Art Studio Renovation - Finished (for now)

I am SO. HAPPY. to be back in the studio.

It’s been weeks of projects scattered throughout our house, a few in our friend’s houses, and many sketching sessions at coffeeshops - but I’m finally back in my dedicated space.

I’m hoping to film a little walkthrough soon, but here are a few photos of the process until then.

Everything in my studio is now in the living room. Yikes.

The house is from the 1880s, so there’s LOTS of work that needs to be done. Window replacements are first priority - it’s cold!!!

New windows are in! Time to freshen up the paint. This eggshell warm white is not cutting it for me.

This is the new EVA foam flooring that will cover the studio. I work on the floor most of the time, so having a bit of extra padding as well as protection for the floor is something I’ve been hoping for. It’s like sitting on an extra thick yoga mat, makes a HUGE difference when working for hours down here! Much cheaper than leveling our INCREDIBLY slanted floors, it also gives my furniture on wheels a place to stick.

It’s late, but I’m happy as a clam. My soul is at ease when painting, doesn’t matter if it’s walls or canvas.

We had a little bump of a light up there, and I was hoping to find some directional light instead. I picked up this fixture at Home Depot and it’s perfect.

First look on the next morning! I LOVE how the cool white paint and white floors brightens up the room!

These are my grandmother’s ancient poinsettias. I inherited them when she passed away and they are my favorite studio friends <3

The final piece - the white board from my sister. I use this to keep track of projects, plan paintings, brainstorm for articles and just to keep track of all the things on my plate.

First night in the renovated studio. Here’s to many more!

Thanks so much for following this journey of mess-clean-bigger mess- finally organized! I’m thrilled to be back in my space and sitting much more comfortably <3

Art Studio Renovation (part 1 of what seems like a million...)

I work out a studio in my home. Most of the time I love it; there’s no commute, no dress code, no weather to handle, just a groggy walk across the living room floor to the kitchen for coffee and a slow shuffle into the welcoming walls of my studio.

But it’s not always ideal.

In-home studios come with their own unique challenges and complications, and as I’m currently displaced from mine — I thought I might share a little bit about the current project.

We’re in the process of fixing/replacing the caulked and painted shut windows in the house, and the next batch up is my studio.

I’ve spent the last few days clearing everything out of the room to allow the work to begin, while simultaneously wrecking the living room with an influx of supplies.

Clean and empty studio! (yes, that’s PLYWOOD standing in for a storm.)

Living room explosion….

I know the windows don’t look too bad in the nice bright photo, so here’s a close-up; they definitely are in need of some love.

As an artist that relies so heavily on light and patterns in the light I’m so excited to get these restored. To have the broken glass replaced, the paint spattered panes cleaned, the mechanisms fixed so I can actually open them. The few we’ve already done look so incredibly clear, I can’t wait to see how much light will fill my workspace.

But for now, this means meetings are conducted somewhere else quiet (in the car!) and I’ll be painting outside until the carpenters finish their work.

In the end I know the hassle will be worth it.

Renovation in the studio - means meetings are held in the car!