Thursday, May 29, 2008

Did Someone Ransack Your Dining Room?

How cute is that? It is my pencil box. I got it some time ago at Borders (yes, I know - the evil corporate conglomerate - it's what there is.) I still haven't put together my visual journal supply kit, but when I find the appropriate receptacle, this will have to fit inside it. I just love the exuberance of the colors and the design. I keep thinking I will incorporate some exuberance into my art - but I seem to tend toward somberness. I guess I'm unconsciously working some things out? Do any of you ever have that happen? Start out with one idea, but keep coming back around to another one?
Look at the quilt my Aunt Karen made for Rexy's big-girl bed! How sweet is that??? Just perfect for my Valentine girl. You can see the bedstead on either side of the picture. It's actually two Heywood Wakefield headboards that we found for a steal at a local antique mall/auction house. They're exactly the same stain color as the Heywood Wakefield desk and chair that we found for her room when she was a baby. (Those were a steal, too!) The desk that we have since removed from her room until she is older. We realized its finish would probably not survive repeated applications of crayons, markers, and Play Dough! (This pic makes the green of her walls glow a little brighter than it actually is. It's still quite green - Benjamin Moore's Pear Green to be exact.) Those are Rexy's good friends there on the pillows. She has very little interest in most stuffed animals, but loves the Ugly Dolls that look like monsters. The gray one nearest the front is her best friend Babo (sounds like Bob-o). He's beginning to get a little bedraggled and parts of his mouth have fallen off. He is well-loved.
I promised I would show the aftermath of my various creative frenzies. I have to say it makes me laugh when I see people's pretty and neat workspaces. Mine looks like the aftermath of tornadoes and looting in comparison!
Admittedly, it is worse than normal since I had to move everything around in order to build the new cabinets. The doors you see on the left are 2 of 6 vintage doors that we will be using on the cabinet. They will be painted white, at first, until we decide on an overall look for the dining room. They were salvaged from a house built in 1880 that an old friend of my DH was renting about 20 years ago. When it was sold and it turned out that the buyer was going to tear it down in order to sub-divide, the new owner told the 2 renters that they could salvage whatever they wanted out of the house. My DH got 8 of these doors (they're from a huge closet with 4 sets of bi-fold doors) and some cool woodwork. They're huge - they're over 61/2 feet tall! When the cabinet is done, it will be 8 inches short of eight feet tall. I misspoke when I said it would be 12 feet wide. It will actually be a little over 10 feet wide. There's only room to use 3 sets of doors. We're going to make another cabinet for the bedroom out of the remaining 2 doors. Wouldn't you know, after DH and Rexy being repeatedly sick for the last 3 months, now I'm sick. My girl, of course, is full of all sorts of energy and bouncing off the walls when I just want to lay down. It's making the clean-up slow going. It does look somewhat better than these pictures now, though. We also have made a mock-up (my DH is the king of over-planning) of the middle cabinet to make sure that the construction plan works. It does. I will take a picture of that, too. When I say mock-up, I mean that we actually built it, but since it was a test we used basic 2x4s instead of the v-fir we're using in the final version. Now we'll have to take it all apart and rebuild it after I paint everything.

Got to go and take my girl to the park with her therapist now. Maybe I can take a nap on a picnic table while they play?

13 comments:

reagan said...

Looks like your bedroom used to after we tried on clothes for an hour-hehe! You know none of the rest of us are brave enough to show what our work areas look like after a work session, we crop out the mess-lol! Anyway, beautiful art comes out of the mess!
hugs,
Pam

Jan Thomason said...

i think it's funny that you showed how disgusting (is that too strong a word? hahaha) your studio looks....i just finish a post about purging, cleaning, and re-organizing mine tonight but i didn'ty post any photos of it! that would have been nuts! LOL
tomorrow after i'm finished with it i'll take some photos to show you how good it looks.

you should always check with me before you post....ROTF

Liisa Mannery said...

Hi, Laurie, good to see you back! I figured you were in the throes of Everybody Got Sick At Once, but still glad to hear you are OK. The studio looks awesome. (Gordon used to be the king of over-planning, but I knew he had retired. I wondered who took over...)

Love the quilt, too!

Cheerio,
Liisa

Unknown said...

Girl, you rock!
No matter the mess or the stress or the whatever whatever... you are IT!
Thanks for sharing you with us!
xoxo
jul

Shabby Cottage Studio said...

Hey Sweetface,
Glad to have given you a chuckle over at Kat's! ;-) And please, enjoy the fab Ms Kitt....I think I found that on someone else's playlist myslf. LOL ;-)

Hugs
Gail

Altered Kat said...

I love Rexy's quilt...I love quilts! Glad she's feeling better...bummer you aren't...out studios look EXACTLY THE SAME...only I feel like playing I spy with yours...I spy a sack bag of Chex! ;oP

K

Altered Kat said...

We're kinda like "the 3 little pigs"...lol ;oP

Kat...who after a day of sweeping up itty bitty pieces of paper and tons of beads, discovered that the floor in my space is grey! Who knew?!

Lennea said...

How dare you post pics of MY studio! heehee. I know it's time to clean when I can't stand to go into the studio and start bringing my artwork onto the kitchen table. (P.S. we haven't eaten on the kitchen table for a couple of months!)

Hope you're feeling better. I had sick kids for about three week straight a month ago. I though I would go nuts!

glimmering prize said...

oh laurie!
so glad someone else's studio looks like mine!!!
happy creating
lorraine

Gina M Smith said...

Heloooo, hope you are feeling better. I gave you some pluggin' on my blog.

reagan said...

Hey Laurie,
I added the info about the poem to the SISI post on my blog:-) Thank you for the sweet comments! I really do love that piece. It is so serene.
P.S.
I think you should send your pics in to CPS Studios:-) I think more people can relate to that than the ever so pretty ones they share-lol!
hugs,
Pam

Anonymous said...

One can make the room or whole house more live by using glass bi fold doors and windows, allowing the daylight to peep into your home.

Kim said...

Hi Laurie....I love it!!! I think any mixed media artist out there can relate even if we only see the neat organized state this is a true working space!!! I would love to see a studio magazine with all creative clutter studios wouldn't you? You and I will definately make that magazine! Hugs...Kim