What makes specific memories stand out over others…if they are not traumatic or “life-changing” what is it that makes you remember something, even the littlest thing over all the other hundreds and thousands? Why is it that sometimes you can remember the stupidest things from years and years ago like what socks you were wearing or song you were listening to but have a hard time remembering something that happened last week?
I have no clue how old I was… if I were to guess I would maybe say 9 or 10…I think we lived in North Stamford at the time. I don’t know if it was a neighbor or a friend from school but all I remember is going to their house and in their basement they had an art room…I remember rolls of paper and a huge craft table in the middle of the room. I do not know how to explain the feeling, the excitement to have a whole space dedicated to creativity..
I have always wanted a “craft” room but realistically if you have extra space it is usually used for a guest room, office etc. I mean I have always had one of those plastic carts with drawers that held a random assortment of papers,scissors,the occasional tube of glitter and some glue.
I learned to sew in middle school…I remember going home and telling my mom I “NEEDED” a sewing machine. I got a very basic singer model. I could thread it, wind a bobbin and I knew to backstitch when I started something and I also remember that I would take old pillowcases and then make pillows out of them- so literally I was cutting a pillowcase down to a smaller version- stuffing it with polyfill, sewing 3 1/2 sides and then hand sewing the rest and I thought I was Martha Stewart!
2 years ago we were lucky enough to find an awesome house around the corner from some of our best friends, in an incredible, established neighborhood. The house was a foreclosure but it only had one owner- EXACTLY what we wanted…something we could update on our own-but that had great bones. This house had all that we wanted…4 bedrooms, a bonus room(to be turned in to an awesome playroom!) pretty open on the first floor etc. The first time we walked the house-we got to the master bedroom, there was a door and we were completely surprised to see that the door opened to a finished 3rd floor with a wall of windows and 2 additional rooms that were perfect for storage. David and I threw ideas back and forth of what this space could be… he REALLY wanted a golf simulator (SURE…) while I was just thinking of a finished space to “escape”. The 3rd floor is only accessible through the master bedroom which also makes it unique. This is the space BEFORE:
After getting the house, redoing the kitchen and A LOT more….I was finally able to focus on the space and seeing that I have ALWAYS wanted a craft room I was able to convince David that really that is what it was meant to be…
I LOVE, LOVE,LOVE this space! I also love that I created a space for Max so when I go up to sew or work on a new project, he can also work on painting or coloring or drawing on the large chalkboard we put up…We have every paint you can imagine and stamps galore and it makes me smile because this is the space I have ALWAYS wanted. I am also lucky enough to have a husband that is pretty handy…David built me my quilting table, hung my pegboard and also designed and hung my wrapping paper and ribbon wall….
I will definitely have to write a post on the attic room off of this room that David has turned in to a train room for Max….Stay tuned!
The peg board wall is awesome because you can get all types of acrylic shelves and metal hooks to really customize the space, and the pegboard itself is CHEAP!
We found a cheap table on craigs list for about $25 that gave me a large laminate top, then David built the walls and shelving to hold all my fabrics, etc.
IKEA and the Container Store have been my BFF’s as I have found great bins to hold fabric and all types of craft supplies. Cube shelving that you can find at Target, Lowes, Wal Mart etc. is awesome too and I pretty much used it to line the whole room and then bought various bins and baskets to fill in the 12x12 spaces…
I have to say that one of my most cherished pieces in the space is the aluminum/laminate table next to my sewing table…
Nana and I bought this at a flea market in Greenwich about 13 years ago- I fell in love with it, the minute I saw it and I remember we had to completely disassemble it to get in her small Toyota, but in true “Mayor Terry” fashion, there were at least 4 people helping us get the table in the car. I used it as a kitchen table at a small apartment in VA Beach, it was stored in my parents garage for a few years and my dad used it as a work table(covering it as not to damage it) and then it was brought home to the craft room a little over a year ago. We cleaned it up and David put all new hardware on it to make sure it was stable.
Just another reminder of Nana and how she still inspires me in my craft room with a view….
-Meaghan
