Over 20 Fun Ideas for Organizing Your Sewing Space

One of the big projects I wanted to tackle during this time at home has been reorganizing my sewing area. After months of going full speed on one project after the next, my work space was a complete disaster area, and it's taken me weeks to get things back into shape. I'm not finished yet, but the changes I've been able to make so far have already made me ten times happier every time I walk in the room. It's always amazing to me how a pretty space makes me feel so much more excited about sewing. I know that some of you are working on organizing your creative space too, so today I'm sharing some of my favorite tips with you.

Your sewing space and how you organize it are completely dependent on who you are, how you sew, and what you love to make. If you want a detailed plan on how to give your room a total overhaul, check out my book Sew Organized for the Busy Girl, but if you just need a quick refresh, making one or two changes can be enough to make a real difference. When it comes to any of the organizational ideas you pick up from me or anyone else, I can’t stress enough how important it is to:

• Be honest about what your organizational needs are and what you can actually maintain given your time and situation.

• Find a solution that looks like a good fit.

• Give that system a test run of at least a week or two.

• Be willing to adjust or start from scratch if it isn’t working.

It’s tempting to give up when something you try doesn’t work the way you thought it would, but you probably just haven’t hit on the right answer yet. Don’t stop looking for it. The time you take to find the best solution for your situation is more than worth the satisfaction you’ll have when sewing becomes a pleasure instead of a chore.



A sewing space is usually divided into four main stations: storage, cutting, sewing, and pressing. The more room you have, the more clearly separate these stations probably are. If you’re working with a small area, however -- maybe in the corner of your family room or on a desk in your bedroom -- things get tricky. It’s even more difficult if you have no real space to call your own. I remember my early days of sewing on the dining room table, timing myself so that everything could be cleared away in time for dinner and scrubbing the table after each meal so that my fabric wouldn’t end up with spaghetti sauce all over it!

Challenging situations are always a great opportunity to see how creative you can be. I’ve learned that it’s helpful to have some portable options for organizing your sewing materials whether you have a lot of room to work with or not. Listed below are some ideas for making your work space more organized and, yes, more fun. A lot of these can be done using things you already have around the house, so there's no need to buy something new unless you really want to. I personally like to use family antiques and vintage finds in my sewing room because I love them so much Wherever I can, though, I've included links to special items that I've bought myself and found useful. Ideas are classified according to the four stations above, but there’s definitely overlap, so adjust these as needed to make them work for you in any part of your creative space.

Storage 

• Picnic baskets and small suitcases can hold a surprising amount of fabric, and some even come with special pockets where you can store your notions. Best of all, they have a handle for carrying and a lid that shuts everything away from view. These can be really helpful if you're working in a smaller space.

• Spice jars are the perfect size for storing buttons and small pieces of hardware like magnetic clasps, rings, snaps, and zipper pulls. (Bonus points if you store them in a cute spice rack!) I also like to repurpose our jam jars for this job too, because who can resist a red and white gingham lid?

• Old photo drawers or card catalogs are a great fit for fabric scraps, notions, and small precuts. I use one for my charm squares, and it's the perfect size. You can easily label the drawers too, giving you the chance to sort materials by style, color, designer, or manufacturer.

• Mason jars and clear candy or cookie jars will store anything from scissors to thread, and they will always look beautiful while doing it. Best of all, you can see at a glance what supplies you have on hand.

• It took me years to find the best system for storing and organizing my quilting fabric, but I couldn’t be happier with the results. I prefer to organize my quilting cotton prints by color in identical tall woven plastic baskets measuring approximately 15” x 12” x 9”. Every print (usually half a yard or less) is folded to a width of about 5” and placed in the basket with other prints of the same color (red, orange, yellow, etc.). I can fit 2 layers of 2 long rows in each container, and I can always start a new basket if one fills up. The containers are stored on a pair of long, double shelf carts in my sewing room right beside my cutting table. It’s like having my own personal fabric shop right there whenever I need it! I also keep a reproduction soda crate for storing my solid fabrics, a metal cart with drawers for my linen and canvas prints, and a larger drawer unit for quilt backings and other special substrates like rayon and lawn. Almost all of my fabrics are arranged by color because that’s how I like to choose fabrics for my projects. This system makes finding what I need easy and fun, and that’s exactly how I like it.

