About a square meter of space that is dedicated for the sewing mess and can be left to come back to it later, plus a good-sized table where you can spread out your materials temporarily. An ironing board is optional, but useful.
I use a bigger wooden bowl to hold all the small things that I need for the current project: the selected ribbons, buttons, appliqués, you name it. This way they are there and ready, and I do not have to go digging in the cupboard for them one by one.
I also have a smaller bowl to hold the rubbish: mainly cut-off ends of threads and little pieces of leftover materials. Some crafters just throw them on the floor and clean up at the end of the day, but I prefer it tidy all the time.
