Rooms of their own: Woman caves

Writers, according to Virginia Woolf, need a room of their own. She believed they require privacy and big chunks of uninterrupted time to unleash their creativity.

Men have known this for years. Peek into the basement, den or garage of many homes and you'll find a "man cave" devoted to a passion, whether it's watching Monday Night Football, carving duck decoys or shooting pool.

As this Mother's Day approaches, we look at five women who have outfitted rooms of their own, rooms that not only offer a space to pursue an interest but also serve as a much-needed sanctuary from the hurly-burly of family life.

Alyson Richman

Huntington Bay

WHERE HER CAVE IS In a sunroom

APPROXIMATE COST $800 in furnishings

HOW IT CAME ABOUT As an author of historical novels, Richman is particularly fortunate to have a detached cottage on her property in which to write. Still, when she and her husband bought their home overlooking Huntington Bay three years ago, it was the sunroom off the living room, with its three doors of glass and views of the water, that drew her. "I gravitated to it because there had been a wedding there about 10 years ago] and they had put the band in this room and opened up the doors so the music could be heard on the lawn," Richman says. "I often go in there and imagine the band playing and the wedding. It transports me."

When she moved in, Richman decorated in blue and white, using mostly pieces she already owned, putting in cornflower-blue couches and two small chairs, with tables facing the water.

WHY SHE LOVES IT The sunroom is where Richman goes to soak up the outdoors while indoors, to relax, and, yes, to escape the tumult of her children, ages 5 and 7. "It's my spot," she says. "I don't want my children coming in and throwing toys and baseballs. I close the doors, drink tea and read novels. I can open up the doors and get a breeze."

Richman, 38, marks the seasons from the room, watching the irises and magnolias blossoming in spring and a sugar maple changing color in autumn. "It settles me and helps me put everything in perspective," she says. "It's a room of reflection."

While anticipating the release her latest book in September, Richman has been working on her fifth novel -- in the separate cottage. "It's ironic that the place where I write has no view of anything," she says. "I don't want distractions there."

Diane Young

Huntington

WHERE HER CAVE IS A former den

APPROXIMATE COST $5,000 for records and music equipment

HOW IT CAME ABOUT For years, the extra room had boxes piled in it. After Young set up a piano there, it started to take shape as a music room. She started a collection of records to play on an old record player -- Elton John, Simon & Garfunkel, Helen Reddy, Fleetwood Mac and plenty of Beatles. Then Young decorated with mementos from her past -- her grandmother's mirror, bookcases holding photo albums, paintings by a friend and one of Eric Clapton done by her son.

WHY SHE LOVES IT "My music room is the place where I am able to sit back in a comfy leather chair, put my feet up on the ottoman, turn on the music and just let go," she says. She decompresses from teaching a kindergarten enrichment program, music at a library, art to special needs children and religion to fifth-graders. "I feel like I go through life with a soundtrack playing in the background," says Young, 45. "I can hear any old song and instantly remember where I was, who I was with and how I felt."

The room has also helped Young establish a bond with her son, James, now 15. She shares not only the music of her youth but also the tunes loved by her brother-in-law Jimmy, who died the year before James was born and for whom he is named.

Spinning vinyl also creates special moments with female friends. They bond over the music, singing along with Kiss' "Rock and Roll All Nite" and reminiscing over wine about their wedding songs. "You put Meat Loaf's 'Paradise by the Dashboard Light' on the turntable and we all go back to being 15 years old again," Young says.

Susan Pitzele

Bay Shore

WHERE HER CAVES ARE In two rooms, a former master bedroom and a former nursery

APPROXIMATE COST About $1,000 for paint, electrical work and storage units

HOW IT CAME ABOUT It was only after her children were grown that Pitzele converted the master bedroom into her art studio and a small nursery off that room into a spot for practicing yoga, meditating and writing in her journal. The house had been a two-family house, so she and her husband -- both amateur artists -- had the luxury of using extra rooms for themselves after converting it to a one-family. In her art studio, Pitzele paints in oil and charcoal and also does East Asian brush painting, or sumi-e. She has a sewing area and a music zone where she keeps an iPod dock, too.

