Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Scene of the Blog Featuring Steven of Book Dads!


I'm not sure just when it became fashionable to bash men; I just know that I've never cared for the practice. Then again, I don't care for bashing of any sort. (I have my mother and my own life's experiences to thank for that.)

It's good to see that there are blogs like Book Dads and bloggers like Steven in upstate New York that promote books with positive views of fathers and fatherhood. Haven't heard of Book Dads? That's very easy to remedy, you know. Stop by and say hello. There is lots of good information on that site!

As far as creative spaces go, there can be such a thing as too many white walls. I've eradicated all the white walls inside this house, and it seems that Steven is another person who's not afraid of a little color.

Well, truth be told, he's even braver than I am. Let me show you what I'm talking about. (Don't forget that you can click on the photos to view them full size.)



This room is still a work in progress. When we purchased this house over three years ago, we struggled with the use of the third and smallest bedroom and wanted to have it serve as both an office and a guest room. Unfortunately it is just too small to accommodate all those functions and the need for work/computer space won out. A pull-out sofa in the living room becomes our guest space.



There is a matching desk on the wall opposite my desk for Brian and also a solid wall of new floor to ceiling bookcases. The bookcases were empty for awhile as we unpacked some books and unfortunately have become a catch all place for other stuff too. I put a bulletin board on the wall over my desk, where I still have a wonderful Valentine drawing made by my son last February.




Not everyone seems to appreciate the bright lime green color we painted the room, but we love it and we are so tired of the plain white walls in every room of the house. We just had to have some color. The afternoon sun fills this room with warmth and light, but I do have to close the blinds to see my computer screen!


Steven and Brian have a very similar office set-up to Denis and me: desks on opposite walls and bookcases. Speaking of bookcases, I love these! Don't you? I will have to admit that, although lime green is not a color that you'll ever see on the walls of my house, it does work in Steven and Brian's room, especially with the black desk, chair and file cabinets and the dark bookcases to ground it.

The rug on the floor is very interesting, too. At first I thought it was just underneath Steven's desk, but now that I look at it again, it may cover the entire floor. I'm also wondering if it's carpet tiles? (Hmmm... maybe I watch too much HGTV!) I'm sure that Steven will enlighten us soon.

Thank you so much for the tour of your creative space, Steven. It makes a bold and pleasing statement!

Who will be featured next Wednesday on Scene of the Blog? You'll just have to stop by and find out for yourself. See you then!

19 comments:

  1. Oh, I will have to tell my husband aout their blog. Sometimes he feels quite daunted by being a man in today´s society. Scandinavian feminists don´t always leave them much space (or self-respect)!

    I would (probably) never paint a room lime-green either, but I agree that it is very cool together with the black furniture.

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  2. I love the rug/tiles/flooring too Cathy.

    One of my favourite books with a brilliant Dad is Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD. I know it's a grim book but it's also a love story between father and son.

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  3. I absolutely love the wall color! It can only be fun working there :-) And the rug (?) is also great!

    And it's so organized! (Or did they clean up before taking the pictures? ;-) ) I wished my work space was that clean and colorful...

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  4. Dorte,
    Please do tell your husband to come and check us out.

    I'm not color shy and find the bright color always brightens my mood.

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  5. Bernadette,
    We'll have to check out The Road and see if it's something we might want to review at Book Dads. Thank you :-)

    Just briefly looked at it online now and thinking it would be something I would personally enjoy reading.

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  6. Thanks Kathrin, it's not always so organized now. The first picture was taken just after we finished painting and moving some furniture in. The book shelving has unfortunately turned into storage for more than books.

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  7. Oh, I'm so glad to hear this. I though I was the only one with an unorganized work space (but I still know where most things are!)...

    And as long as the book shelves are mostly for books, I don't think it matters too much that you store other stuff there as well...

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  8. Since everyone is commenting on the rug, let me tell you about it. It is carpet tiles and comes from a company called Flor, you can find them online easily and get a catalog.
    They have a wide selection of tiles and it is designed to mix and match various colors, textures and designs. The other really neat thing is that FLOR has a recycling program and will take back tiles to be recycled and used for making more rugs.

    The only thing I don't like about the tiles is the little adhesive dots that stick on the underside and are supposed to hold the rug together. They don't stand up well to heavy traffic and rolling desk chairs. We are considering using duct tape to keep it together.

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  9. While I would not necessarily choose lime green - I LOVE the bold splash of color on the walls and the carpet works perfectly for this room!

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  10. I absolutely LOVE the room!! What a great place to work and blog. Will have to check out the carpet tiles, they would be great to use in my sons' room...I will take into consideration the duct tape too - LOL.

    I checked out the Book Dads blog and enjoyed reading the reviews of all the books concerning dads. What a way to celebrate being a father. Great job guys!!!

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  11. I love the green walls and the carpet too. What a great space!

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  12. I don't think I'm brave enough to do it myself, but I LOVE the cheeriness of that room. The green, the carpet, the sunlight. And the bookcases are fabulous and perfect in black.

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  13. As I sit here at my computer, I can look up at a small (maybe two inch square) counted cross stitch my now-thirty-year-old son did for me when he was in the third grade or so. It says, "Daddies are Dashing." It is right beside the little clown counted cross stitch he did for me (The two of us were into clowning at one time) and just over from the small rock statue that says, "Super Dad."

    It is great to be a father, and it is sad when men can't do that, either by their own choice or because of the situation.

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  14. Many thanks to everyone who appreciates the mood lifting green :-)

    Joe,thank you for that story! It reminded me of something. My mother passed away about 10 years ago and when my father and a couple of my siblings were going through her things they found something I gave her. It was a small book that I made in Kindergarten or 1st grade as a Mother's Day gift. I was amazed she had kept it all those years, I was 39 when she died. I have it now safely stowed in a keepsake box.

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  15. I love the wall color! I'm more of a red or purple girl, but I love people who are willing to do a room in lime green. Looks like a wonderful space!

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  16. Interesting post, I'm going to visit Book Dads. I like the cheery, inviting room, too.

    Thanks for stopping by and letting me know about PBS! It looks like that is the way I will go to swap books!

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  17. Jena--It's good to see you "out and about" after your holiday adventures!

    Sharon-- If you have any questions about PBS, ask away!

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  18. When my husband and I met, he lived in a basement with those rug tiles...his were all green, no variation in color there.

    I like the lime green, but the sun would make it hard to see a computer screen and i prefer natural light...that would be a drawback for me.

    Thanks for sharing another unique space.

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  19. When my husband and I met, he lived in a basement with those rug tiles...his were all green, no variation in color there.

    I like the lime green, but the sun would make it hard to see a computer screen and i prefer natural light...that would be a drawback for me.

    Thanks for sharing another unique space.

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