For as long as I have been building and painting miniatures, I have had to make due with my office doubling as my hobby space. It was a workable, if unideal situation. For one thing, it meant that when I needed to work, my desk was cluttered with hobby stuff. When I wanted to do hobby, my desk was cluttered with work stuff. And then there is my airbrush, which I had to set up and tear down each time I used it, which, in addition to the amount of time it takes to clean after a session, made the prospect of a serious airbrushing session rather daunting, in spite of the brilliance of the results I knew I could achieve with it.
I already felt lucky that I had enough space in my Brooklyn apartment that I had the luxury of an office separate from my bedroom, something that the self-employed often make due without, so I thought I was ahead of the game. Well, the bottom line is, some cities just aren’t very hobby friendly, and I’m glad that I finally don’t need to settle for a compromise in terms of hobby space.
I’m writing about this because I think that it’s something that doesn’t get a lot of ink, and it is actually one of the most important aspects of being a miniature hobbyist. If your work space is uninspiring, you will feel uninspired to work. As it is now, when I want to take a break from working and do a little painting or modeling, I am physically removing myself from my work environment, which is both energizing and, practically, better for my hobby projects. I was surprised by how quickly I was able to put together my new Treeman model compared to my generally distracted state I used to work, and I even started putting together a Dryads box that has been sitting unclipped and unused for about two years yesterday afternoon.
The message here isn’t “get a bigger house”, it’s to use your space more intelligently. I wasn’t doing that before. Having more space helps, but if you live in a place where desk space is a premium, it’s still worth taking a second look at your setup and asking yourself, “does this make me want to model/paint, or does it discourage me?” If your hobby space is uninviting, maybe make your next project to reassess your work flow.