Creating a Space to Sew and Write

The Stage is Set

A few months after retiring , I repurposed my home office space where remnants of my teaching career piled high in the corners, closet, and bookshelves.  It was a therapeutic process to go through stacks of teachers’ guides, evaluations,  planning books, and children’s books that had been a crucial part of my professional life. Ultimately, the process helped me define what I no longer needed, and what I would carry forward into retirement.  The room is small (10’x 9’) and doubles as a guest room. I had to make the most of every corner.

  A Place to Write

Inspiration

On the bookshelf unit (Target), I placed some mementos of my long teaching career: a small wooden sign that reads Best Teacher Ever, a ceramic red apple with a golden leaf and stem engraved with “Mrs. VanDeventer”,  a collection of my favorite children’s books, and a bright yellow stuffed ‘Star-Bellied-Sneetch’ from a Dr. Seuss story. A picture featuring my trio of granddaughters has a place of honor on the top shelf. Their ebony, gold, and strawberry hair intertwines as they lie in the grass on a bright summer day in Indiana, reminding me they are growing up way too fast.  I reserved some shelves for my expanding collection of books by authors that inspire me, and I have space for the journals I’m filling. A seldom used set of watercolor paints on the bottom shelf is tempting me.

Adventure Awaits

It’s a cozy space. I christened it “My Studio.” I can imagine spending lots of time here pursuing my creative life. There are seams to sew and stories to weave. But just to make sure I don’t get too complacent, I’ve decorated the walls with posters and pictures of our trip to England and a picture of Ed and I walking along a beach to remind me to leave this space often to seek novel experiences and inspirations. I’m discovering retirement to be an exciting stage of life. The stage is set for creativity and adventure!

Threads of thought…Where do you like to work/create?  Is it important for you to have a space of your own?  What inspires you?  Feel free to leave your comments below as we build our sewing/writing community together.