Monday, January 25, 2010

My Building Project

It's Monday and the kids got a day off from school because of the weather.  It's been fun hanging out since they are "trapped" here with me and can't leave the house-quality family time!  


Today is also giving me some time to catch up on things I have been putting off because of lack of time.  We have all been working hard on our construction project which involves finishing off an unfinished space above our garage.  One of the fun things I am doing up there is building my dream studio!  Now, I've had craft/art rooms in my home before but never a dedicated spot built just for me and my art.   Best of all I have a sink, no more washing paint brushes in the bathrooms!  No more glass grinding for stained glass on the kitchen island!  (But don't hold me to that--sometimes I like to be where all the action is, even if it means we'll be eating tiny glass shards with our food)  I thought I would post some photos of our little garage attic area during the process.  Below are the photos after we cleaned out the attic and before the building started.  I'm so excited for it to be finished I can hardly stand myself!




That's all for now!  If you have any good ideas for a studio space or would like to share photos of your space I would love to see them!  




Sunday, January 10, 2010

KC Willis Marketing Mindset

I would like to tell everyone about an online workshop I have joined called, KC Willis Marketing Mindset-Navigating the Art Market.  KC willis is a fabulous mixed media artist.  She will be covering ways to market your art and how to get over the fear of marketing it.  I have been participating in the online discussions and looking forward to the first video.  If you sign up now the price is reduced to $144 (regular price is $244).  I am also signed up for one of her other online workshops, "Collage Camp" which has 6 videos and is full of great information and tutorials.  Collage Camp is only $75 to sign up for right now, which is a bargain!  I have also connected with many other talented artists and have gained much inspiration!  KC is a great teacher and you're sure to enjoy!


Jennifer



Monday, January 4, 2010

Happy 2010!


OK-A little background information on me.  Ever since I was a little girl I have been creating things.  Some of the things that stand out are Barbie Doll clothes, jewelry out of Chestnuts (yes, you heard right, Chestnuts-the nut---broke a lot of needles trying to string those babies!), crocheting and knitting various items, making pottery on the pottery wheel in art class (one of my favorites), painting, drawing, cutting, taping, gluing, sewing, etc. etc. etc.  I was 10 or 11 when my friend and I made the Chestnut jewelry then we hit the streets to sell them. We sold a few (I'm sure people bought out of pity) until my parents tracked us down and made us come home.  The crafting continued until adulthood with some lapses in between for junior high, high school, etc, when my main focus and hobby was to be and look "cool" and "fit in". That was an art in and of itself, as any adult woman knows.  


Then came the college years.  Not a lot of extra time but style/fashion and necessity (lack of funds) lead to creativity and I could be found in the laundry room in the dorms bleaching and dyeing jeans, jean jackets, sweaters, t-shirts, whatever would look cool.  The later years of college would bring out my flair for decorating dumpy apartments.  No matter how dumpy the place was, I found that with a few cute bed sheets used as slipcovers or curtains and contact paper used to laminate ugly counter tops I could transform it into a pretty sweet pad!  I was always coming up with creative ideas.  Everything that I saw I thought to myself, "I can make that" so I'd go home and figure out a way to make it for a fraction of the cost.  


Then came the married and baby years.  As an "at home" mom I started just about every craft known to man.  These included but were not limited to:  paper making, rubber stamping, card making, stained glass, glass fusing in a kiln, jewelry making, soap making, lotion making, stamp carving.........you get the picture.  It would have all been fine if I was one of those neat organized little crafters with a tiny little Rubbermaid box for each craft stacked neatly on a shelf but I'm NOT! Everything I do is full force, all out, 250%!  I mean when I was making paper, I was ordering Kozo bark from some tree from somewhere in the world (to make Mulberry paper) and buying caustic soda to boil it in and then smashing it up to suspend it in a special gel solution to make the handmade paper.  Then there were the paper presses all over the floors and makeshift clotheslines strung throughout the house with paper hanging from them.  When I started making jewelry I shortly thereafter decided I needed to blow my own beads so I went out and bought some torches. Then, about ten minutes after that I decided I was going to start glass fusing and a glass kiln appeared in my little art room/studio.  That's how I do things.  I'm thinking that instead of the little Rubbermaid boxes for each different craft I could maybe use those portable storage containers that hook on the back of trucks.  You know, the kind people use for moving, except I would use them as a modular storage system, just on a bit larger scale.


I am a visual person. When I am making jewelry, for example, I have to have ALL of my 10,000 kinds of beads out where I can see them because "you never know what you might want to use". You never know what two beads will end up rolling together and inspire a new design.   I wish I could be more organized when I work but it is impossible.  I want to know where and who these people are that have these neat and tidy studios that I am ever so envious of.  Please tell me, do you people really work like that or do you just clean up your studios for the photos?  Please tell me it's the latter, then I won't feel so badly about mine.  Hey, maybe I should start an online support group for messy artists!?!


That is all for now.  I hope I have not bored you.  I wanted to give you a little history so you would know how I got here today.  I would LOVE to hear your stories for hobbies, crafting stories, ideas, photos, etc. so please post. Goodbye for now!