DIY: Sewing Cart

Ikea comes out with a new catalog filled with goodies every year. Several months ago, before the catalog came out I heard buzz about a specific kitchen cart. Once I saw a picture of it, I knew that I would need to own one! As soon as they came out, I was ready to grab one...or so I thought. The problem was that I had no specific purpose for one at the time. Bummer. 

I decided to wait. Every once in awhile I would log on to the Ikea site and just gaze at it, constantly trying to think of a reason to purchase it. Months of this happening, people, months!

Alas, last week right before my trip to Atlanta I was looking to see what I had on my list for Ikea. That's when it hit me! DING! 

I could use the Raskog cart for my sewing machine, tools, and all of my fabrics! It was clear as day. A sewing cart is what it would be! I checked its status at the Atlanta store online, and made sure to grab one when I was there. (The only decision left to make was which color to choose? A light teal/turquoise or a dark slate grey. I went with the grey. If you know me, you know that greys are kind of my default choice. Nonetheless, its beautiful!)

Here is the result...

I had to begin by assembling the cart. Thankful to say, that unlike some furniture-type items this was super east to put together! Pretty much fool proof. 

The assembly didn't take long at all. 
(Probably would've been shorter if I hadn't been chatting on the phone and simultaneously watching The Chew while I was working! Ha.) 

In the midst of gathering all the items to put on the cart, I recalled purchasing some metal buckets and baskets from the dollar section at Target back around Easter. I knew they would come in handy, and this was just the project to use them for. I think they were around $2 or $3 each. The decorative chalkboard labels I attached to the tall metal buckets were from a trip to World Market!

The stash. Fabrics. Pin Cushion. Tools. Etc. 

I started organizing. I knew that I would need to sort between some of my fabrics, and ended up placing some larger burlap rolls together on one of the shelves. There are several different ways fabrics can be stored, but for this project I chose to roll the larger pieces and fold the smaller ones. When rolling, remember to start with the rough-edged side on the inside, that way it doesn't show on the finished product.

Gathering and sorting fabrics and tools. 

Another good idea, is to pair like fabrics together either by type of fabric or color. I ended up combining both methods. 

Labeling the metal buckets. 

After adding everything onto the cart, here are what the finished shelves look like, individually. 

The top shelf holds my sewing machine and three "tool" buckets. The middle shelf holds a box for scraps (a photo box from Michaels) and a few rolls of burlap. The bottom shelf holds three baskets of fabrics.

Ready for the finished product? 

Isn't it a Beaut?! Happy in its new home in our office! Success! Stylish & Organized...as most everything should be!