Jules mentioned in her Week 5 Check-In that she now calls the future quilting space in her new house a "studio" instead of the former term "sewing room."
The recent transformation of a guest room into my first dedicated sewing studio was completed before the arrival of a very-long-awaited book last week. Too late for my transformation, I'm devouring it now for useful modifications or even to think about a someday custom sewing studio.
The author's emphasis is well-placed storage and elimination of visual clutter. Visual clutter is my nemesis; people often remark on the neatness of my work area, but it's just a matter of avoiding the distractions of disorganization. As I fine-tune the space, I realize I have already begun to eliminate visual clutter by using closed cabinets instead of open shelves, and moving my small design wall to a more accessible area behind the door swing, which also gives the benefit of being less visible when I don't want it to be visible, by simply leaving the door open.
I believe the author follows The Artist's Way. In her introduction she states:
Many quilters tuck themselves away in a corner of a bedroom, in a hallway just barely wide enough for the sewing machine, or in a space they share with a spouse in an already crowded office. Some choose a dark basement near the laundry or a noisy family room. All are trying to fit quilting in around all the other details of life.
The art of quiltmaking deserves to be put closer to the top of your priority list. There are some wonderful ways to combine quilting with the rest of your life so that working on your craft isn't an afterthought. I choose to discard the term sewing room and replace it with quilt studio or quilting studio. Most of us aren't sewing garments for our families to save money. Quiltmaking is an art form; therefore, the creative space deserves the same status as an artist's studio.
Names are important and so is the priority we give to this thing we love to do.
4 comments:
oh Jane Ann you're so right about the name. I've just been brave enough to call my little downstairs room a "studio" publicly on my webpage. This probably contributed to some of the nastiness I receive this week! People do seem to get a "how dare she!" head on don't they. Well like you in your oct post (thank you for the link) I've put my feet firmly down and for once in my life DARED :))
As we say over here, "You go, Girl!" Everybody can damn well get used to it.
You didn't see it? See my posting for November 11, "Come Onna My House." If the link doesn't work, try this one (you'll have to copy and paste to your browser address line):
http://sewgrand.blogspot.
com/2005_11_01_sewgrand
_archive.html
If that doesn't work (this message box isn't long enough for the whole address without hitting the return key so if it shows up on your computer with blanks between sections, don't put the blanks into the address) let me know and I will "invite" you to look at the album on Webshots.
The studio is already changing a bit. Since I've been using it I realized how some things could work a little better. (And even though I suggested it at the time, DH didn't want to paint in that room until after I got it finished....so it's in disarray again. Men!)
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