Freddie has had a rough life. He is my first teddy bear. My parents gave him to me when I was a toddler. One night I woke up in my bunk bed & thought he was walking from the foot of the bed up to me. I screamed & my parents came in. They took Freddie away. I didn't know where he went but was afraid of him. Years later I thought about him off & on & wished I had him back.
About 50+ years later when we were moving my mom out of her house my husband came across a burlap bag in the garage up on a rafter. He turned it upside down & down tumbled Freddie & my Steiff dog Sparky, Ginny's pup.
Poor Freddie's eyes had fallen out & he was pretty musty. After giving him a good bath, glueing on new eyes, touching up his nose & mouth color, he is back. Now he sits on my bed & doesn't sleep walk any more & Sparky sits on my desk.
Sparky is not as old as Freddie. Sparky must have been "bagged" around 1960.
Here is my new Koala sewing cabinet in all it's glory. I've added optional shelves which, if removed you could close the cabinet all the way up.
I've also added an optional leaf in the back which can be raised to add more space for machine quilting. Now I won't have my quilts all squished up against the window. Under the leaf you can store more supplies. There are optional shelves for the back which I didn't order.
Optional front shelves I did order.
There is either a switch or a remote which raises & lowers your machine.
The top shelf on the right has grooved place to keep your frequently used sewing tools. The top shelf on the left can be used for a cutting or pressing area.
Here is the left side upper shelf with a cutting matt on it. You can also cut on the back fold up panel. You could also put an iron & pressing matt here as well.
You can open up the door with shelves further back AND if you have the extra room (which I don't) the door can be folded all the way back up against the sides of the cabinet as outer shelves.
Now, to find the right chair & I'm set. Oh, I almost forgot. You can buy the cabinet in the regular size or have it 3" or 6" higher. I chose the 3" higher model because it is the perfect height for cutting without bothering my back.
I really splurged on something great. I'm so tired of my sewing surface being a folding table, crawling underneath for supplies, being uncomfortable, having to use a raised cutting section that my husband made (bless his little pea picking heart) & having the surface so cluttered I can hardly cut.
I bought a Koala sewing cabinet! Pricey but as my husband says - I deserve it : ) I turn 65 this year so if I don't get it now I probably never will. You start with a base unit & then add things. By the time I got it to my shopping cart & saw what the shipping charges were I removed it & left the website. But a few days later after talking to my husband & the fact that they assemble it for you & bring it into the room that saves us lots of work & time. It has drawers & shelves & the machine can be lowered & covered. So, I went for it & ordered it today. It takes 4-6 weeks. So now, moths are flying out of my Berryvine Designs checkbook.
Here it is expanded. I purchased white as all my other bookshelves & cabinets in my room are white. It comes in 7 finishes. It's well made & has bevelled corners to prevent fabric snags & bumps. The is an optional back pop up piece that makes the surface twice as wide to use as a cutting area. The drawers close by just touching them.
This is a view of the back with the pop up extension up. There is an option for adding back shelves to this but I didn't order them.
Here it is all closed up in Ash White.
If you lower the machine & fold in the folding doors partway your cutting surface becomes even larger.
This will be my Bernina's home base. You give them your model of machine & the insert is custom cut for it.
Another configuration here.
Oh, guess I had to add the typepad app :). Now I can add photos . I'm in love with the Farmers Wife quilts so had to buy myself this book for Christmas. Also couldn't help but buy a few fabrics as well. What fun stuf did you get for the Holidays?
