DIY Cutting Table

For a long time, I used my dining room table as my fabric cutting table. I liked the large work surface, but I didn't like the low height of the table (oh, my aching back!) and I didn't like making a mess in the dining room every time I cut a piece of fabric.

Eventually, I abandoned the dining room table and started using the twin bed in the spare bedroom as my cutting table. I put a hollow core door on top of the bed and used bed risers (those plastic things you put under the feet of a bed to raise it up) to make the work surface higher. I liked having a higher work surface, but it wasn't ideal because there was no overhang which meant I was bending over the whole time I was using it. Plus, I didn't like giving up the spare bedroom. And, the hollow core door wasn't as large as my cutting mat, which is 3x4 feet.

I looked online to see if I could find a cutting table I liked. A lot of them weren't tall enough for me. Others were designed to hold a sewing machine, which I didn't need. Others had lots of drawers, but I wanted a large open space under the table. Still others were (in my view) ridiculously expensive.

So, one morning after breakfast, I made a quick sketch of what I wanted and E headed to the shop. The end result was my new cutting table. The table top is 4x4 feet of 3/4 inch plywood, which is big enough for my cutting mat and leaves space along the back edge for a lamp, fabric weights, boxes of pins, etc. The framework is made of 2x4s and it's 36 inches wide and 33 inches deep, so I have a nice overhang on each edge. The wheels caster so I can roll it around the room in any direction and wherever I want. The height to the top of the work surface is 37 inches, which is exactly what I wanted. The sides and the back are pegboard where I can hang my rulers and my smaller cutting board. In the big open space in the front, I put an old two-door chest which holds all of my spray "stuff" -- starch, sizing, temporary bond, permanent bond, etc. Next to the chest is my embroidery machine. (Pay no attention to the cow. She's purely decorative.)

My sewing room is on the second floor of our house and there was no way we could possibly carry this up a flight of stairs or get it through any of the doors. So, we turned it into a flat pack and put some of the pieces together in the shop, carried them upstairs to the sewing room, and assembled it there.

I am thrilled with my cutting table and look forward to using it soon. Happy sewing, everyone!