Fiber Studio

I LOVE seeing other creative's work spaces! Craft rooms, sewing studios, organized yarn stashes all make me feel like a giddy little kid. They give me inspiration on organization and layout, and I love to see people's personalities shine through. Some are all white, ikea and minimalist inspired with everything perfectly tucked away. And others are controlled chaos with cabinets, cubby holes, and closets overflowing with crafty goodies in an array of colors.

I have been wanting to share my fiber studio space for a while but was waiting until it looked "perfect" but lets be honest with 3 kids that day probably will not come until they all go away to college! It's not perfect, but I feel really blessed that even in a fairly small house we have the space (and I have a supportive husband) to make a whole room my own!  

When we were looking for a home to buy one of the most important things for me was to have a spare room on the first floor to use as a studio. Having a space on the first floor makes it easier to work while being home with the kids (I am not always running up and down stairs to check on them) and it also makes it easier loading and unloading everything into the car for shows. I am so thankful we found a house that worked for our family overall and had this extra space for my studio!

I try to keep this space tidy because its sort of my peaceful creative safe haven where I can shut myself in for a few quiet minutes away from the kids and totally get into the zone. Usually there are markers, papers, dog toys, diapers and all kind of stuff all over the ground so when I did a deep clean last week I realized it was probably the cleanest the room was going to get so I took out my camera and started shooting.

So today I want to share where it is I keep my yarns, fibers, books and more. I do my creating all over the house really, I often spin in the living room, do computer work at the kitchen table, and knit in bed.  When I have alone time to work, package orders, or need a space to really focus while crunching out the numbers for a new design (and I don't have the ability to get out of the house) I go to my studio. This is how I first greet my studio, walking in from the hallway, across from my laundry room...

I have to say I was pretty happy when our kitchen island didn't actually fit in our new small kitchen because I knew it would make the PERFECT work table! One day I am sure it will return to a kitchen when we move again but for now I am enjoying the large working space.

I store lots of my fiber in the baskets on this island and use the top for computer work, carding fibers, swatching, blocking and pattern design, pretty much everything.

The back wall of the studio is for storage.

If you have been to a fiber show I have vended at you will recognize the white crates I store my hand dyed yarns in. These have been in my husband's family for years, he had them through school and in college they stored all his textbooks, clothes and other guy stuff. Throw a fresh layer of white paint on them and you have a great way to store and display yarn! As for hand spun, I like to display it and show it off at shows so I hang it from shower hooks on these double layer clothing racks.

We got this large chest at a funky shop in Portland, Maine back when we lived near there a few years ago. It has been used as a food pantry in the past but now its back in the studio and holds EVERYTHING. Stacked inside are dyes (all of the actual dying takes place in the kitchen), blending fibers, books, knitting needles, boring business stuff for taxes, shipping materials, tags and more! And it LOCKS on the top and bottom so its perfect for keeping little prying hands OUT!

Theres not one but TWO closets in this room! This first larger one holds my drum carder, combs and other fiber prep stuff, my yarn stash, finished hand knits, shipping materials, and some of my neglected sewing supplies. That little clipboard to the left of the closet is where I keep my big picture goals and dreams and other visionary stuff for my business to keep me on the right track.

My personal yarn stash fits in these two flat baskets and slides under my drum carder on the shelf for storage.

I hang up some of my designs and others are folded up in the bins below.

Next  is my desk area. Here I store more yarn on cones to be skeined and dyed, boho batts, hand dyed yarns in crates, show supplies in bins and baskets, my printer and mannequin (which usually is dressed in my most recent design). My shop sign hangs on the wall as well as my swatch cork board for inspiration for new designs and WIPs.

Looking out through the window above my desk you can see where I hang yarn and fiber to dry. I use a drying rack as well, but the fence has a nice breeze and does a better job of drying out yarn and fiber.

Next is the other closet...

I store more fiber and yarn in here as well as more packaging materials, and a few other household things. Also shown is my new pegboard stand for displaying punis at shows which is unfortunately a little too fascinating to River.

All of that empty space in the middle of the room is where I like to pull down my white wood board and take photos for the shop and instagram (when the lighting is right of course).

When I say this room is all my own I really mean like 98% my own. This is also where my son sleeps. Nessled between crates of yarn, under a wall of shawls, and his grandmother's handmade weaving.

Probably the best part of the studio is that there is a big sliding door which lets lots of natural light in and allows me to sit and see out when my kids play in the back yard! It is where I am sitting right now as I write this!

There is still work to be done, You may have noticed one of the closets is missing a door, I am hoping to repaint our desk a simple clean coat of white, and I am always looking to declutter and make the best of the space I have. I also look forward to the day when my son is sleeping better and moves into his sisters' room so I can work at night! But it's also more than I could have hoped for, there is plenty of space, it is light and fresh, clean enough, and mostly my own and that is no small feat in a house with three young kids who have a way of taking over everything!

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my fiber studio! As I said before I love these kinds of spaces so feel free to share yours (a link to photos or a blog post) in the comments below!

Happy Crafting!