Cutting 

• A desktop office supply organizer makes a fabulous tool center for your cutting station. Rulers can be sorted by size in the larger sections, and there’s usually a small compartment that’s just right for your rotary cutter and extra blades.

• Have a return basket for your cutting table. Once you finish cutting what you need from a larger piece of fabric, fold it and place it in the basket. Take five minutes each week -- or every other day, depending on how often the basket gets full -- to return all the folded fabrics to their proper spots in your fabric stash.

• Keep a scrap basket on your cutting table for all the little pieces that are too small to stash but too big to throw away. Whenever the basket gets full, find a home for the contents. Share them with a friend who loves scraps, hold a giveaway on social media or at your sewing guild, or celebrate a full basket by using them to make a scrappy project of your own.

Sewing 

• Wire baskets are a wonderful way to showcase bundles of fabric that you don’t want to separate. I also love using them to hold sets of fabric that I want to keep together for upcoming projects, including ones that are labeled by number so I can easily organize them in the order that I need to finish them. Just recently I ordered a rolling cart with removable wire trays that I can slide out and set on my sewing table while I'm working, and I absolutely love it. When it’s time to start working on a project, I just grab the tray and get to work. If I need to take a break, everything goes back in the tray so I don’t lose anything while the work is in progress, and it slides easily back into the cart, leaving my sewing table clean.
• Ceramic containers for kitchen utensils are the perfect place to store packaged zippers.
• I keep a small cutting mat just to the left of my sewing machine so that I can do quick seam trimming without having to get up and walk over to my main cutting table. This really comes in handy when I’m working on blocks like half square triangles.

• Tins and lunch boxes make fantastic travel sewing kits. The hard sides of the box keep everything inside from being crushed, and there’s plenty of room for all your supplies. 
• I keep a small ceramic basket filled with stuffing next to my machine for projects like pincushions and stuffed animals. It takes up less room than a full bag of stuffing (which I store elsewhere), but is nice to have at hand when I need it.
• A pretty soap dish makes a quick landing spot for embroidery scissors and binding clips next to your machine.
• A lap desk with a lid is the perfect organizational accessory for English paper piecing or hand quilting. I keep one in my bedroom so that in the evenings I can pull out my latest project, have a nice flat surface in my lap for sewing while I watch a movie with my husband, and then slip everything back inside when it’s time for bed. A small serving tray will work just as well in a pinch when balanced on a pillow in my lap.

• Trays of all kinds are wonderful for organizing block pieces or small notions. My daughters gave me a retro cafeteria lunch tray for Christmas, and I keep it stocked with all the little things that I want to be able to find in a hurry when I'm at my machine.
• Vintage glass measuring cups are wonderful places to corral binding clips or basting pins, and I love that they come with a handle that's easy to grab when I'm working.
• I love using a tin picnic utensil caddy to store larger tools like scissors, chopsticks, pencils, notepads, and my sewing machine accessory kit.

Pressing 

• Use a small homemade ironing board for most of your pressing needs. There are great tutorials online for making both tabletop and TV tray versions of this little gem, and it allows you to keep your full size ironing board stored away unless you need it for a larger project. All you need is a board, batting, fabric, and a staple gun.

• I like to keep a small tray or basket next to my pressing board filled with spray starch, the small flask I use to pour water into my iron, a seam ripper, a hera marker, and fabric pens. It’s amazing how much time you can save when you get in the habit of grouping items together that you use at each station so that you can find them when you need them.

• After I finish pressing my strips of fabric for quilt binding and sewing them together, I wind the long strip into a small circle and place it into a heavy, clear glass cookie jar, pulling one end out of the jar to start sewing. The jar keeps the binding from unrolling and spilling all over the floor under my feet as I slowly feed it out and sew it onto the quilt. When I’m done, I put the leftover binding back in the jar. It’s not only a great storage spot for these extra pieces (which make fantastic scrappy binding), but it also makes a colorful display on my shelf. 

