New sewing studio
See this mess? This is my "formal living room."
Like many suburban homes built in the 1960s, my house has both a family room and this delightful "formal living room." But like most families of today, we have never used our living room as such. The family room is where we seem to do the majority of our living. So for the last eight years, this room has functioned very nicely as the chaotic playroom you see above.
So we currently have the playroom in the living room, my husband's home office in the basement, and my sewing studio in the extra bedroom upstairs. But the truth is, none of those spaces are ideal for us anymore. I mostly sew in the family room and cut fabric in the dining room. My husband hates going down to the dingy basement to work. And as my kids get older and have friends over more frequently, they are starting to want a hang-out space that is a bit more separate from the adults'. The adults would probably like that too. 😂
Then it hit me: A simple shuffling of rooms would make our house work so much better for all of us. The girls' playspace can go down to the basement (because they don't care about dingy, at least for now), my husband's office moves to the extra bedroom, and ... drumroll please ... the mother of all sewing studios is born in the living room. No more sewing machine in the family room, cutting mat in the dining room, and fabric stored upstairs. Cue angels singing.But this will be more than just my fun dream space. My family has dealt with a lot of change in the last year, and there are major changes looming in the weeks ahead as well. My husband is switching jobs after nearly 10 years at the same firm. My youngest is headed to school full-time in September. And I have slowly but surely been evolving this quilting thing from a hobby/obsession into my actual job. Part of that is having a legit work space.
So after months of borderline-obsessive planning and searching the internet for just the right shelving and such, we are finally making it happen. We've already cleared out the room, and today an electrician comes to install some better lighting. I'll also be painting. A lot. Oh, and I have to go to Ikea. (No small feat since my nearest Ikea is two hours away). But eventually I'll have my dream space. And of course I'll be posting about my progress, both here and on Instagram. Can. Not. Wait!