The studio is finished!
Well….It might not ever be completely finished! I’m always rearranging and adjusting. Let’s say that, for now it’s finished! For a certainty, there’s always more room for books!
When we began the search for the right house for our family, I really didn’t expect to find one that also had the perfect spot for my studio. I figured that I would either find a corner somewhere or put a studio shed in the backyard at some point. You can imagine my pleasant surprise, when we found this house, that had the perfect foot print, to not only divide up for the kiddo to have his own apartment, but also a beautiful, well lit studio space. I’ve had so much fun working on this space and making it exactly what I love to work in. Let me take you on the journey.
I began with this beautiful open space. It’s the room that’s on the back of the living room and the way to our back yard. It’s a long rectangle shaped room, with the back wall made up of windows and a French door going to the back yard. It doesn’t have a door from the living side, it’s a large opening in the wall.
This space has gone thru quite the process. I love the space, but it is a little challenging to set it up to work well. It’s long and not super narrow, but one whole side is all windows, which of course I love and the other side is broken up with a very large opening. I started by defining the living room from the studio, while not losing light from the studio by purchasing these glass French doors. I painted them and then put them on a sliding track.
Here they are installed. It gives a little more definition to the spaces without taking anything away from them.
Let’s go back to how I started arranging the studio. It’s taken quite awhile to find my comfort zone. I started having my painting station here, thinking that the other end would hold more storage, however it turned out to be too much in the pathway to the back yard. I ended up putting my work station on the other end of the room.
Molly began moving her things in…..
I also added the paint drop cloth curtains for the windows. I truly love them. I kept moving things around….
and moving
Then! I had been wanting to do a mural wall somewhere, I just decided to jump right in and do it! Hubby came home and shook his head, “always on a ladder painting walls”, he said. I grinned and said, “Well it’s my studio, so I can paint whatever I want on the walls”, to which he replied, “you’re cute and I love you, paint away my crazy girl”
After I finished the mural on the one end of the studio, the other end seemed off kilter, so a brilliant plan began to form…first more black paint.
I like having things organized, but I also like to see what gives me inspiration, what I’m working on, so I created this idea wall. I knew that I wanted cork to cover the wall, but I had a hard time finding cork. What I ended up using was cork drawer liners. They have a sticky backing, but that doesn’t stick really well to a wall. To solve that, I stapled along the edges and then added burlap trim to all of the seams. It works really well. This was just the beginning.
Molly loves hanging out in the studio. I had this lovely grey chair in here for awhile. I loved looking at it but, it wasn’t the perfect chair to curl up in for reading a book and sipping a cup of tea. I ended up moving it into the bedroom, there it makes the perfect spot to put on or pull off a pair of boots.
At goodwill I found a truly ugly chair, but it was comfortable, and it was only $25! I took it home, cleaned it and covered it with some of my favorite quilts. It makes the perfect spot to sit to reflect, sip a cup of tea, read a book and plan paintings.
Now that it’s all finished, I’m really enjoying working in my studio! Here it is! Molly and I would like to welcome you in!
The first mural. I have great storage in this fun antique dresser I found at a garage sale some years ago. Molly has her stuff hanging around of course. Toys are of the utmost importance along with a bed and some water.
Here’s the other end of my workspace.
It’s turned into my perfect spot to be. I’m surrounded by books, stars, tea cups, tea pots, quirkiness, it’s well lit both day and night. I can read, create, think, listen to the birds outside, plan my gardens, visit with molly and most of all paint!
I hope you enjoyed the journey, I’m very grateful for this space. Are you curious about where I’ve found things? and how it was all done? Let me tell you how. The biggest thing I’ve learned over the years is to hang out in second hand shops. You never find exactly what you’re looking for that day, but you always find something interesting. Still, you have to stay focused, don’t get too excited just because you think it’s a deal, but make sure it’s something you really love. Here are the things I’ve found and decided they were my treasures. The stained glass window on the wall I found 23 years ago in an antique shop in northern Georgia. The white chandelier was given to me by a kind friend, I painted it and added some details. The quirky hats I made myself, the books and other odds and ends I’ve found at various secondhand stores, The desk was given to me by another dear friend, I painted it. The antique inlay cabinet as well as the white dresser I found at a yard sale. I added the cool drawer pulls on the white dresser which I purchased at hobby lobby. The book shelves are built with inexpensive 1×6’s and 1×2’s and then painted, I added the corbels that I did a paint technique to, but purchased them at hobby lobby. My working rolling chair, I found on amazon and my easel is from hobby lobby. I’m a very eclectic, quirky girl so all of this works for me. The trick is to figure out what works for you and then just start hunting yard sales, second hand shops, flea markets and then fiddle with what you have until you like it. I wish for you, that you find the perfect spot that works for you. We all create in different ways. The important thing is to find what helps us create in our best way possible.