We have a great studio space set up at our house in the Canyons. When we decided that this space was going to be the studio, I was excited to figure out how to paint it. When I sat up in the space I thought that it was sad that you didn’t see the view of the Canyon that was off in the distance. So, I thought that I would paint a quick mural that gave an impression of the Canyon being there. This brightened up the space a bit, but kept a lot of the green color that I really liked. I then painted some plant graphics to also go along with this theme of being outside.
The studio is a loft space that is above the living room and off of the kitchen. There is a unique door that can be closed or opened. Here it is open.
When the door is closed, I have the backside set up for inspiration, to-do projects and a view of part of my art collection.
The portraits seen here are Michelle Ramin‘s work. There is a collection of paintings from artists during my time living in Portland, Oregon as well as some of my own.
In this window I have the urn for my former dog Topher. When he was alive he was always my in my studio in a sunny spot. This seemed like the perfect place keep him. I still miss this dog so much!!
I found a sewing machine table at a yard sale for $5. I threw together some extra legs for the table so that I could have my Janome machine on it. This machine can come off easily for me to use my serger here as well. My White vintage machine sits perfectly in the table and is what I use for basting stitches. Above this table I set up a shelf that holds my brushes and clear rulers for cutting.
To the left of this is my cutting table. It is adjustable and can even be set at an angle. I got this table at IKEA if you are interested in getting one for your own studio! Above this, I have my threads. To the left I have my rolling rack that has my sewing tools. To the right in the pink drawers are my serger threads, bike inner tube shapes, buttons and beads. The light above was my Grandmother Mary’s Captain lamp. I still need to find a new lampshade for him. The last one didn’t make it through the move.
Behind the table I have my fabrics. Lets just say that I had twice the amount of fabrics before we moved. This is what I have now…I organized it in types: UFO’s (a sewing term for unfinished projects), featured prints, accent prints, “The Insides” (stabilizers, batting, etc.), and garment fabric. It is really helpful to have them in different sections.
Stuart has his table set up here as well. My dress form hangs out in this area. I may be teaching some garment construction classes soon and this guy will be busy. When the door is open, I have my ironing board set up in the open space.
Here is the view out of the studio into the kitchen. I love sitting here while Stuart is cooking dinner. I created a pulley system with this basket to bring stuff up and down. Not sure if it works that great, but nice to have as an option. I also have a Vanessa Calvert sculpture resting in the corner. I enjoy seeing this when I climb down the ladder.
Next to Stuart’s desk is “The Thinker.” I enjoy this little guy in the space because it references historical art in the studio and also reminds me of the artist “thinking” about projects. There is so much that goes into creating something and sometimes just sitting down and figuring out what that can be is one of the hardest parts.
Do you have a space set up at your house for creating things?
