I knew I was going to head into my studio to clean it up Saturday. It has been cluttered and overwhelming lately.

A before shot of the studio. Dirty and disorganized.

What I didn't realize is that I was going to repaint it. I certainly didn't dress for it (ruined my fave vintage shorts) and it was in the 90's so I broke a really good sweat. I moved into the space with it already painted this fairly obnoxious shade of yellow. I decided to repaint it awhile back, I just wasn't sure when I would get around to it. I wanted my studio very simple (and not bright popcorn butter yellow!) so I could focus on the artwork. After working in this studio for about 3 years, I thought it was time.

Up on a wobbly ladder, precariously painting in sandals.

There are other aesthetic issues with the space, including the way the wood paneling was painted over with a couple of inches of wood showing. That black cord is for my ceiling light and isn't particularly lovely either. I'm going to find a solution for that sometime soon. As you can see, the yellow paint was applied in some sort of faux textured style too. Yuck! It's gotta go.

Because brick is more time consuming to paint, I decided to try leaving the brick wall gold for now and see how I feel about it. By day two, I realized that I had just enough white paint to cover only three walls, so it worked out that way anyway.

I thought I was done with manual labor for the day... However, I went home and after relaxing for a few hours, decided to clean up the back area of the yard. I have been dreaming that this area would become another art studio or a usable workspace and storage for art and carpentry projects. It's such a nice space, minus all the thorny vines, endless spiders and filth. There's even a built-in table and electricity back there!

I worked on this area until the moon came up. I even got up on a ladder to clean off the roof. That white corrugated roof? Covered in leaves and caked in dirt before I worked on it.

All in all, a good hardworking weekend!

In cleaning out and dressing up the studio, I had some pretty amazing insights. For one, I was reminded of how much I love manual work: painting, being on a ladder, removing nails, moving furniture around, sweeping out rooftops and gutters. Two, I realized that as I work through projects and challenges, I absolutely love the process of figuring things out and using my intuition to see what is or isn't working. Three, the feeling of renewal from moving things around is so rewarding. When I was a kid, I shared a room with my sister. When it got messy, I would kick her out, close the door and go buck wild moving furniture and organizing it my way. I'm sure she loved it since I did most of the cleaning. I then surprised her at the end of the day with a brand new room. I think I did it because I always have to be making or designing things AND because I love surprising people.

A sneak peek on how it's looking so far. I am sooo happy about it.

Stay tuned for more progress next Monday!

Also, if you haven't heard, I'll be having an art sale next week, so I'll be needing to go through old art, newer art and supplies to get it ready. If you want a reminder about the sale, sign up for my newsletter and you will be emailed about the details. Otherwise, follow along on Instagram for updates.

In about a month and a half, I will be in Cadiz, Spain for an art residency. I am excited, thrilled and also have some anxiety about it since there's a lot of preparation to do. I'm awaiting my passport, figuring out what supplies to ship or bring, figuring out what to take in my bag(s), thinking about the project I will be working on while out there and the list goes on. All the while, I am continuing to make new work.

The Positives of Negative Thinking, available in my Etsy shop

While I am in a very focused state to accomplish a ton of things before I leave, I am trying to stay out of a negative mindset. Where am I going with my art? What if my art residency project doesn't turn out the way I want it to? Why am I taking off on a residency during one of my busiest times of the year? Oh yeah, and how rusty is my Spanish? Overall, I have been just going with the flow, so these questions are only sneaking up on me now and again.

A Guide to Not Doing What You Said You Were Not Going to Do, available in my Etsy shop — *A Guide to Not Doing What You Said You Were Not Going to Do,* available in my Etsy shop

This post isn't all about my residency, but also about what I am trying to accomplish in my art practice before and after the residency. I am trying to get all my ducks in a row with my website portfolio, wholesale and online shops. I am also trying to figure out some new directions for 2015. The book above reminds me to learn from past experiences and to not repeat them. When I started working for myself, this happened a lot. It feels good to be figuring things out.

Art-wise, I have worked quite a bit smaller over the last few years. I have moved from working on canvas to wood to paper and from oil to acrylic to gouache/watercolor. I have also worked with many different mediums over the years from clay to textiles. What I am finding is that I feel very good about my current direction over the last year. I also feel there's a chance my work may be getting larger again. These last few months have gotten me thinking a lot about where I'm headed. Regardless, I am embracing the unknown and trying to not let myself get stuck on any of it.

Travel Paintings, now available in my Etsy shop

Studio Redo!

Making Art Here and There

Past Posts