Stretching My Wings

It's time to unveil my new studio space! On June 9th, I wrote my Pinch Me post, sharing my news of getting my own studio. Then on July 13th I posted a teaser, Preparing a Place, giving a glimpse of the work in progress. I'm ready now to share a more detailed look at the space. But first, I have to share a discouraging moment. A couple of weeks ago at the end of a long afternoon, I was hot, tired, weary, worn out, and frustrated by the amount of work yet to be done. I said to my husband, Howard: Why am I doing this? I had a perfectly good art space. Howard's response illustrates the kind of support he gives me in whatever I do, but in this particular instance, he said: Sometimes we have to stretch our wings and that's where you are. My wings have definitely been stretched!

First, a bit of the preparation:






Then a bit of the moving (I can't even begin to tell you how many trips we made!):



Then a bit of disarray:







Finally, the studio, but only the outside as the backyard is too frightful to share right now. Of course, I already know what I want to do with the outside space in back . . .





The inside space, including the kitchen studio area, the back porch storage, the living room meeting space, and the back bedroom, which is mega storage central!


















The yet to be organized attached shed (but not during 107 degree weather!):






And finally, I will leave you with some glimpses and peeks of my stuff!

Altered Board Book - Home Again

My altered board book has returned to me. After sending it off into the hands of five other ladies in mid April, it has finally come home. I chose a house-shaped book to use for the swap and if you're interested in seeing the original blank book naked and to see what I did before sending it out into the world, click here. I had a bit of a fright getting the book returned from the final participant, and she didn't even end up doing her pages in my book, which made me sad after I had spent so much time on her pages . . . but the coordinator of the swap, Destree, managed to track down the book and with the help of our mutual friend, Shelby, they managed to get their hands on the book and Shelby even completed the book by doing art on the two unfinished pages! Such a sweet thing to do . . .

The book is delicious. It is full of words rich in meaning, art that inspires. Everyone has used different techniques to complete their pages. There are whimsical doodads glued in, textures that beg to be touched; poems and quotes litter the pages. A sensory delight. But enough babbling, here are some photos.

Now, pleae join me for a walk through each room of my home.

I'm a Winner!

I won an artist blog giveaway! The artist? Serena Barton. If you aren't familiar with Serena's work, I say get thee to her website and blog as soon as you can. Serena lives in Portland, is an active, producing artist, maintains a private counseling practice, and teaches art classes, so she is a busy lady.

On May 23, Serena announced she was giving away a copy of L.K. Ludwig's book, True Vision - Authentic Art Journaling. Serena mentioned that if the winner already had that book, then another book would be selected. Well, on June 6th, Serena pulled a name from a hat - it was MY name! Since I already had True Vision, I gave Serena a few ideas of books I didn't have (but would love to own) and told her to surprise me. And surprise me she did. I received in the mail a copy of Lynne Perella's Art Making - Collections and Obsessions. I guess Serena figured out that I am obsessed with collections and art making. Since I don't want to violate any copyright laws, I've included photos of just the front and back covers of the book. But, oh my goodness, you should see what is in between!

Beautiful Miss Karen

Another little Art Buddy flew in the door the other day and I wanted to share her with you. If you've been reading my blog for any time, you already know about my Art Buddies Invitational. If you don't know what I'm talking about and you're a little bit curious, please click right HERE and you'll be taken to the original post. It's been a fun project seeing how all of the invited artists have dolled up their naked wooden forms. This time around I get to introduce you to a long-time friend, Karen. I used to work with Karen at Willamette University (that was many many moons ago), then Karen took my Artist's Way Creative Cluster (that was also many moons ago). Through the Artist's Way and a natural kinship, we've stayed in touch.

When I asked Karen what she named her Art Buddy, here is how she replied:

I didn't name her, but she's me really. Or who I want to be: she has diamonds on the souls of her feet, she's following her heart, in a summer hat. So, yeah, she is who I am working toward being!



Thank you, Karen. You truly are beautiful inside and out.

Preparing a Place

I’ve been doing a lot of painting lately, not on canvas, but on walls, the walls of my new art studio! I wrote about this opportunity back on June 9th in my Pinch Me post. I took possession of the little house last Tuesday and have been madly preparing the space since then. I’ve patched, puttied, and sanded my way around the house, then started painting over the weekend. My dear husband brought in his paint sprayer and was able to cover a lot of territory quickly! I still have the bathroom and all of the inside trim to paint, also the outside trim and doors, but it’s coming together and very soon I’ll be able to show off the little place in before and after photos. For now, though, just before pictures.

Mother's Hair

If you've been reading my blog for very long, you'll know that my good friend Sam (of Lil' Gypsy fame) gifts me occasionally with Bags of Crappola. I was fortunate to receive one of Sam's bags recently, filled to the brim with goodness.







Around the same time that I received my cascade of goodies from Sam, another friend, Peshe, bestowed upon me not only a marvelous doorknob plate, but also the guts from an old CD player. My friends sure know what I like!