Scrapbook Space - a girl can dream!
A few years ago, I was a kitchen table scrapbooker. After that, Darren built shelves for me in a hall closet - I could just open the door and pull up a chair. And so I know I should feel so very, very happy about having an actual scraproom now. But I still find myself dreaming of something different.
The room I work in is tiny. It was once a screened porch on the back of the house, and measures about 6′ x8′. I have every square inch of that room filled with stuff; even one of the windows is covered! I’m about to go vertical, in the form of a pot rack hanging from the ceiling above my desk.
In many ways, my small space is perfect because everything I need is at my fingertips, and anything I *don’t* need stays at the store. Having so little room makes me be pretty choosy about I allow myself to bring home. My room is also perfectly situated between our family room and the kitchen, making it the center of my family’s activity. And its windows look out over the backyard, which comes in handy for when the boys want to play outside.
Even so, I dream about a different space - a dedicated studio - sitting where my dilapidated garage is now. We’d construct a new garage, and attached to it would be a cottage-style studio space, with a stone path leading from the backdoor of my house. I imagine English Ivy growing up the sides of the building, a sitting porch on the balcony above. It’d have shutters and a lot of character - a funky front door and lots of windows.
Inside, the cozy space would feature my work desk facing the center of the room, not pushed against a wall. Around the walls to the side and behind my desk would be built-in bookcases with open shelves where I could display the little things that make me smile, as well as the jars and baskets and bins of colorful scrapbooking doodads that inspire me. Beneath the open shelves would be enclosed cabinets where I could hide the workhorses and tools of my trade: pages, punches, alphabets, etc.
There would be at least one super comfy chair in the corner facing my desk, with a reading lamp and a soft throw tossed over the side; there, I’d read my magazines and books. The room would be outfitted with music and speakers built in to the walls, and a speaker system that would connect me to the family across the lawn.
The colors would be rich and warm - golden honey, reds, maybe some mossy greens and browns thrown in. I’d have a huge round clock on one wall, and lots of whimsy throughout.
Upstairs, the room would extend above the garage and provide ample space for multiple tables so that friends could come and crop with me. There would be skylights and picture windows to let the sunshine in, and track lighting for late-night crops. The space would be outfitted with a tiny dorm-sized kitchen - just enough space for a mini-fridge and a microwave. And there would be Murphy Beds here and there so that room could be converted to guest quarters when needed.
Like I said, a girl can dream. Until the Money Fairy decides to alight on our doorstep, it’s just a dream.
In the meantime, I think I’ll make the best of what I’ve got. It’s what I’ve always done, and it’s always worked well for me!
I have honey-golden paint chips from Lowes, and a brush or two in the garage. 
January 8th, 2007 at 10:01 am
Sounds beautiful, but you’ll need an elevator so we can bring all our own stuff to your crops!
January 8th, 2007 at 1:03 pm
Can I dream with you? You have my dream in your head! Actually, you have thought of so many things I wouldn’t have thought of. I have limited my own perfect space to what works in my house. I need to start dreaming big like you have!
January 8th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
That sounds beautiful!
I have ideas for my dream space, but for now I’d settled for turning a corner of my dining area in my apartment into a scrap space! I should write down my dream space one of these days like you did, then it may come true!
January 8th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
I feel so lucky because I’ve stepped foot in your existing scrapbook space. I marvel at the incredible work that comes out of it. The new space sounds heavenly … when can I come down?
January 8th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
Stacy that sounds like heaven on earth!!! Right now I’d settle for a decent sized desk and some proper storage. Mine is okay but it’s far from ideal. I love how you think though.
~Heidi
January 8th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
Wow Girl!!! That sounds absolutely amazing!!! I think instead of being in Texas though it should be in MY yard her in Missouri!!
January 8th, 2007 at 7:02 pm
hey stacy! i’m reading! lol!
i love how you have described your dream space. it sounds lovely.
the first thing that came to mind when you were describing your cropping space for friends though was…ack! i’d have to cart all my scrapping stuff up some stairs!
this is why i stopped going to my cmc’s day crops!
so…on the back of you dream scrapping cottage can there be an elevator? pretty please! lol!
January 9th, 2007 at 12:55 am
Stacy - you’ve just described my dream scrapspace… and I wasn’t even aware I had one in the back of my head. Let me know when the money fairy shows up and I’ll pack my stuff and head over.
January 9th, 2007 at 10:28 am
I am about to get my own scrap space and I am totally intimidated by it. Guess I need to learn how to dream bigger, huh?
January 30th, 2007 at 9:21 pm
I so need to organize my space better so I will actually use it. I came here looking for ideas and found them! Thanks and I hope someday to walk right in sit down and have you show me your room. I need to make this happen.
February 5th, 2007 at 9:00 am
Stacy, you have described my dream studio, except that mine was only going to be single level. Tomorrow a garden shed gets built in the space so guess it won’t be happening on my end for a while, however I have been getting some quotes done for a dedicated space in my living room or dining room so oart of the dream lives on….