Carolyn Woods - Organizing Solutions for Every Quilter: An Illustrated Guide to the Space of Your Dreams

Text copyright 2011 by Carolyn Woods

Photography copyright 2011 by Carolyn Woods and C&T Publishing, Inc.

Publisher: Amy Marson

Creative Director: Gailen Runge

Acquisitions Editor: Susanne Woods

Editor: Liz Aneloski

Copyeditor/Proofreader: Wordfirm Inc.

Cover/Book Designer: Kristen Yenche

Production Coordinator: Jenny Leicester

Production Editor: Julia Cianci

Photography by Chanelle Richardson, Carolyn Woods, and Christina Carty-Francis and Diane Pedersen of C&T Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted.

Published by C&T Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Woods, Carolyn, 1971

Organizing solutions for every quilter : an illustrated guide to the space of your dreams / Carolyn Woods. p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-60705-196-1 (softcover)

1. Workshops-Design and construction. 2. Storage in the home. 3. Quilting--Equipment and supplies. I. Title.

TT152.W654 2011

684.08--dc22

2010028181

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To my sister, Susanne, for this amazing opportunity. After admiring your craft for so many years, you got me in on the inside and then got me hooked.

To my husband, Kevin, and my children, Sarah and Justin, for all the precious time and quiet I needed to get this book researched and written. I love you.

To my biggest supporters in the writing process, Judy Westrum, Marcia Swires, Mick Williamson, Dave Stempien, Jamie Moilanen, Jona Giammalva, and Patty Macsisak. It means the world to me that you believe I can organize anything and then write about it.

To the ladies of Nimble Thimbles and of Calico Cut-Ups. You opened your studios to me without hesitation, answered even my most basic questions, and gave me so much to write about. Thank you to Jan for introducing me around, and then to Barbara, Becky, Charlene, Deanne, Emma, Gail, Jona, Marge, Mary, and Monica for your hospitality and for your infectious enthusiasm for your art.

To the extremely talented professionals in the quilting business who jumped right on board to be part of this book: Alex Anderson, Libby Lehman, Diana McClun, and Nancy Arseneault. I am motivated and in awe of your continued dedication to teaching and promoting the art of quilting. And to Mark Lipinski who, although we've not yet met, reminded me that quilting is more than a hobby. It's a lifestyle.

And to all the quilters, even the famous ones, who have taken the time to share their ideas and opinions with me in person and then on podcasts, in blogs, on websites, and in magazines. We all benefit from each other's organizing wisdom, efficiency tips, and storage savvy. You have all inspired me to give you my very best insight and encouragement to be happy, organized quilters.

The opportunity to write this book couldn't have come at a more unexpected time. I was between jobs, looking for my next career move within the marketing profession. My residential organizing business, which I established in 2004, was in full swing. My hobbies were plentiful. And the kids were at ages when homework, sports, play dates, and slumber parties filled most of the other waking hours. My calendar was completely full.

Not surprisingly, I hesitated a while before I agreed to submit a formal proposal. Excuses abounded. However, I reached a turning point when I realized that the place to start was to write down the terms for the different parts of a quilt. I titled my notebook page Anatomy of a Quilt. That was the day I knew I would write this book.

My approach to researching this book was to spend time in many quilting studios in the Phoenix area. Without knowing me, these quilters all agreed to show me everything and anything. No holds barred.

These ladies were indispensable. I met their families, they made me lunch, we exchanged more emails, and they agreed to help in any way they could. They answered all my tough questions about their habits (good and bad), hideaways, and hang-ups. I became a student of their individual artistry as well as a problem solver for their common organizational challenges. You will see many of their brilliant ideas described here and illustrated in photos we took in their homes. Barbara even painted her studio in anticipation of the photo shoot at her house. You ladies are amazing.

I took what I learned from those great ladies and supplemented it with ideas I gathered from International Quilt Market, quilt shows, quilting stores, more quilters, podcasts, books, Web articles, blogs, magazines, and my own experience. I wrote this book to methodically guide you through the process of getting your quilting space organized. Let me take a moment to explain how to use this illustrated guide.

Because Chapter 1 describes, in plain and simple steps, the process of getting organized, you need to read this chapter first. Chapter 1 will get you to look objectively at your stuff like a professional organizer does, always thinking in terms of convenience and maintainable systems. Chapter 1 will give you lots of ideas for getting organized, but you should keep reading through Chapters 2, 3, 4, and 5 before diving in. When you have gathered all the new ideas you want to try, you will definitely want to refer back to Chapter 1 to use the organizing steps from that chapter to implement the new solutions.

Chapter 2 outlines the basics of space planning and room design. As Chapter 1 explains, having an efficiently designed quilting space is fundamental to the success of your organizing efforts. You will take away from Chapter 2 design concepts behind furniture placement, furniture scale, furniture usefulness, and available storage options. Apply these space-planning concepts to create the best furniture flow through your space and to accommodate creature comforts such as lighting, heating/cooling, and ergonomics. Then you will be ready to commit to the specific organizing ideas you want to implement from Chapters 3, 4, and 5. For more detailed information about space planning in general, I recommend that you consult some of the wealth of published resources on interior design.