Finally, always remember that spotless and organized are not the same thing. We often think that our space isn't organized unless everything in it is perfectly clean, but a workspace is actually organized if it's arranged so that you can find everything you need quickly and easily. Discovering new creative ways to do it is just part of the fun!

A New Plan

As a girl who lives by her lists, it helps me to have a place to keep them together so I don't wind up with post-it notes all over the house. I talked about keeping a sewing calendar in Sew Organized for the Busy Girl, which has been really helpful to me in my creative work. Nowadays I keep a lot of that information in a monthly calendar on my phone, but I also like have something on paper where I can write down the daily steps that get me to those weekly goals. I spent the last week of 2019 looking for the perfect planner to carry me into the new year, but after several hours spent combing through what was available both online and in stores, I came up empty. So this year I decided to try something new: I made my own planner pages from scratch on Adobe Illustrator.

I had originally planned to bring the file to the local office store and have it printed and spiral bound, but my mom encouraged me to live with the pages in a binder for a few weeks first so that I could make adjustments as needed. It was good advice. I've found a few ways to streamline the page as I go along.

While I often have special appointments in my schedule, most of the items on my to-do list fall under a recurring set of categories: cleaning, cooking, homeschooling, writing, and sewing. There are some things that I need to do every single day, but can easily forget to do (feed the dogs) or forget whether or not I've done them (take my allergy medicine) if they're not on a list in front of me. I love having these daily chores already built into the page so that all I have to do is check them off. There's also room to write down extra tasks that come up as well as a spot at the top for special activities or important things that need my attention right away.

In my drive to work through a checklist, it's easy for me to forget about the small everyday things that are going on in my life, so I added room at the bottom of the page to keep track of those too. There's a place to list what I'm reading, listening to, and watching every other day. I like that this will not only help me stay faithful in keeping my annual list of what books I've read, but it will also let me see what's influencing my thinking throughout the year.

My favorite feature, though, is the small section in the lower right corner for moments that I want to remember -- little victories, quirky happenings, funny things that the girls say. Just looking back over the pages I have already, I can't help but smile at the memories I'm recording, things that could have so easily been forgotten otherwise. The time we were watching White Christmas for a family movie night, and James declared that the pale yellow socks that Danny Kaye was wearing were the height of fashion...so of course I had to track down a pair for him online (he loves them!). The day that Bunny scored a 98% on both her history AND science semester finals. The night when Bear lost a tooth not five minutes after the girls were talking about how much they wanted ice cream (we celebrate every lost tooth with ice cream in our family; it's a tradition). The morning that Mouse came to me excited because she had actually enjoyed a math lesson for the first time ever. "Because," she added (I kid you not), "multiplication and division are the death of all good things." I ran right over to my planner to write that one down before I could forget it, let me tell you...

I love hearing what other people are doing when it comes to planners and organization. What do you use to stay on top of your daily, weekly, and monthly schedule? Do you like using a planner or not? Have any of you tried making your own? What are the most helpful tricks you've found when it comes to getting your to-do list done each day? Please share!

The Constance Organizer Tutorial Revisited

Just over five years ago, I did a series of sewing posts for a blog called The Glamorous Housewife, which I recently found out has since gone defunct. Consequently, people have been clicking on the tutorial link for my Constance Organizer tutorial and sadly coming up empty. I've gotten quite a few emails about it in the last few weeks from people who want to make them as Christmas presents for friends and family (especially teachers!), so after spending a bit of time tracking down the text and photos from that original post, I'm reposting it all here for you below. It's a quick little tutorial and a truly useful gift. If you make one, please share a photo on Instagram with the hashtag #constanceorganizer and tag me @fabricmutt. Enjoy!

It took me years, but I finally learned the secret to getting (most of) what I need to do finished every day: lists. It's all about lists for me when it comes to organization. If it's not written down, forget it. Unfortunately, I usually end up with two or three running lists for different areas of my life, and then it comes down to trying to track down the lists themselves so I can figure out what I needed to remember in the first place. The solution? A handy little organizer for keeping everything straight.

