Ha ha! Design wall, what's that? You saw my entire 5'x3' "sewing" room. My "design wall" is the 4'x4' top of my kitchen peninsula. ;>

mine fills an entire wall. It is just shy of 8'x8'. When I was redesigning my quilting room I read that it should be as large as you have space for, and I had a wall...so voila, a huge design wall.

I made mine from 2 4'x8' Styrofoam panels covered in white flannel. This way single blocks stick to it without pins, but I can also pin heavier fabric into the Styrofoam.

Sometimes I use my design wall for things other than designing - i.e. after I've pressed some fabric and I don't want to fold it sometimes I just pin it to the wall until I'm ready to cut it. I also have been known to pin damp fabric to my design wall so that it will dry without as many wrinkles. Sometimes I put my UFOs up on my design wall so I can look at them while I'm working on something else. I even pinned a list of quilt projects to do up on my design wall. Obviously, I use it as a vertical "catch all" space.

Lola

I have to say that one of the best things I've ever done for myself as a quilter was to find a place to put up a design wall. Even if you have to use the back of a door, try it! I used a flannel sheet from a full size bed. I wish it had been a queen size but I'm happy to have this much. Four grommets along one edge and 4 nails in the molding over a wide closet door make it easy to take down and put up. It's so amazing to be able to stand back even a couple feet and look at a pattern, then change it around until its right. Wow.

Kate

I'm like Kate, but I had a queen sized flannel sheet, and I tacked it up directly to a blank living room wall. I do confess it looks bizarre, and I keep meaning to take it down...but heck, it's my house.

I love having design walls! As Lola mentioned there are so many great uses. I bet you're going to love yours too! Mine are not huge, the bigger one around 6' wide and somewhat taller.

I made them from extruded polystyrene foam boards. Those are the the pink or blue foam insulation boards found at Home Depot. The reason I chose those, rather than white styrofoam boards, is that they is that they don't crumble. They are much denser and more uniform than styrofoam and hold pins very well. If you are going to use foam boards, take a straight pin with you when you go shopping and see how the different types feel when you push a pin into them.

There is a special glue for gluing foam boards together. I glued a couple boards together, after they dried I added a THIN cotton batting over the face by spraying the face of the boards with Elmer's white spray glue. The reason for the thin batting was to keep the color of the foam board from showing through so that my white design wall ended up a true white. I made the mistake of using a thicker batting on my first attempt, and did NOT like it at all, it was way too squishy. I redid it with a dense, thin bat, and it is just right. The top layer is a good quality WIDE felt that was wrapped around the sides and taped to the back with duct tape.

Connie

I bought a yard and a half of 90" wide batting, turned it sideways, and stapled it to the wall. It's floor to ceiling and 7 1/2 feet wide.
Anjea

I made it as big as possible, it's mostly the height of the wall it's on, a 9 ft. ceiling, It's abt 1 ft from the top & 2 ft. from bottom of wall., maybe 6 ft. across.

I'd originally used an old sheet, which I draped on a piece of wood lath that I mounted on the wall over a couple of nails. Some time after I added layer of batting & now I pin to the batting.

I'm using pins 'cause I've got multiple layers of quilts on this wall now, usually 4 or 5 quilt layers. I'm finishing off the quilts one by one & when finished, off the wall it comes.

Part of my flannel wall is higher than I can reach but I can drape a block over the end of a ruler and push it high onto the wall with the ruler. It sticks.

I have a 2'x 3.5' pc. of construction foam that I picked up and covered with flannel, that hangs over on of the machines. I really seldom use it as a design center. I wish I had room for a wall but that is out of the question. What I do do is use the top of my bed to lay out my blocks and then lable them by row and position. It works for me. Jayne

Not large enough! It's about 7' x 8' and I need it about 9 x 9 when I'm working on a king-sized quilt.

Annie

I haven't made a design wall yet because I can't seem to be able to liberate a wall for the project....I have so much furniture and storage units in my sewing room..but I a few months ago when I was in Plattsburgh, NY, I visited the LOOSE THREADS QUILT SHOP - and they had a fabric that they sold that was made for a design wall - it's white but has grids printed on it - it's fabulous.....I did purchase enough to do a design wall..and it's made of a kind of fabric that allows other fabrics just to adhere to it.....is anyone else familar with this fabric? And if so, what do you think of it...(before I use mine..)..

I have that fabric (or something similar) in my Chicago apt. Bought it in a Colorado quilt shop years ago. It's attached to homasote and serves as a headboard for a twin bed when guests come. I never used the grid religiously, just kind of as a guide. It's flannel, and stretches a bit.

new concept for me: "design wall" But then, I'm pretty new to quilting and the largest I've attempted is a chair blankie. I love all these ideas, tho. the dining room table gets small really fast. My thoughts are leaning toward a temporary 'wall'; the house isn't large enough to give up a wall anywhere on a full-time basis, but there is one wall in a bedroom that could be transformed on a very temporary basis. Nails up high and maybe grommets like Kate has suggested.....another thing to think about!!!

Mine is about 8' x 8'. I put up posterboards, then covered them with batting. The other thing I have on the wall in the studio is a Wizard Wall -- it's a clear dry-erase board that clings to the wall and I can make notes on it about the current quilt. I like to sketch out a block on it, and show the direction for pressing, etc. Plus, I make notes and do calculations for the longarm quilting. If I think I will re-make the same pattern, I take a picture of the board before erasing it, and put the picture in the file with the pattern.

8'x8' - 2 Styrofoam boards covered with flannel sheeting
They are normally stored one on top of the other. If necessary
I can move them to a different room

Oh, Glass... I do so like the size of yours!

In my tiny room, stuffed full of things, I don't have room for a large design wall. But I did make one using pvc pipes/fittings that we use at retreat. If I must have a large space, then I can throw that together and place it in from of my quilt frame, or in the rec room. But it blocks light, and people trip over it, so it doesn't stay up any longer than necessary.

I also have a smaller one made of cardboard (the side of a dishwasher box, I think) covered in flannel. It stands on the floor, or lays flat across the top of the quilt frame.

Because I'm in an upstairs room with a slopped ceiling I only had room for one insulation board hung landscape direction over a door into the attic/furnace area. It has one corner cut off to accommodate the the ceiling. It's only half the size of the one I had in my other house, but it's better than nothing. If it's too small I clear the bed downstairs and arrange blocks there.

We all make do with what we have and the creativity to fit something, anything! into the spaces we have is fun to share. Glassquilt, your wall is a dream and your log cabin quilt is beautiful! Thanks for posting that!

I have been in transition mode - less office to more sewing space. My goal is to clear a wall for a large design wall. I gave up a huge desk & cabinets (who needs it?) and I am getting rid of work 'stuff', so this old thread coming to life is at the perfect time for me. I have a king sized flannel duvet cover somewhere, maybe I can put that to some use after reading thru this. Thanks for the Great ideas.