Karen's Sewing & Craft Room

Come behind the scenes at I Always Pick The Thimble and tour Karen's sewing & craft room in Kansas.

I love all the sunshine!

Tell us about your space

Our house was built in 1932 and this 12' x 11' sewing room was actually the master bedroom with a little room that connected to the master bedroom by a curved doorway to serve as a nursery. The "nursery" is very small, but works great for an office or in this case a craft room annex.

I use the craft room mostly for jewelry making, journaling and taking photo's for my blog and sew in the sewing room.

What have you done to make your space cosy, beautiful or inspiring?

At first I complained about all the windows - mostly because I thought they were taking up space that could otherwise be used for storage. Then I began to embrace the windows for their warm bright daylight, and emphasized them with long, white, light filtering curtains.

I also wanted to display all of my fabrics because I love the brightness, color and pattern. Finding a way to fold the fabrics so they could fit nicely into the crate storage was a big help.

How do you keep organized?

Buckets. Love using the buckets. That way I can just toss stuff in them. I have 4 boxes with lids for little items, and they work great too, but with the buckets or tall baskets, I don't have to put a lid back on, so it's quicker to put items away.

Any tips & tricks for organising supplies?

I always try to arrange supplies by color and then display the items I use most out in the open. For example, I store fabric in open crates, thread in old flower vases and my knitting needles and crochet hooks in jars.

Which are your favourite possessions and are there any of your own creations on display?

I have this small beautiful bronze sculpture by Tom Corbin (a Kansas City artist) that I love. I call her my "Fabric Goddess" and she watches over my fabrics.

How do you organise your inspiration and ideas?

I have two fabric wrapped panels where I pin photos, lace, fabric scraps, and whatever moves me.

Where do you look for inspiration?

I turn to Roost and Anthropology for jewelry ideas, because their pieces are always so unusual and beautiful at the same time.

If you had three wishes, what would you do to make it the dream space?

1. Jukebox.
2. Silhouette cutting machine.
3. Even more windows. :)