This little beauty has a place for everything I could possibly need: notepad, post-it notes, note cards, business cards, a pen, and even a few vintage postcards for inspiration. The version you'll see in the tutorial photos is one that I made for myself using all cotton prints and a dark brown solid for accent pieces. Though I hadn't intended for this to be a seasonal project, the prints all rather remind me of fall -- definitely my favorite time of the year.

Joel McCrea & Jean Arthur in The More the Merrier

This month's tutorial is inspired by The More the Merrier, a wonderful 1940's screwball comedy. Jean Arthur stars as Constance Milligan, a compulsively organized working girl who decides to sublet half of her apartment to help out with the housing shortage in wartime Washington, D.C. Life takes a crazy turn when retired millionaire Benjamin Dingle (played by Charles Coburn) moves in and then decides to do a little matchmaking by renting half of his half to a handsome soldier named Joe Carter (played by Joel McCrea). It's classic comedy at its best, and Jean Arthur's costumes are absolutely divine examples of 1940's fashion. If you'd like to see an updated version of the story, it was remade in 1966 as Walk Don't Run  -- this time concerning close quarters during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and featuring an utterly charming Cary Grant in his last film appearance.

By the way, there are always ways to tweak any of my tutorials to make them fit your own style. I made another one of these organizers for my mom using linen accents and a magnetic clasp. This version is a little more grown-up, and I love the vintage inspired prints it uses (scroll to the end of this post for a look inside this one). It never ceases to amaze me how a change in fabric can transform the whole feel of a project. Even though this is an item that's going to see a lot of everyday use, I think it's important to use fabrics that you love. Those lists are easier to face when they're framed by happy fabric.

But enough chit-chat . . . let's get sewing!

Materials: 
(2) 6.75 x 10.5" print for exterior
(1) 4 x 10.5" solid (linen or cotton) for exterior accent
(1) 10.5 x 16.5" batting for exterior
(2) 8.5 x 10.5" print for lining
(1) 10.5 x 16.5" interfacing for lining (I used Pellon 809 Decor Bond)
(1) 8.5 x 14" solid (linen or cotton) for pad pocket
(1) 7 x 8.5" interfacing for pad pocket
(1) 8.5 x 16" print for top interior pocket
(1) 8 x 8.5" interfacing for top interior pocket
(1) 8.5 x 13" for middle interior pocket
(1) 6.5 x 8.5" interfacing for middle interior pocket
(4) 4.75 x 8.5" prints for interior zipper pocket and lining (cut 2 each of 2 different prints)
(1) 3 x 3.5" solid (linen or cotton) for exterior flap
(1) 3 x 3.5" print for flap lining
(1) 3 x 3.5" batting for flap
(1) 3 x 3.5" interfacing for flap
(1) 9" or larger zipper for interior zipper pocket
(1) magnetic snap or (1) 2" piece of velcro
Adhesive basting spray or fabric glue
Chopstick for turning
Sewing clips or clothespins
Coordinating thread

Note: All seams will be 1/4" wide. Don't forget to press your work between steps to keep things neat and tidy. Half the work is cutting out all the pieces for this project. Once you have the prep work done, it goes together pretty quickly!

Step One: Make the basic interior pockets. Take the fabrics for the pad pocket and the top and middle interior pockets, fold them with wrong sides together (8.5" ends meeting), and press the folds well. Slip the matching piece of interfacing between those wrong sides and press again so it sticks in place. Top stitch 1/4" from the fold on each piece. Baste the pad pocket in place on the bottom of one of the 8.5 x 10.5" lining pieces. (That means setting your machine to its longest stitch length and sewing around the sides and bottom 1/8" from the edge. This will hold it in place when you're sewing everything together later.) If you're using linen, by the way, keep in mind that it can be a little finicky at times, so don't worry if it seems to stretch a tad while you sew. You can always trim the extra bits off later.

