Should I?
Friday, September 3, 2010 at 7:56AM Jim and I still can’t decided if we’re going to stay in this house, if so I will have a studio built, or if we want to keep trying to find some land, and build on it. Since we’re undecided, I don’t want to build a studio yet, so the garage is likely to be my quilting quarters for another year or two.
With that in mind, knowing that I never plan on converting the garage to living space, do you think it would be worth it to replace the industrial shelves with some of the white laminate shelves (like you buy at Lowes) that have doors on them, for my pantry item?
And what about the floor, should I find some type of temporary floor covering? That would be a major job, as everything would have to come out, and the longarm releveled, but doable.
;)
;)
Honestly it doesn’t bother me too much as it is, but I imagine it might seem a bit weird to my customers who come over to drop quilts off, although no one has ever mentioned it at all.
It’s wonderfully cool outside this morning, I opened up all the windows for some air!
Reader Comments (20)
if you knew for sure you were staying and always going to use this space as your studio then I would re-do it and hide the pantry -- BUT -- if you think this is only temporary then I wouldn't bother because of the expense and time involved doing the remake. I would hold off for sure until I made up my mind - my opinion -
Karen
http://karensquilting.com/blog/
I think your quilting area looks very nice just the way it is - clean and organized.
Personally, I love seeing your full pantry. I don't think it's weird at all. I find it quite impressive. If it was me, I'd leave the shelves just as is. What about hanging quilts on the shelves? Show off your work, hide your treasures. :)
The floor??? Will it be comfortable/warm in the winter with just the concrete? Do you really, really want to move out all your stuff for flooring???
This is me being practical with your $. LOL
I like OPEN.
Looks great to me!! Just so you have something comfy to stand on while you quilt, but it looks like you sit to quilt. I think it's fun to see how others are set up to do their quilting. Thanks for showing yours.
It's still 59 degrees here at 9:30 Had our first T storm in a long while and 'weather alerts' on TV. It's been a LONG time since we've seen one of those!!!
CJ. It isn't important Where. Just How you work. Don't waste your money. Buy more fabric. Hilary
It sure wouldn't bother me if I dropped off a quilt! The garage is clean as a whistle, well organized and looks great! I would wait to put in more $ until you are sure you are staying put.
Ditto to all the above!! I think your room looks wonderful--organized, clean, and comfortable. It's inspiring! I'll bet lots of ladies go home and say, let's see if I can get my stuff to look as nice as CJ's. Really!
I wouldn't worry about the floor if I were you. Clients who drop off/pick up quilts know it's a garage and if it's comfortable for you to work in, why change it? As for the pantry section....how about looking into that rail that hospital curtains hang on & put up some heavier weight cotton curtains around your current shelves....they look perfectly serviceable, why spend money on different ones?
A seamstress friend of mine has a separate out-building for her studio, where her clients are received. The studio is one big open space. To "hide" the working area of the studio, she used fabric partitions, hanging from rods attached to the ceiling, to section off a small area just for her clients. The small area has an area rug, a small couch, a table and photos/pictures of her work.
When there are no clients, she simply pulls the fabric back along the rods to rest against the studio walls ... thereby visually opening up the entire studio when she is working. If a client is coming in, she just pulls the fabric partition/curtains to section off the area .. and hide the working area from view.
You might think of doing a similar idea with a small section of your gargage ... sort of like a client waiting room. This creates a more professional area for your clients, as they don't see the working "mess" yet isn't a huge commitment to you in terms of work, resources or time. Instead of photos of your own work, you could hang actual quilts! :-)
Hey Chic,
I love your Studio - I see no harm in customers seeing that you have a pantry, we all have to live.
I did see that you have a really cool stool at which to sit while you sew at your longarm. I sit while I stitch and have an ergonomical stool with knee rests - it was given to me and I love it, but wish I could find a better one with better adjustment. Saying that, how do you like your stool? Do you sit at it for long periods? Would you suggest it to others? From where did yours come?
Thanks, I love new toys!
