Crafternoon at the NY Public Library

I, along with what seemed like 200 other New Yorkers, discovered "Crafternoons" at the New York Public Library today.  Rather, we experienced it today.  Most of us discovered it through the February 2011 issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine or her show which was taped February 1st (see my prior post on Martha Stewart) and premiered on Hallmark Channel on February 3rd.  Crafternoons have been going on for about a year and a half at the New York Public Library, hosted by librarian Jessica Pigza of the Rare Book Division and Crafternoon author Maura Madden.  They bring crafters together with inspirational items from the New York Public Library and host afternoons of enthusiastic crafting about once a month (for more information, please see http://www.crafternoon.com/blog/ and  http://www.nypl.org/blog_series/hand-made).

I wondered if the grey weather and rain would dissuade folks from attending, but when you combine a Saturday afternoon with free crafts sponsored by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., there is no keeping back the hoards in New York City.  No reservations were necessary, but the line for entry started forming about 30 minutes before the event was scheduled to start.

The Editor in Chief of the magazine, Vanessa Holden, as well as the Crafts Editor, Athena Preston, were in attendance.  They brought loads and loads of crafting materials to be used during this session (and future sessions), raffled away Martha Stewart prizes of books and crafting goodies, and provided all attendees with a copy of the February issue of the magazine.  Supplies were plentiful, and thanks to the reusable donated supplies as well as the monies raised through the raffle, I imagine that future Crafternoons will also be well-provided for.

I am not sure if past or future sessions will be as ad hoc in terms of the actual crafting, but I was a little surprised by the complete lack of instruction and the chaotic scramble for crafting papers.  I avoided the fray in general, but was reminded of holiday shopping frenzies.  The crafters raced to the papers area, then fought and complained about the lack of access to the papers they wanted.  We were told to make Valentine's Day cards and provided some inspirational examples, but no "how-to" instructions or templates.

The hosts were fun and charming, and crafting en masse in NYC was an unexpected enjoyable activity.  I will also say that I liked the cards I crafted for the occasion (see pictures in this post), and I plan to attend the next session on March 5th.  Fingers crossed that the event remains successful, but personally, I hope that the group size becomes a little more manageable.  Maura Madden had said that past Crafternoons had attracted under 20 people (last month it was 8), so I'm hoping somewhere between 20 and 200 would result a better experience.

New York Public Library (5th Avenue and 42nd Street)

Earlier this week (February 2, 2011) the New York Public Library commemorated the completion of the 3 year, $50 million renovation of the main Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, just in time for the May 23, 2011 centennial birthday celebrations (for a detailed article and to watch a 30 minute video, see http://www.nypl.org/press/press-release/2011/02/02/historic-three-year-preservation-project-restores-landmark-fa%C3%A7ade-lib).  And for better picture details of the restoration (yes, I realize that the picture above still looks dark--it was grey and rainy today), please see http://www.flickr.com/photos/nyplwire/sets/72157625960639708/with/5409947459/


After living in this City for about 9 years (off and on), I finally made it into this main library for a tour.  They have free, docent-led tours of the building (which meet in the main lobby, Astor Hall (see right) M-Sat 11 and 2, and Sun at 2) and of the exhibitions (which meet at Gottesman Hall just beyond Astor Hall, M-Sat 12:30 and 2:30, and Sun at 3:30).  As an architecture and history buff, I chose the building tour and was not disappointed.

The docent described the history and structure of the museum.  He showed us the various marbles from Vermont (which is the marble on the facade and most of the interior), Tennessee (which is what the two lions Patience and Fortitude are made of), and Greece (see the walls in the photo at left, which is marble from the same quarry that supplied the building of the Parthenon).  He also explained that the plaster cast ceilings stained to resemble intricate wood carvings (see left) was the style of the day versus the sole real wood-carved coffered ceiling of Gottesman Hall (where the current exhibit of the Three Faiths is shown, which includes a Gutenberg bible from 1455).  Both types of ceilings were stunning, but I will say that the wood ceiling in the exhibition room took my breath away.

We also received a good overview of the various departments within the library such as the maps room in the north end of the main floor, the periodicals room in the south end of the main floor (they get over 15,000 from around the world), the fully functional digital classrooms in what was once the south courtyard, and the children's library (where the original Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, and Tigger are on display, see right).
 
We went up to the 3rd floor where we also learned how to call books up from the stacks (which apparently only takes about 25 minutes!) for review in the beautiful Rose Reading Room (which when first opened was the largest open room without support posts, and spans the distance of a football field, see left for a view of half the length of the room); it is a non-circulating library so you can't take the books out of this library.  The library is one of the 5 largest in the world and is the only one that is truly open to the public (you don't have to be a New Yorker or even a U.S. resident).  As the docent led us around the library, it was clear from his tones and the care with which he spoke about the place, that he truly loved this place and was proud of its history and philosophy.  I agree.  It is a real treasure and one that should not be missed.