Step Two: Make the interior zipper pocket. Stack in this order along an 8.5" edge: lining piece (right side up), zipper (right side up), exterior piece (right side down). Sew down that edge, fold the fabrics back so that the wrong sides are together, and press. Top stitch 1/4" from the zipper and then repeat on the other side. Trim the zipper ends off on each side of the pocket, making sure that the zipper pull is in the middle first! Fold the sides of the pocket together so that you match up all four pieces of fabric and the lining pieces have their right sides together. Baste the sides of the zipper pocket together.

Step Three: Assemble all the interior pockets. Stack the three interior pockets in order from top to bottom: top interior, middle interior, and zipper pocket. Line them up along the bottom edge of the lining piece and baste along the sides and bottom.

Step Four: Finish the interior. Stack the two lining pieces right sides together and stitch along the 10.5" side, joining them together so that the pad pocket will be on the right when opened. Press the seam to one side and place the whole interior piece on top of the matching piece of interfacing, pressing it in place. Be careful with your ironing around that zipper! Once the interfacing is securely attached, flip the piece back over to the right side. Measure and mark a line 1.25" from the center seam. Stitch a line down the solid pocket to create a pen pocket in the center, making sure that you backstitch at the top so the pocket doesn't come loose with use.

Step Five: Make the cover. Sew the two exterior prints to either 10.5" side of the solid accent strip which should be in the center. Attach the batting to the back of the cover and then top stitch down both sides of each of the seams. Center and sew half of the 2" piece of velcro about 1" from the edge on the right side of the cover (scroll down to step six for a photo of this). I usually sew around a piece of velcro at least twice just to be sure that it's not going to budge anytime soon.

Step Six: Make the flap. Attach batting to the flap exterior with fabric glue or adhesive basting spray and iron the interfacing onto the flap lining piece. Stack the lining and exterior pieces with their right sides together and sew all around them, leaving a few inches open on the bottom for turning. Trim around the edges, clipping the corners, and turn right side out using the chopstick to poke out the corners. Tuck in the raw edges and and topstitch 1/8" from the edge all the way around the flap. Center the other half of the velcro on the right side on the flap lining about 1/4" from the edge and sew all the way around it twice.

Center the flap on the left side of the exterior, about 1" from the edge with the velcro pointing away from the cover. Sew a 1/4" wide rectangle on the flap to hold it in place on the cover.

Step Seven: Finish the organizer. Stack the lining and exterior with right sides together, tucking the flap inside out of the way. Clip them together and then sew all the way around the outside of the pieces, backstitching at both ends and leaving a gap for turning on what will be the upper side of the back of the organizer. Trim all the way around the stitching and then turn it (carefully!) right side out, using the chopstick to press out the corners. Tuck the raw edges inside the gap and press it well -- again being careful of that zipper! -- then topstich 1/8" all the way around the outside. Tuck in your office supplies, and you're in business!

Happy sewing!

Recycled Storage Solutions

I've learned to follow my own personal shopping rule when I spot something I like in the store: if you really love it, buy it -- even if you don't know how you're going to use it. I know the experts say that's a no-no, but I've found that I almost always find a use for that object sooner or later.

Fortunately, I didn't need to justify my rule when I spotted this vintage style soda crate at Michael's, because I knew exactly what I wanted to put inside it: the gorgeous stack of Confetti Cotton solids that Riley Blake sent me last week. I actually own several authentic soda crates from the last century which I inherited from my grandmother, but I'd be worried about storing fabric in them with all the accumulated grime inside that's hard to remove with cleaning products yet would undoubtedly rub off on my precious fat quarters. So instead I stack those boxes on the shelf above my teacher desk where I can look at the great typography on the outside. This reproduction crate, however, works perfectly because a) there's nothing on the inside that could come off on my fabric and b) the sections inside are exactly the right width for my folded fabric pieces.

It's always important to keep this sort of thing in mind when you're recycling truly old things to hold new ones. I love using containers of all sorts for corralling sewing notions, home office supplies, or any number of little things around the house, and antique items have so much personality. Depending on what you want to put inside them, though, you might want to consider whether vintage or vintage inspired pieces will work better for the situation.

