I am not one of those quilters blesssed with a large sewing room complete with a design wall. I am a simple farm girl, in my simple 1900 farm house, trying to make the most of what I have. Typically, I use my dining room floor as my design wall (floor) and for laying out my quilts…..but that has all changed since the remodeling project.
It is now covered in rugs and I have no where to lay out quilt blocks. We NEVER use the front door so it made a perfect area to lay out quilts. Now the front door is the only way to get into the house so….no design wall..no laying out blocks.
That doesn’t mean I am not sewing! Here are my blocks for the Between Charming Friends Quilt a Long.
Luckily it’s a scrap quilt, so I can sew the pieces together randomly without actually laying them out. I have a couple other baskets of quilt blocks ready for the remodeling project to be over so there’s a design wall (floor) again.
…speaking of the remodeling project….we are now two days of back hoe and plumber over budget. We are trying to unclog a drain that has been clogged for years. Here’s hoping today is the day that can get fixed…and so goes my remodeling saga.
This is going to be a fun quilt. How bout using a cheap flannel back table cloth and lay it on the floor or a bed and then you can fold it up until you need it again. Just a quick thought…… You sound like you a coping pretty good with the remodel (so far).
Good luck on your remodeling projects. I sewed all of my clothing when I was growing up. We had two sewing machines set up in the living room and many nights, they were both going (as the rest of my family was trying to watch TV). So, it’s possible to sew anywhere, but it sure is nice to have a room. Maybe someday you will.
Hi Jo — I really like your blog. Seeing the Country Threads reproduction quilts on your blog inspired me to join too and I am enjoying the patterns and fabrics. I also don’t have a big sewing room. I made some “portable” design walls with large pieces of foam core covered with batting and flannel. I also made smaller ones for piecing blocks. I stand the larger ones up against the wall and put two or three together for more space and the small ones are great next to my machine to layout blocks and make piecing easier blocks. This works especially well for scrappy blocks when there is not a lot of strip piecing involved. Thanks for the great blog!
I also use the floor as a design “wall.” I use my living room floor. Nothing wrong with that!
remodeling stinks even when things go well, which is usually never…but after it’s done the nightmare’s will fade…;)
love your scrappy quilt and I didn’t have a design “wall” for a long time either. Use what you have and make it work, I think that’s like a quilter’s mantra or something!
Good on you for making do, that’s all one can do…or I suppose you could moan about it and not sew…oh scary thought!!