This month's sewing room belongs one of the coolest chicks we know. We all met Emma from Ballarat Patchwork during Spring Quilt Market this year and let me tell you this Aussie was a ton of fun to chat with! Emma was here on her first ever market where she was helping her friend Melly from Melly & Me with her booth. Both ladies were a blast to hang out with (and since I seceretly would love to have an Australian accent I hung out with them the most I could hoping it would rub off… sadly, no luck.)
During one of our dinners together Emma showed me her shop and home back in the down under. I fell in love with the color and the simplicity of the space. I will let her tell you the story of how her home came to be and how shae made her sapce work for her… so lets get to it :)
My Creative Space.
My creative space is actually just a corner in my living area. I am very lucky to own a patchwork shop and my little house/apartment is out the back. Living the dream as some of my customers say. I started the business (Ballarat Patchwork) 9 ½ years ago and had an opportunity to buy the property 4 years ago.
The original rear of the building was a residence built in the 1860’s. Unfortunately the building was not in a state to be renovated and had to be demolished and I created a 1 bedroom place for me and my two cats, Buffy and Willow, to live.
The corner of the living room is were I do my creative thing and consists of two antique tables painted white, a fabulous old dental drawer I saved from my Dad’s surgery renovation and a set of overhead cupboards from Ikea.
A closer look at the cabinets..
I try to keep my sewing table as clear as possible as it is the only space I really have to sew. The overhead cupboards are fantastic for storing all my current projects, future projects and all the tools of the trade.
A new addition to my sewing storage problem, is a set of under window drawers that store my fabric stash. These also double as a bench seat and a place for the cats to sun themselves. I am always on the lookout for clever storage ideas and ways of creating more room.
My space isn’t the largest so when I sew I turn the table out on the side which gives me room to quilt the big stuff. ( and also allows me to watch a bit of tv while sewing ) I also don’t have enough floor area to baste quilts so it is lucky that the shop has a lovely bright class room with lots of space. Very handy for laying out large quilts for piecing or basting.
My sewing space is not large but it shows if you are creative with the room available you can create a craft haven for yourself.
Above is my "patchwork sofa cover" that I made about 10 months ago and love the life it gives my space.
To see photos of Ballarat Patchwork and all the pictures from the renovation check out my Facebook page
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Thank you Emma for sharing with us your sewing space! We love that you made the best of a small space and I am sure that many people out there are in a space crunch and can take inspiration from your home.
If you have a sewing room you would like to share … let us know. Email anais.cowley@artgalleryfabrics.com and show her your space (you might be the next highlight!)
Art Gallery Fabrics - The Creative Blog 
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