I'll be sharing some of my favorite repurposed organizational containers with you over the next few months so that you can see how I use them in my sewing room and other parts of the house. Once you start looking for ways to work fun objects into your storage solutions, it's hard to stop!

Sewing Machine Accessory Pouch Tutorial

I have another tutorial over at the Fat Quarter Shop blog today. The Sewing Machine Accessory Pouch is the perfect spot to keep your sewing machine tools, accessories, and manual so that you can find everything when you need it. The featured sample above was sewn with Chestnut Street fabric by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda. I love that text print in the background!

Here's my first prototype, made with scraps from my own stash. I made the bottom corners round in this version, but otherwise it's the same. It's always fun to see how different prints change the look of things.

This would also make a great pouch for hand quilting or embroidery projects. A hoop is easily tucked into the outside pocket while your tools go inside the zipper pocket.

Head over to the FQS blog for the pattern!

7 Tips for Planning Your Next Project

Every project has to start somewhere. The time spent planning your next work of art is arguably the most important part of the creative process. This is where you’ll decide what you want to make, why you’re making it, and how you’ll do it. Here are seven ideas for getting the most out of your next sewing project design session...

1. Have a resource library.

Whether you design your own projects or enjoy working from ready made patterns, it helps to have a library full of ideas to get you started. This can include books, magazines, patterns, blogs, websites, online idea boards, or a set of bookmarks on your computer. Having these resources at hand helps me when…

• I want a pattern that’s ready to go quickly.
• I need help with a specific technique.
• I’m stuck for ideas and need inspiration.

Keep in mind that you don’t have to limit yourself to sewing publications. I’m tremendously inspired by works about interior decorating, travel, architecture, fashion, general crafting, and vintage design. You are the curator of your library, so choose items that are important, useful, and meaningful to you.

2. Be a librarian.

Have a system for keeping your print items in order. Bookshelves are the most obvious solution for stashing your books and magazines, but wooden crates, heavy wire bins, and magazine files work too. I use all of the above options for different types of publications.

Patterns are also a part of your library, and there are plenty of ways to organize them. Keep each one in a separate file folder, school portfolio, manilla envelope, or clear plastic bag. Any of these options will fit neatly inside a wire basket or file box, where they’ll be ready when you need them.

3. Know what you like.

When you’re deciding what to sew next, be honest with yourself about what you like to make. We all have projects in our past that we started for some reason but abandoned because they just didn’t work for us. When this happens a lot, it can be frustrating to see that stack of unfinished projects.

The longer you sew, the more you’ll know what kind of projects you do best, and this will help you be both practical and thoughtful when choosing a project. Also remember that your tastes are going to change over time. The artist you are today is not the one you were even a year ago. You may find that projects, quilting styles, fabrics, or colors that once excited you, now seem to have lost their appeal. This is completely normal. Sometimes you’ll be surprised to find yourself falling in love with those items all over again later on, but if not, you can always pass them on to others who will be happy to give them a new home. Just remember that there’s no greater waste than investing time in projects you don’t love just because you think you’re supposed to.

4. Stretch yourself.

Don’t be afraid to try something new once in a while. This is how you grow. I’ve found that many things I was once afraid to try (zippers, bags, hexagons) became favorite projects, many of which opened up great opportunities for me. And even if you don’t end up loving that new technique, you’ve still gained valuable experience.

5. Stock an art station.

Keep a set of art supplies on hand so that you can capture ideas when you think of them. My workspace is always stocked with pencils, erasers, colored pencils, a ruler, graph paper, and unlined paper. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run to my desk so that I can sketch out a design before it disappears from my head. Having these materials nearby is so helpful when inspiration strikes.

6. Choose your fabrics thoughtfully.

Are you going for a wild and crazy mix of prints and colors? Is this project for a child or an adult? Should you stick to a color palette? Having all these questions settled in your mind before you start pulling the fabric out of your cabinet will keep you focused when you're making decisions later on.

