Studio bliss

I've been pretty busy trying to get things made to sell, and with home schooling our daughter its pretty hard to carve out time so I've been getting up early. I love my studio in the early morning especially, and I do lots of things to help inspire and keep it a pleasant work space.
Oftentimes I light a candle, and I have surrounded myself with artwork that I love (especially the fun and upbeat pieces of my friend, Marti. Podcasts make the time go quickly, and I hope to write an entire post about my favorites soon.
I got this cool star light at the Kalamazoo Museum of Art's gift shop, and it makes me smile.
The refrigerator is an idea board, and I even have magnets that I love.My studio is definitely not as organized as some I read about in the pages of magazines, but it's my happy place and every once in a while I make something that turns out pretty okay. (This is a funky nuno-felted scarf that I completed today.)
There's really no excuse for me not to create... when the sun starts to hit the palisades on the opposite side of the river I feel the most inspired of all, and I'm ready to start teaching! Pin It Now!

Tis the season... for making!

(Sorry to those followers getting this a second time, I discovered that a link needed to be fixed so I'm re-sending...)
Despite the time change giving me that weird feeling of unease, and the daylight dissipating so early, I am finding myself relishing the change of season. No, I'm not talking about Christmas music and shopping, but the chance to hole up a bit and do some handcrafting. My studio was occupied by family members who converged to deer hunt last weekend, so I stuck with the computer instead. In addition to the little online class of Kim Klassen, I've also joined her "Photoshop Test Kitchen." I'm having a blast slowly learning some new techniques and pulling out old photos to try them on. (Here's just one sample of many I've been playing with, texture by Kim Klassen).

I ended up with a full, blissful day in my studio yesterday, as both kids were home with bad colds and M wasn't up for our home schooling. It was the first large, guilt-free block of time I've had in ages, and I got sooo much done!I dyed fiber and silk for future nuno-felting projects,Hand-dyed silk scarves, pre-felting

Spun some yarn (my first time spinning in quite a while!)Handspun bulky yarn, baby alpaca and cashmere blend

Felted some soaps, concentrating on trying to make each one into a tiny, unique piece of functional art and avoiding any sort of "mass production."

And today I've been jewelry-making (in the time after home-schooling was done). I've still got lots to do to get ready for the upcoming events at which I'll be selling- Art in the Barn and the Jingle and Mingle Handmade Gifts Party!Handcrafted pendant that will go on a copper necklace

Do you like my Moo mini cards? I had them printed with lots of my favorite images on the fronts and standard info on the back, and they're doubling as earring cards and price tags. What a great company to work with, easy and quick process! Pin It Now!

Do You Know Nuno?

....Nuno felting, that is. It's a very cool technique for producing light-weight, gauzy products with alpaca or wool laminated/felted onto silk and I'm really loving it! It's a great way to combine dyeing and felting, and the end product is ethereal and gorgeous.I was in heaven this morning in the studio, with projects in various stages and lots of dyeing taking place, too. I love the methods I use for dyeing silk, and plan to make silk scarves and finished scarves and shawls available on my Etsy site soon so that people can use them for their own projects (or just wear them as-is!). (This one may just have to stay with me, I'm going to put an abalone button on it).
This coming weekend is the Southern Select Alpaca Show, and whatever I don't sell there will be posted on Etsy, with more to come.
Munchie was keeping me company this morning. I never could previously figure out why he didn't like hanging out in the studio with me, when he's always nearby in the house. Finally, I set up a cushy spot for him in my padded office chair WITH a plush sheep hide on top- how could I have forgotten that he's all about comfort, and a simple rug on the wood floor was simply not good enough, and made him feel like a D-O-G? Pin It Now!

In my own little corner...

The summer hasn't left me with much time alone to work on projects, but today both kids were gone (one back to school and the other about to start back) and I kept feeling the magnetic draw of my special space.... I should be tidying and cooking since company is coming tonight for dinner, but it's just so hard to resist! I actually heard myself humming the Cinderalla song, "In my own little corner, in my own little room, I can be what-ever I want to be!"
Although I can be a very social person and occasionally feel a bit lonely here on the farm, I have a great need for quiet time creating. My sanity depends on it for balance, and I feel very little guilt about letting other things go occasionally so that I can have it. When traveling out East by myself a few weeks ago for an alpaca auction, I thought I'd relish the alone time but I didn't, as I couldn't really do much other than a wee bit of knitting.

My studio always inspires me. I've been especially enjoying my experiments in "nuno felting" which involves felting or adhering fibers (in my case alpaca or alpaca blends) onto other lightweight fabric (I use silk). The effect, especially when using hand-dyed elements, is mesmerizing. You can check out the scarves I've just completed in my Etsy store.

So, tonight I'll enjoy our company and some good family time, but in the back of my mind I'll already be thinking about that next project...

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Studio, Schmudio

I wrote recently about how every time I decluttered a corner, there was always another staring back at me. I am happy to report that I am finally feeling like I'm catching up! Last week the top of my desk in the house reappeared from a long retreat. Only problem was that it yielded a ton of stuff to be filed... and I couldn't even get to the file cabinet in my studio due to a light being out in the closet and so much junk in there. (Electrician was here, CHECK, plumber here now to install some new faucets, CHECK, we are really getting stuff done around here!)

My studio needed a major overhaul (see top, before), and I am happy to report that it is, as of today, once again a place that I'll love to hang out and work and play. It always helps when my parents or other guests are coming, and although I abandoned the white glove a very long time ago, I do like for this area to be at least presentable. Tah dah!!!

I am on a roll now, and feel like I'm digging myself out of at least 4 years worth of accumulated stuff. I mean scary, monstrous piles. One technique I have picked up and that I'm trying to teach the kids is when I see something out of place, either "Put it away, throw it away, or give it away" (ie. to Goodwill). This is really working for us! I'm also finally designating places for things a little better (aka. unfinished knitting projects go in certain clear bins in my studio). Here's how I have organized my multitude of knitting needles and notions, in a clear plastic over-the-door shoe organizer.

Something tells me that I'm turning a corner in terms of organization around our home, time will tell but I am pretty determined!

One more photo... this is my cute Dad with our dog Munchie and visiting dog Molly. We had such a nice visit with my parents.... thanks for coming, Mom and Dad.

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