Carol Ann
I would hold off. Your space is so very neat and organized I don't think customers will find it odd or be put off by it.
If the pantry bothers you, make curtains, regular or hang a quilt. The quilt type would make it look like it's part of your quilt room. My room is in the basement and I have concrete floors and cement block walls. I put down area rugs and cut out areas where my quilt table legs are because I had leveled that darn table one too many times. Doesn't look too bad. You are way ahead of me with finished walls. I want to paint the basement walls in my area but dread the thought of moving everything.......everything being 4 shelves of fabric (floor to ceiling), a 6 foot shelf of books/magazines, another shelf of assorted stuff, a chest of drawers full of fabric, a table with stuff on it, another chest of drawers with my Bernina 440QE, then my old computer, then my new computer and at last my 6 ft counter section. Think of this as an L shape starting with the first 4 shelves and moving on. Plus the 8 ft section of pegboard that would have to come down. Girl, you have it made! I would take my garage with it's finished walls any old day! Take it from me, no one notices the surroundings. I had a couple of Quilts of Valor ladies over and the only thing they remember about my area was my crazy cat rolling off a shelf!!!! Chill out and don't worry about the little things. The important things are : 1) sewing tops and 2) quilting. Other than that, don't sweat it!!!!! lol Oh, and get a cat!
Your garage is beautiful and an inspiration to all of us who have icky garages.
Good grief, girl!! It's super clean, super organized... nice and open and light! I would have zero worries dropping off a quilt to you! Don't waste the money!! Wait until you know for sure where you'll stay!
CJ, I think your space looks great just like it is....so neat and orderly. Since you aren't sure about how long you might stay there, I don't think I would put a lot of money into any major modifications. As far as the flooring goes, have you ever seen stained concrete floors? The office where I work has them all over the building. He also put them in a restored late-Victorian era building now used for an events center and also in upscale custom built homes. They look really nice, much better than a normal gray concrete floor. You would still need some mats or rugs for areas where you need cushioning but it might be a fairly inexpensive way to improve the appearance of the floor if that's what you're going for.
When I went to my long arm quilter the first time she had her quilters set up in the garage. I didn't care where she had it as long as it was clean and she did a good job. Beautiful home canned goods on shelves are pretty to look at so leave them on display. Your garage/studio looks great the way it is. Save your money for more fabric!
I think your garage looks wonderful! If you are unsure about staying there and want to invest in cabinets with doors, it would still be an investment you can take with you. I like the idea of the white cabinets with doors to cover the pantry goods, and it would add to your studio look. My friend has those type of cabinets in her studio and they sure look nice! She has all her fabric in them at one end of the room instead of food though!:o)
I also like the idea of area rugs here and there, but then they are more difficult to keep clean than the bare concrete. I don't think I would add any additional expense in flooring the garage until you decide if you are staying.
Just a thought for the future: I've always been enchanted with Caryl Bryer Fallerts studio flooring. Square two color composition tiles. Here newest square studio flooring is in colors, but her older studio was black and white composition tiles. She mentioned using the floor tiles to square up her quilts which I think is such a clever idea! I also liked her black and white color scheme at that time more---
Here is a link to Caryl's studio
http://www.bryerpatch.com/wkshops/building/StudioSewingEnd1_63k.jpg
This type of flooring is also easier to lay down and I've seen it garages that are used for storing and displaying vintage vehicles and it's really neat looking. Just some thoughts---
I say .. if you feel good.. they will feel good. But if the pantry thing gets all over you make some design walls/doors for the front of the shelves and use that space to show of in-the-works projects.. seems like that would be ideal!
Maddie
Looks great. Short term I'd probably spruce it up with a few fun projects that also personalize the space. E.g. Make some valances for the windows and cover the pantry shelves with some muslin panels. Maybe embroider each panel with what's behind them. Vegetables, Fruits, Grains, etc. It could be a conversation piece. Your customers might get curious and if they ask you could show them.
Another thing I'd do for sure is make a Created By CJ sign out of fabric letters. You know like the fabric designers do to promote their booths at the quilt market.