Also remember that if you don’t love it now, you won’t love it later. This applies to pretty much everything in the sewing process, including the prints you choose. Don’t start sewing until you love the fabric stack in front of you. Too often I've ignored that little voice in my head that said, "I'm not sure I like this" and lived to regret it...every single time.

7. Practice.

Scientist Linus Pauling once said, "The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas." It's so true. Designing projects, choosing winning fabric combinations -- these things take time and practice. The more you do it, the more you'll feel comfortable with what you like. Keep practicing every week and, if possible, keep a record of your work through a notebook, blog, or social media account. When you look back over that creative journey, you'll be surprised at how far you've come.

How do you choose your sewing projects? Do you prefer to work with ready made patterns, do you like designing your own, or a little of both? Any tips for the design table?

9 Steps to a Happy Cutting Table

The cutting table can be one of the most stressful places in your sewing room. This is where things can get dangerous (watch out for that blade!), frustrating (why didn't I double check the measurements?), and downright messy (hello, piles of fabric). It doesn't have to be that way, though. Here are nine steps to a happy cutting table...

1. Get the height right.

I’ve found that the height of my cutting table is directly related to how much pain reliever I have to take after a sewing session. For years I cut my fabric on a low desk, and my back paid the price in a big way. Being just under 6 feet tall, I found that it was impossible to avoid this problem without looking for a different piece of furniture. I finally invested in a 39” high pub table that I bought through Amazon, and the difference was incredible. If you’re experiencing a similar problem, try looking for other options. In my experience, if the top of the table comes to your waist or even a bit higher, it will probably be a good fit. It also doesn't hurt to keep an adjustable stool tucked away under the table for those moments when you want -- or need -- to sit down.

2. Lighten up.

Trying to cut your fabric in poor lighting is like driving at night without your headlights...a very bad idea. I've tried several lighting options, and my favorite by far is a simple task lamp. It's brighter than most table lamps and adjustable so that I can point it where I need it.

3. Invest in a few good rulers.

I used to do all my cutting with a single 8 1/2 x 12” ruler. While it’s possible to get by with just one, it’s worth investing in more. My 2 1/2 x 18” ruler is fantastic for cutting binding strips. I also recommend getting at least one small square ruler for fussy cutting. I’m a huge fan of non-slip versions. It can be helpful, depending on the type of projects you do, to add tools that will help you cut special blocks like flying geese, circles, or dresdens. You know if this is something you need or not.

4. Go big with your cutting mat.

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to cut fabric on a mat that's too small. I keep a 12 x 18" cutting mat right next to my sewing machine for trimming blocks, but all my preliminary work is done on an 18 x 24" mat, which is the largest size I can fit on my cutting table.

5. Take care of your tools.

Over time, even the best kept rulers can get chipped or cracked. If you notice damaged tools, be sure to replace them because they can affect your accuracy. There’s no concrete rule on how often you should replace your rotary cutter blade, since it all depends on how often you use it. When I find that I’m having to place an uncomfortable amount of pressure on the cutter to get the results I want, it’s probably time to switch blades.

6. Try a desktop organizer.

A typical desktop supply organizer makes a fabulous corral for cutting tools. I have an inexpensive wooden version with just three sections to it. The large compartment in the back holds my biggest rulers, the mid-sized section in front is for my smaller rulers, and the smallest slot is for my rotary cutter and extra blades. It couldn’t be more perfect if I’d designed it myself for the task.

7. Use a fabric weight.

It’s helpful to have a weight or two on your cutting table to hold fabric in place while you cut it. This also keeps the fabric from sliding or falling off the edge of the table when you’re working with a bigger piece of yardage. I use a small vintage iron, but anything heavy, from a paper weight to a mason jar full of sand, should do the job.

