packed into the cargo trailer.  Kitchen stuff, craft stuff, pantry stuff, shipping stuff, animal stuff, sewing table & chair, cat box, etc.

What you may not know is how much CountryBoy was concerned about all that stuff and where it would go in the 5th wheel without being cluttered and crowded.

Oh he of little faith!

So last Friday morning, after lots of coffee, I began the process of finding places to put all the stuff.

First up, I had to move the cargo trailer up a few inches.  Unfortunately, when the trailer was backed into place, I failed to make sure the power cord would reach the power box on the other side of the 5th wheel.    It lacked less than two inches.  Sigh.  Luckily, it's been really cold here so we did not need power to keep the contents of the freezer and small fridge that is in the trailer cold.

I wanted to get the trailer in place, plugged in and stabilized before I was going to be in and out of it all day.

I backed the Jeep up and was ready to hook it up when I realized that previously we had to take the tire off the back in order to hook the trailer up.  So, I pulled the Jeep up and proceeded to take the tire off and tried again.  I pulled the trailer up about a foot, got out to make sure the power cord would reach and then unhooked the trailer, pulled up and then put the tire back on.  Then I put the jacks under the back of the trailer and now we were good to go!

Next up, the cabinets.  Here's what we had in there before all the stuff arrived...

Notice the very few pots and pans!  Needless to say, it's been interesting trying to cook with what I had.  We had originally set the 5th wheel up for camping where we mainly cooked over a fire or on the grill.

Anyhoo, here's the after...

Plenty of pots and pans and baking dishes, yay!

Keep in mind, that the 5th wheel is currently set up to stay in one location for a while.  When it comes time for us to move on I will have to pack the glassware up to put in the cargo trailer while traveling.

Only a few things were changed on the counter tops...

Before

I added the toaster oven...

 and my chicken teakettle...

I may not have the real thing anymore but at least I can still enjoy my chicken stuff!

The dining table...

... used to eat at and is also where I sit when I'm on the computer.  (Notice the blue cable.  This was our connection to the online world.  And I mean literal connection.  We physically had to move this cable to whatever device we wanted to get online with whether it was the computer, Xbox, Netfilx, etc.  It was a pain in the neck.  More on that later.)

Now...

A relaxing space to eat or peruse the online world!  (Notice the blue cable is GONE, woot!)

CountryBoy's biggest concern was the sewing table and chair that I wanted to add to this corner...

Originally, I wasn't sure if we would be able to keep the recliner once the table and chair were in place but I hated to lose the seating space.  I moved the chair closer to the couch but the portable gas heater has to stay where it's at and ended up being in the walkway.  I, then, moved the chair back over almost to where it was before but more in front of the pantry door (you can see the open door at the left of the above photo.  It has to stay open as long as we're using the portable heater because that's where the gas line comes out.  Don't ask.  It was that way when we bought the camper.  I would have put it somewhere else or at least scooted the line over so that the pantry door could at least be partially closed.)  I did have to lose the end table though.  I found places for everything that was on it and even hung a small rack by the door to hang our keys on that were originally just tossed onto this end table.

This is what I ended up with...

I like it.  The cat box is sandwiched between the leg of the sewing table and the pantry wall, out of the way.  There is plenty of room for the chair to swivel or lean back in any direction.  And the portable heater can stay where it needs to stay.  Win!

Here is the view that CountryBoy came home to that evening...

(only I was sitting on the couch crocheting!)  His words when he walked in, "Oh wow!  It looks so homy!  And, it's still not crowded."

Yes!  Mission accomplished!

It was a lot of work and took me all day but I thoroughly enjoyed doing it and CountryBoy's reaction and approval was the icing on the cake.

It's been several days with this arrangement and it is proving to be working really well.

One thing I've found when living in a small space is it's best to put things away immediately and not let things get piled  up.  Then you avoid messes and clutter that can quickly make a space seem smaller and much less inviting.

Till next time,

Let The Organizing Begin

It's been busy here the last couple of days with the arrival of my Dad, brother and the cargo trailer packed full with stuff.

Before they arrived, I had the kitchen looking halfway decent and had everything where it was easily accessible and where I wanted them, for the most part.  (Mind you, there wasn't a lot of utensils, pots & pans, or small kitchen appliances because the 5th wheel was originally set up for camping in which we mostly cooked over a fire or grill.)

Look at all that counter space!  For those of you who are familiar with RV's, travel trailers or 5th wheels and who spend any amount of time in the kitchen, you know how important, and most times lacking, counter space is in these contraptions!

While CountryBoy was at work and the other boys were taking a very much needed nap, I began the task of pulling everything out of the trailer so that I could get a few things that I needed right away and so that I would be able to walk around in there.

I started to put the boxes labeled 'kitchen' inside the 5th wheel but then I realized that before I bring anymore boxes in that I, first, need to pull everything out of the cabinets, box up a few items that we don't use (I'll donate them to Goodwill) and then decide where to put everything.

I ran out of time that day so what I couldn't get put away was put back inside the trailer for another day.

I left the one kitchen box I'd already brought in and after a day of mostly not being home yesterday the place was looking like this...

Ugh!  I can't take it anymore!

So, today is the day I will attempt to get the kitchen organized.

I'll let you know how that goes.

Meanwhile, CountryBoy and I were awoken last night with the sound of the most horrendous wind storm that we've ever been through.  And, that's saying a lot since we've both been through several hurricanes when living in Florida.

Unbelievable!  For over an hour the winds were howling outside keeping us from getting any sleep.

Thankfully, the wind was blowing front to back of the trailer so it was not rockin' n rollin'.  Either that or CountryBoy has this thing stabilized extremely well.

It eventually stopped so we were able to get a few more hours of sleep before the alarm sounded.

Anyhoo, on a few less hours sleep than normal, I am going to attempt to get this place in shape.

That is, after I move the cargo trailer up a few inches so that I can plug it in for the freezer and fridge.  It will also be nice to have some functioning lights in there!

Happy Friday y'all!

Till next time,

I've Had Enough!

It's amazing how much the little house-clutter trolls can accomplish when you're away from the house for a few days and only coming home to sleep!  It seems that 'stuff' ends up everywhere!  Actually, the little rascals have been at it for some time, it's just that I have finally had enough!  So, as one who can not stand clutter... guess what I'm doing today?!  I am tackling this yet once again...

It seems that I have to tackle this area every other month because it is a dumping ground for all things that I don't know what to do with OR is something that needs to be done.  I need to come up with a system and a place for things and maybe I won't need to do this every other month!

Another project for today is this...

I printed this Household and Personal Property Inventory Book off a website maybe over a year ago and have yet to even start it because it seemed overwhelming.  I have learned that while I can not stand clutter and I yearn to be organized that I also seem to put off obtaining a clutter-free, organized life because it seems overwhelming to me and I don't know where to begin.  So, I am determined to just start somewhere, anywhere, and at least put a dent into these things that have been bugging me and need to be done.

Sooooo, here goes!  I'll let you know this evening how much I accomplish today!

Wish me luck and say a prayer... I'm gonna need it.... and maybe some caffeine today!

Till next time,