A few feet away sits the little room where Pitzele keeps a fold-up treadmill, yoga mat, weights and writing table. Instead of removing the border wallpaper of whales, fish and birds, Pitzele painted the walls beneath to look like the ocean and the area above to mimic the sky. Instead of repairing the damaged ceiling, she tacked up fabric to get the effect of fluffy clouds. That way, she can lie in her hammock and gaze up at the "sky."

WHY SHE LOVES IT "My studio gives me a place where I can be creative and not be swayed by other people's ideas of what I should be doing," Pitzele says. "The little room is a place where I go to take care of my body and soul. It's a totally indulgent place."

Pitzele and her husband, Peter, have a combined family of five children, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Pitzele, 69, is frank when describing the stress she felt at being a stay-at-home mother of three during her first marriage.

"I didn't have this when I had kids," she says. "I wish I had. What I did when I had kids living at home was lock myself in the bathroom."

She says she was desperate then to find quiet time for herself but didn't know that she could take a break from caring for them all the time. "Every mother feels that way," she says. "It's normal to be crazed with your kids. It doesn't mean there's something wrong with you."

Joann Alexander

West Hempstead

WHERE HER CAVE IS In a corner of the den

APPROXIMATE COST Extension onto the house: $65,000; furniture: $1,250

HOW IT CAME ABOUT Alexander and her husband, Michael, would look out on the deck and imagine converting it into a den. During these discussions, it was Michael's vision that reigned. "He liked the railroad industrial look," she says. "But I wound up taking over."

Today, the room has baskets, pottery and candles, even though her husband is allergic to candles and sometimes jokingly asks if there is a seance going on. There are two cozy chairs in the den now, but it is definitely Joann Alexander's special place.

The sliding door that separates the den from the dining room turns the room into a private getaway. The Alexanders' son, 23, lives on the main level and a daughter and two grandchildren, ages 1 and 4, reside separately downstairs.

A human resources specialist who lost her job and currently pitches in with her family's recording studio, Alexander, 47, says living with several generations under one roof "can be a little crazy" at times. If someone wants to come into the den for a chat, there's always the second chair. But she doesn't hesitate to ask relatives to refrain from entering before sliding the door shut and retreating to her corner with her chair, lamp, baskets, candles and a small table.

WHY SHE LOVES IT "That's my zone," Alexander says. "The less the better. I find it so peaceful. I'm able to just relax and unwind. If I want to listen to some gospel or other music, I do. Sometimes I honestly just think of nothing. I just relax and let it go."

She says that her husband has come to terms with the feminine decor that has spread throughout the entire room. "He likes it," Alexander says. "It's warm. He says, 'You made it homey.' "

Cheryl Chitayat

Northport

WHERE HER CAVE IS In the finished basement

APPROXIMATE COST Several hundred dollars on utility carts, framing artwork and craft supplies.

HOW IT CAME ABOUT For years, Chitayat used a spare bedroom as a craft room. But the same room also functioned as a sewing room for her daughter, a guest bedroom, storage area for skis, spare clothes and holiday supplies and a general dumping spot for the family's "don't-know-where-to-put-it" stuff. "I made do, but it didn't really work as a haven for me," says Chitayat. "It was too close to 'civilization' -- the family bedrooms, the chores and never-ending to-do list."

So Chitayat moved her craft zone to the basement that her children had just finished using as an informal classroom for Hebrew lessons. She'd enjoyed pottery and jewelry-making, but, after a class at the Huntington Art League, she fell in love with making mosaics. The room already had homemade bulletin boards and tables from its past life. Chitayat added an old cabinet that holds buttons and jewelry components she incorporates into the pieces, mostly mirrors. An old closet houses found objects she uses as bases for her projects. She often makes wedding gifts and recently, for her 50th birthday, Chitayat designed a mosaic mirror to give to close friends.

WHY SHE LOVES IT When she's downstairs creating in her lair, Chitayat says, "I don't have to be responsible for people's feelings." A psychologist in private practice, Chitayat says she relishes the time away from family and patients, even if thoughts of starting dinner drift away with the hours passing unnoticed. "I get rid of the toxins of life," she says. "It rejuvenates me. It brings me joy."