8. Know where everything goes.

The cutting table is usually where the mess begins in my sewing room, and it gets out of control fast. Having a place for everything to go when you’re done with it is the best way to head off the clutter before it begins. Fabric that lands on my cutting mat will wind up in one of five places:

• my sewing table: fabric going into the project
• the return basket: fabric going back into storage (I sort the contents of this basket back into my color coded fabric baskets whenever it gets full.)
• the scrap basket: scraps and selvages
• the pretty bowl: special pieces and thin strings that are just too pretty to throw away
• the trash can: everything else

Whenever the cutting table scrap basket gets full, I hand it off to one of my daughters, who love to sort the pieces into my color coded scrap buckets.  

9. Fold it now. 

I have a rule that I never put fabric into the return basket without folding it first. Those 10 seconds spent folding now save me half an hour of folding a mountain of fabrics later on.

Do you have any special tips for the cutting table? Share them in the comments below!

Fleet & Flourish Iron Cover

The first time I worked with Fleet & Flourish was actually last fall when I was sewing up samples for my friend Maureen's Quilt Market booth. Back then I was enjoying the challenge of seeing how far I could stretch the smaller pieces of strike-offs that I had to work with to make as many bags as possible. This time, it was a thrill to have the entire spectrum of prints on hand in the bundle that she sent me, and while I was sorely tempted to make a quilt, I decided that it would be better to sew something I really desperately needed: an iron cover.

Though we often think only of making sewing machine covers, I've found that my iron can get just as dusty and lint covered as my machine. As I was looking through the pages of Natural Patchwork by Suzuko Koseki -- an absolutely gorgeous book which I highly recommend -- it suddenly struck me that, with just a few changes, her adorable tea cozy (shown right there on the cover) would make a fabulous iron cozy.

It took only one afternoon to sew this together, and I couldn't be happier with the finished project. I kept the patchwork front, using slightly larger rectangles, and used a favorite print on the back. The cover is not only a perfect fit for my iron, but it also lies flat when not in use. I can slip it into a drawer while I sew and then pull it out again when I need it.

Maureen is such a talented designer. I feel like all her projects -- whether they be her fabric collections, quilted projects, or felt creations -- are such a clear reflection of her own style: a lovely mix of bohemian, romantic, and country with just a touch of fantasy. More than anything, you can see her heart in the designs, and this is what I love the most. I'm so honored to have the chance to work with her fabric.

You can follow the rest of the tour stops below and see all the prints in Maureen's beautiful collection here.

Feb 22nd ~ Amy Friend : During Quiet Time { Blog & Instagram }

Feb 23rd ~ Heidi Staples : Fabric Mutt { Blog & Instagram }

Feb 24th ~ Amy Smart : Diary of a Quilter { Blog & Instagram }

Feb 25th ~ Amanda Jean: Crazy Mom Quilts { Blog & Instagram }

Feb 26th ~ Brooke Sellmann : Silly Mama Quilts { Blog & Instagram } Visit Maureen Cracknell Handmade for a Fleet & Flourish GIVEAWAY with Lady Belle Fabrics!!

Feb 29th ~ Amber Carillo : One Shabby Chick { Instagram & Blog }

March 1st ~ Nicke Cutler : Kiss Kiss Quilt { Instagram & Blog }

March 2nd ~ Nicole Daksiewicz : Modern Handcraft { Instagram & Blog }

March 3rd ~ Christopher Thompson : the Tattooed Quilter { Instagram & Blog }

March 4th ~ Alexis Wright : My Sweet Sunshine { Blog & Instagram } Visit Maureen Cracknell Handmade for a Fleet & Flourish GIVEAWAY with Llama Fabrics!!

March 7th ~ Jessica Stewart : Izzy & Ivy Designs { Blog & Instagram }

March 8th ~ Stephanie Kendron : Modern Sewciety { Blog & Instagram }

March 9th ~ Heather Bostic : House of A La Mode // Citizens of Textile { Instagram }

March 10th ~ Ali Brorsen : Because of Brenna { Blog, Facebook, & Instagram }

March 11th ~ Melissa Kelley : Sew Shabby Quilting { Blog, Facebook, & Instagram } Visit Maureen Cracknell Handmade for a Fleet & Flourish GIVEAWAY with the Intrepid Thread!!

March 14th ~  Maureen Cracknell Handmade { Blog, Facebook, & Instagram }