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Tuesday 24 June 2014

A Place To Call My Own

I stumbled upon the most interesting thing on Pinterest the other day. I was scrolling through the "Popular" feed and saw something that was captioned "Woman Cave".

I think the axis of my universe just shifted.

A woman cave. I've never given it much thought, but yes, come to think of it, I would like a place I can retreat to. Chuck has the now requisite "Man Cave" in the basement full of his military paraphernalia. He's even got a sign on the lintel going down the stairs.


My son has the entire top floor of the stone part of the house. It's just a fluke of past renovations that all the separators were taken out so he's got a large airy space for a bedroom which is also quite separate from the rest of the living space and he's happy there.

And me? Well, um, I have a sacrosanct spot on the couch. My spot and only I sit there. Or at least I did until the dog decided he liked it too.  Chuck's first comment when I suggested I'd like a space of my own was that I had the rest of the house and how much more did I really need?

Joking aside, typically women retreat to the bedroom, bathroom or kitchen. My bedroom is for sleeping - end of story. I'm not one to lounge in the tub so while the bathroom is very nice, I don't consider it a retreat. The kitchen is out because it's a work space and more to the point, it's a public part of the house. I want a place where I can leave my knitting out, a book open to a page and decorate without consultation with the others who live here. If we lived in a more forgiving climate, I would have tried to take over the shed (a freestanding building with power) but since it is neither insulated nor heated it isn't really usable as living space from October to May. I don't have a perfect space, but we do have an unused area on the main floor of the house. The living room/lounge is an odd C shape. The only entrance to the room is from the top of the C and that area at the top is what we use. The bottom of the C is unused.

So for now, this will be my space. It's a work in progress but there is a closet to store books, lots of light, the stereo and space for the spinning wheels (you can only see one).



The only thing I'd really like to add is a divider - something like a Chinese screen that I can easily remove to really separate my space from the living room.


9 comments:

  1. That is a lovely space - and your house is wonderfully tidy. I have two small boy's so I am always in awe of a tidy house!! One day, I too will have my space!

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    1. Thank you so much for your kind words - it is a pleasant space and I'm happy to be able to take it over. It wasn't that long ago that I had a small boy in the house - nothing stayed clean for long in those days!

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  2. What a beautiful space! It reminds me of a Regency-era parlor, which I suppose was as close to a "woman cave" as one could get. Adding a divider sounds perfect. I hope you get to spend many happy hours relaxing and crafting in your own lovely space!

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    1. Thank you. I hadn't thought Regency-era, but I suppose the chairs do give it that feel. I'm really looking forward to working on the space and making it mine.

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  3. Oh (wo)man, I dream of having a little space of my own! Maybe I could claim a little spot when we finally get around to finishing the basement? Until then, I'll keep looking at your fireplace and dreaming. :)

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    1. It is a great fireplace isn't it? :) It is one of the things that really drew me to the house when we first saw it. Sadly, because of current regulations I can't use it as an actual fireplace (the flue doesn't go straight up) but the stone makes a great accent wall. And I admit, I'm almost giddy at the thought of a space of my own.

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  4. Well, I am completely jealous of that beautiful room of yours! What a great fireplace, and those chairs are just stunning. A divider screen will be just the thing to complete your woman cave :)

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    1. Oh, thank you! The fireplace really is quite dramatic - you don't see them built like this anymore. The chairs come from my husband's family. We've had them refinished and reupholstered (the 60's weren't kind to furniture). Now the search is on for a screen that will both fit the room and is something I actually like.

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  5. That looks lovely! Enjoy it!

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