Saturday, November 13, 2010

Design Wall

Almost a year ago, I began my studio remodel. The construction work was finished within a couple of months and I began working in there right away, but I was missing one key element: a large, padded design wall.


Right from the start, I set aside some blank wall space and began my research of construction methods and materials.




The space, measuring approximately seven by seven feet, remained blank this entire time while I vacillated back and forth about what kind of wall I wanted. Finally I made my decision- a double-thickness of rigid foam insulation mounted into the studs, covered first in batting and then in white fabric- and work began on it last weekend.


We bought 4 sheets of the foam insulation, cutting two of them to 7'x4' and the other two to 3'x4', in order to fit the space. The beauty of this material is that it's tongue and groove, which means that each sheets fits seamlessly into the next.


We glued the sheets together with a Styrofoam-friendly adhesive and left them to cure over night.




I couldn't help but do a dry run to get an idea of how they'd look on the wall.




After the adhesive had cured, it was time to find the wall studs...


(found one!)


... and hang the first piece...




The second piece slid right into place in the groove of the first one...




... and all of it was held in place with 3" wood screws and over-sized washers.




Next, using spray fabric adhesive and t-pins, we attached large sheets of cotton batting.




The final layer, a white, queen-sized flat sheet, was attached in the same manner and trimmed to fit.




And I finally have a proper design wall! Thanks for all your help, honey!!





10 comments:

elle said...

That is so great, Judi. I discovered the value of them years ago. Mine is not so high tech. I have a white flannel sheet on a thick dowel mounted in my hallway which I can roll up Rigid is better than flappy but just having one is a blessing! You will LUV it!

Fibra Artysta said...

That is awesome!!! Love it!

Joyce said...

I have a similar design wall and would be lost without it.I like the styrofoam because you can pin large pieces to it when they are too heavy to stick to the flannel.

Beth said...

Judi, I was going to post here but decided to blog about it. Check it out http://sewsewart.blogspot.com/2010/11/most-fabulous-design-wall.html

Terry Jarrard-Dimond said...

HOT DOG!

Glen QuiltSwissy said...

I have the foam board, but never thought about putting the batting and a sheet over them. Hmmmm.

glen

Jan said...

Finally! I cannot believe you went so long without one! Looks great. Do you have cats? I'm guessing no because I don't recall seeing photos of any here. My friend had her cats destroy her design wall batting. Very expensive to replace. Of course yours is covered also with a sheet, that should help protect it. My design wall is essentially the same except I have flannel covering it. Do things stick well to the sheet? They do to the flannel. I'm betting you will wonder how you lived without it.

Nice stud, btw;-)

Gina said...

Wow, great job! Although I have my studio space spread through the sewing room, clay room, garage, laundry room, dining room, hall and guest room, I still cannot find a wall to use for a design wall. You have me brainstorming now ... maybe I could make a portable one that can swap places with a painting in the dining room .... I'm looking forward to seeing what you first put on your design wall!

Gail Fligstein said...

I don't have a wall that I can use for designing only, so I have made moveable design boards. I use a piece of foam core covered with batting. I can carry them around the studio as I need to. I work with mostly smaller sizes, so this works for me.

Wen Redmond said...

Beautiful studio!!