So you want to build a Quilt Studio

There and back again!

Hello, out there in the quilting community. It has been a long time, but I have decided to jump back into blogging now that I have something to write about!

My first major project out of the shoot is my new Quilting Studio Build. Let’s get started!

Charlie the Walker hound sitting in the fall sunlight. — Site Supervisor watching the progress

The good the bad and the furry

It has been in the back of my mind for quite some time that I have outgrown my own hobby. Quilting projects are being spread across my home like snow on the mountain. My Long Arm shares a room with our inside carpentry shop and, quilt assembly is in another room. Not to mention my two furry companions (Willow and Charlie) are always wanting to say hello and leave hair all over my project. It is time to expand!

Why build

My goals for this new studio is to have ample fabric storage, wall mounted backdrop for quilt photography, and enough space so I can block/square a queen size quilt, along with housing my longarm and regular sewing desk. This will also be a pet-free zone, so those of you will allergies fear no more!

After weighing the pros and cons of just purchasing a large shed or prefabricated build I decided building a quilt studio from scratch would be the most cost-effective. The She-shed is a great idea, but by the time I could find a shed long enough to fit my long arm, I did not have much room for anything else. It’s time to pull out the carpenters’ pencils and make something awesome.

Where to start

The goal for this studio was to have all the comforts of home, but in the unforeseen chance, I could still move the studio. Rather than a concrete foundation, we went for a compressed gravel foundation and the platform is built on treated sleepers. The studio will have full power, gas heat, & wifi. Which brings up the thought, you do not know just how bad of a root problem you have till you need to trench in a line!

The final subfloor is 16’X16’