I'm Helen, and welcome to Look, A Book Nook. I started creating book nooks about a
year ago after stumbling upon it out of nowhere. I was instantly smitten. The idea of creating a peek into another world in between the spines of books on a shelf totally drew me in and awakened my wonder. What a surprise, to be browsing along and then, BAM! The wardrobe to Narnia. Or an enchanted forest. Or the Great Hall at Hogwarts. The possibilities were endless, and my brain started filling up with ideas for all the book nooks I could make.
I have always been creative, with a big imagination. For example, I love making my children's Halloween costumes. Here is a picture of my oldest when she was a baby. She got her teeth in very late. We decided she was going to go as Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon on her first Halloween so she could show off her gummy smile:
For a long time I wanted to be a fiction writer, but I realized that despite a big imagination and a passable ability to write, it takes a lot more to write an entire book than just that. When I tried it out in college I realized I just didn't have the brain space to do it at the time. So, I became a librarian instead. I could definitely read and did it with abandon, devouring books from a young age. I loved being a librarian because I got to help instill a love of reading in children, help people with technology and research, and help everyone find their next favorite book. In Library Land I could use my creativity, imagination, and my love of stories all at once. But that didn't last forever.
My second daughter was born at the beginning of the pandemic, and I was furloughed from my library job. Not knowing when I'd return, and having two little girls at home, I
quit being a librarian in favor of focusing on my kids and home life. Four months later, my husband and I decided to move to a ten-acre property in the middle of the woods. We decided to do what I like to call "half-homesteading" -- we raise chickens for eggs and meat, grow our own vegetable garden, and mill our own lumber. We don't do it all, though -- the Amazon truck is a regular visitor to our front porch, we eat plenty of food from the grocery store, and we still buy our clothes from a store. We do what works for us, which is what I encourage everyone to do. As I like to say, "You do you boo boo!" If you are thriving and healthy, then keep doing what you are doing, friend.
Anyway, I don't exactly remember how I stumbled upon the idea of a Book Nook, but for those of you not familiar, let me explain: a book nook, or otherwise known as a "book shelf insert" or "bookshelf diorama," is a diorama whose dimensions fit within the space of two books on a bookshelf. A lot of diorama enthusiasts like this because instead of an open space, it is an enclosed space that brings the challenge of fitting a whole world inside a limited area. Ideally, book nooks look bigger on the inside than they are on the outside. Like a Mary Poppins bag, if you will.
Which brings me to the present. I'm staying out of Library Land for a while yet. I'm a wife and a mom to two young girls. We have 10 acres and chickens and a garden and the possibility of more farm animals on the horizon. But the book nooks? They are just for me. A little hobby that truly brings me joy, helps me learn new skills, and stretches my mind to think creatively and use my imagination. I hope you'll come along with me as I go on this journey. And maybe one day, you'll be browsing a bookshelf and come upon a little world tucked away between the many titles and think, "Look! A book nook!"
Helen
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