From Chaos to Creativity

I get distracted easily, an understatement to be sure.  With my creative endeavors strewn all over 2000 + square feet, two children, three dogs and a husband, my wheels were spinning and I was frustrated ‘cause I couldn’t settle down to work without looking for something or tripping over a mammal from my household.  If I was in the bedroom working, inevitably I would need a thingy in the office on the opposite side of the house.  Then I would forget what the heck I was looking for by the time I arrived in the office.  Ugh.

Enter my friend, neighbor, and fellow jewelry artist, Jean.  I will call her simply, goddess of get-it-done.  She offered to help me make a studio in the garage.  I thought she was crazy.  She is just one of those people who enjoy helping the overwhelmed people do the undoable.  So, when she arrived with her get-it-done crown on and her words were, “There are only two things that should happen in a bedroom”.  I guessed correctly that making jewelry wasn’t one of those two. We got buzzy.

I was already parking my car outside the garage so I could store my curbside “treasures” that I was going to restore/repurpose into wonderful objects of beauty and awe.  Needless to say, the garage was full and no projects were completed. The first step was to create the creative space. Since I already had my big-girl pants on, I loaded up my mom van and gave the treasures to charity.  On the way home, I felt lighter; a van load lighter.  Space created, check.

The kiln and a work table were already in the garage.  Everything else, everything, was taken from all over the house.  After a solid eight hours, Jean left me with the bones of my new studio and a sense of accomplishment.   I wouldn’t say all my stuff is arranged, but every day, I organize.  Every day I find something I was looking for and/or find two of what I was looking for a month ago.  Everyday I have a place to go to that is mine.

Part of making the studio a place for designing, is having color, inspiring books, pictures, words, and meaningful tchotchkes around me. Walter Soza has a print called “Barcelona, Espana” (https://www.etsy.com/listing/78562413/barcelona-espana-24x36-framed-print?) that would hit the color aspect. I enjoy the way the colors overlap each other. And, under my inspiring words category I would love to have the print, “Don’t put off being creative” (https://www.etsy.com/listing/86407106/dont-put-off-beng-creative-letterpress? by Brandon Griswold of Honeycomb Print shop.  My point is to construct a space that is a reflection of me, for my spirit.

Last Thursday, my mission was to get a TV in the garage so I wouldn’t feel like I was missing my shows, mainly Dallas Stars hockey.  I got a huge-ass TV for cheap from CCA and picked up a set-top box.  Mission accomplished. The kids have watched more on the TV than I have, but now I am not missing anything. My studio is perfect for me.

 

Today, I sit at my desk in my studio typing this post.  I have music on, a dog by my feet, and my coffee cup close.  I am sure this is Heaven for me.  Check back in the summer, I may be singing a different tune.