I have a Horn cabinet for my Viking Sapphire. The lift shelf was adjusted at the factory for both size and weight. There is a clear plastic filler thing that sits around the sewing machine level with the table top so nothing falls through. I would imagine that the homeowner could adjust the up & down part if needed. I had directions for doing that with my original cabinet. Check with you local Horn or Koala dealer. Money can work wonders. Years ago Mom had an '69 Kenmore with the hinges on the back side - it was a portable. My dad was able to revamp her White sewing table and put the Kenmore in it. It folded down and the top closed.

I think your best bet would be to check with a shop that sells upholstery fabrics.They usually have lists of people that do that sort of stuff.At least the ones down here in s.Calif do.They usually don't recommend anyone person,they give you the list and then it's up to you to check them out and see what kind of work they do,get references and that sort of stuff.HTH. Kathi

You'll likely find a disclaimer on the back of pattern envelopes that will state the patterns are not to be used for commercial purposes. While it's perfectly all right to produce a single garment for a customer who pays you to do so, using a commercial pattern to mass-produce clothing for resale is a violation of the pattern company policy. People will tell you that if you change the pattern 10 or 15 or x percent you can call it your own. They are wrong. I can't tell you that they'll catch you. I can tell you that they'll be well within their right to sue you and they certainly have the money to do so! Mass-produced clothing is sometimes awfully drafted. I bought a couple blouses in size "large" from a well known retailer. While they fit through the chest, (I'm a commercial size 12-14 by the way) the neck was fully three inches too big around. Plus sized clothing is often made bigger all over, and that's bad pattern making. My bust, at 40 inches, is 33% larger than my size 2 pal, but my shoulders aren't 33% bigger, nor is my neck! It takes a lot of finesse to make a truly good fitting plus-sized garment. Since using commercial patterns isn't feasible do you have pattern making skills to produce your own? Do you have plus sized friends who can try on your garments and model them? As for your friend's assessment that "if she would carry all plus size clothing she would be sold out all the time" that's interesting. Why isn't she carrying it? What is her market? What are her price points for tops, pants, dresses? What income level is she selling to? I work in a very small city of about 65,000. A woman who had run a couple successful businesses opened a resale shop for plus sized women and it struggled for a year or so before folding. The prices were *very* reasonable. The clothing was carefully chosen - nothing shabby or dated looking. She knew fashion and had a passion for it. There just weren't enough customers.

Hi CC, what you're describing reminds me of what John and Sherry did in their house on Young House Blog. They put in a 14" bank of cabinets with wood shelves above. They didn't specify what depth shelves they did, but the link to similar shelves was for 8". I've included so. e shots of theirs for some inspiration for you. I believe they have a link to email them on their website if you were interested in finding out the ratios of their length and depth. I would think you shouldn't do any more than 10" deep for aesthetic balance. For the same reason, maybe only a foot or two shorter than cabinet length. I think doing 2 shelves that are separated by a few inches would be just fine. Knowing how I am, I would probably test out different configurations with pieces of cardboard until I hit on something that pleased my eye!