Workshop Reveal!

Ok! I am SO SO excited to finally share with you the workshop.
I have finished all the building work, the painting and the interior, and so it is time to share.
I will either update or do a new post once I'm settled in, and I can show you how everything is organised! 

Until then..... go grab a cup of something good, and perhaps provisions. (I have coffee and winter cookies).

My Workshop is a mix of things I have found and up cycled, re-loved, re-purposed, and some of those wonderful Ikea things that you just need. (How do Ikea do it!?)
I'll try and point out where all the things came from as we go along... :)

Welcome to my Workshop....

This is the view walking in. Originally, I had the table facing the other way, (It has drawers on the other side) But actually, I like to sit and see the birds flitting about in the garden.
The table was given to me by a family I work for, it needed a bit of love, but it really is beautiful. I don't know why I haven't got a better picture of it! 

That laminate flooring was the bane of this project, and I was so glad to finally get it completed! It looks great now though, (even if covered in paint, but it's a workshop, right?) and the craziness of it helps hide stray threads and a little mess. 

The rug was a gift from my Papa a long time ago, and I think it has found it's perfect home! I've secured it down with those sticky pad things. (Helpful description, I know!!!)

Immediately to your right is my 'Office space'. Here, I can work on my laptop, reply to emails, write etc without being distracted by my sewing things. (I can keep caffeinated here too! Found this vintage kettle on Ebay.) 

The shelves were donated by my Mother, and the rail is Ikea. I plan to put up some more little art at the top, and a few quotes to keep me motivated! 

I built the desk, cost me no more than about £25? I will have a post up soon on how, for those interested! 

Click here! 

 If you turn left, instead you will see my sewing area. (You can probably also see the slight dip in the table... fixing it tomorrow! I underestimated how heavy the machines really are.)

This area is a little unloved still, as I don't really have all that many sewing 'gadgets' (I gave everything away when I left to travel! The great giveaway of 2013.)

All the shelving, and the brackets were donated by my Mother! 

The top shelf holds a few books, and once I am sure of the dampness, I will bring quite a few more in, filling up all that empty shelf space. The box on the end holds artwork waiting to go up.

Underneath from left to right, are feathers, embroidery, bead box, a selection of not matched things, zips, fasteners, doll joints, eyelets. Then a box of elastics, and a tub of ribbons. 

AS you can tell, I haven't so much found that 'perfect' place for everything yet, as, though I have plenty of storage space, I don't have the boxes and storage solutions. Plus, I think it takes a little while to work out how you actually 'need' things to be in your space. 

The thread rack I built by hammering nails in a bit of 2x4. Not glamorous, but totally works. I also have a metal knife strip for all my shears. 

Underneath is pretty much a mess - I need to clip the cables to the wall, at least! The box you can see is a beautiful writing box given to me by my Papa a long, long time ago! I don't know wether it works in here yet, so it may go back into the house. 

Under the desk I plan to store my HUGE roll of pattern paper, held up on industrial piping. 

Here you can see how the machines are 'sunk' in. Will also have a post up about that soon too! 

This is one of the neatest places in the workshop (In both senses!) I decided to make a designated space to package the dolls without having to tidy up other creative things going on on my craft table. It also turns into an ironing space (See next photo!) 

Here I have everything I need on hand - tape, twine, business cards, labels. The shelf above holds all my packaging materials, wood wool, paper. The shelf below holds the boxes. 

And, tadaaa! Flip the table over, and I can iron away. (Will also post on how I made this little space) 

The wood I used was taken from a gross old potting shelf that was lying around in the garden. I thought I'd see how it turned out with a sand, and was SO shocked. The wood was beautiful! The other shelves were made from an old pine wardrobe that was lying about, waiting to be skipped. 

(Our garden does look a little like a lumber yard)

P.S How perfect is this little iron!? £10 on Amazon! 

I've got a little display cabinet that holds old toys I made as a child with my Mother, old Sprytes, and creatures made by friends. I will probably change this about later, but for now they're all safe in there!
I picked this up for £15 from the family I work for. Didn't need much attention other than the back being painted white! 

(**BTW, there is a little bookshelf under the cabinet, which you can kind of see. It doesn't have much on it, and looks a mess - so I avoided it with the camera! I now have a new solution, so I'll wait to show you that, instead!!)

Here is a big pin board, and Antonious storage from Ikea. It holds all the fabric that doesn't fit a proper catergory. Small scraps, fat quarters, felt, leather, trims. That sort of stuff. On top are large bats of fabrics, felt, wooly stuff - shiny fabric I don't know the name of....

Here is my fabric library - all the fabric is stored by folding it over comic board backers (Thanks Pinterest!) 

I found this cabinet at the a local charity shop for £5, steal! It was pretty ugly though, brown chipboard, water damaged.... With a lick of paint it was transformed! 

I am hoping to fill all the space with fabric, and will move some of the fat quarters and larger scraps from the antonious, In those two boxes are shiny scraps (Yes, I know, I should find out what that fabric is actually called!) and sewing tools ( Knitting needles, crochet hooks, needle felters etc) These will be moved into the new storage system I'm moving in, giving me more fabric growing space!

On top is my Great-Grandmothers sewing machine. She was a seamstress, and this machine has really been used! I had hoped to have it serviced to be useable, but it's past it's good days. The green house is one we picked up from Ikea last year, and have never really used. Filling it full of cacti ;) 

Here is a long shot of the space. I love it SO much. Full of colours but not to intense, (I like more woodlandy shades) All the textures, I find it so inspiring and it makes me SOOOOO happy.

 This is the same shot, but lower, so you can see the rug. I love it! It has moved houses many times with me, and I've never found the right place for it. It works, works, works here. 

 And the kind of, from my seat view. I can see birdies hopping about on the roof, the sun, and in a few months, I'll see the cherry blossoms. 

 Pots full of pens! Fineliners, sharpies, all other pens, and pencils. Pico is here too, so I can keep an eye on him! Naughty thing.

This is a wider shot of the sewing space, bursting with potential! 

The back of our house. A happy view! 

Also, you can see my 'filing cabinet' which I picked up from a house clearance about 5 or 6 years ago. Perhaps longer. It needs a repaint, and I plan to paint the front of the drawers in chalkboard paint, so I can change what's in them easily.

If you made it this far, congratulations! And thank you very much. <3 p="">

I hope you enjoyed the tour, and it has inspired you a little. As you can see, I have a long way to go, but all the basics are covered, and I love it. I will update this post as I go along, adding labels, and filling up the shelves! I have many more plans, and I recently picked up a school drawer unit that was being thrown out, and cannot wait to do it up. It will fit all my odd bits that I have struggled to fit in so far. 

Please feel free to leave a comment, I love to read them! Let me know about your workspace too, leave a link! 

Love, 

The British Faery.