She Shack

Ladies, it is time to take a stand for equality! Quit sitting alone in the living room staring at the television while your man disappears into his testosterone-filled man-cave to do whatever it is that guys do in man-caves. It is time to create a She Shack.

What, you ask, is a She Shack? It is a place for the woman of the house to get away from it all. It is a place that is just hers. It reflects all that she is. It can be a remodeled garage or a garden shed re-purposed.

I absolutely have to have my very own She Shack, which I will call a Diva Den. Of course it has to be designed to work with my current outdoor space, so the first place I am heading is City Tile in Murfreesboro. City Tile is where I got all of the tile for the walls and flooring for my outdoor space.

Getting a second outdoor storage shed for my Diva Den is a must, but if you are a DYI type there are building plans online. I skipped the building plans and went right to the photos of the many different She Shacks that women have created. They look like everything from a soft and feminine library with big comfy couches and chairs to the gauzy dwelling of Scheherazade to a Hobbit House and beyond.

Before you design your own space, decide what you are going to do there. Some women use it as a reading nook (hence the comfy sofas noted above and all of those books). Others use their She Shack as place to sew, or paint, or create in some other way. Since I am a writer, mine will be a quite hideaway for me to get away from all distractions. You see I look for distractions to keep me from doing what I need to do – write.

First, I knew I wanted wood floors. I love the look and feel of wood. But the practical part of me remembered that a walk through the yard will be necessary to get to my Diva Den, so I decided to get something easy to clean. What I found was this new tile that City Tile has just laid in the showroom that looks like repurposed painted barn wood. The tile is made by Gio Architectural Tile and Stone and called Charleston Multi-Colored Plank. I want to have a laid back esthetic going, and I believe these floors will set the tone.

Next, I know I had to have a barn wood accent wall. City Tile has that, too. They have used it on the walls of the showroom and it looks fantastic. It even comes from Tennessee!

Then, being that I will use my Diva Den all year around, I know I will need a rug. My Transitional style will be using lots of bright colors and Asian fabrics, so I felt that the rug needed to be a little more understated, especially throwing it over a colorful floor. I chose to have one custom made. City Tile can do that, too! I found the perfect pieces to create the rug I want from Stanton.

I am going to have my Diva Den insulated, wired for electricity, and I am adding a lovely electric fireplace. Some contemporary lighting, comfy couches, a desk, chair, and wi-fi will make this the perfect place for me to focus on getting my Diva blogs completed on time. At least until I find some other distraction.

Have fun creating your own She Shack/Diva Den my fellow diva darlings!