There's a Cat in My Art Studio....

...and it's both fun/funny and exasperating! The Purrmeister really enjoys the "picture window" that I've parked my studio table under....and is going through this chewing phase, which can be a little nutty.

The studio table MUST have a towel thrown over any work in progress or I can pay dearly, as in, work gets undone....I've been under some pressure to finish orders so I'm really trying to learn to protect the work even on a 2 second notice....sometimes I forget, like today. He managed to undo all the delicate sorting I had done, sigh. On weekends, a lot of campers show up so I'm in and out, back and forth to the office even as I'm working on pieces laid out here....at the house, no cat would DARE to get up on my work bench.....here? Normal rules don't apply.

Even my tools are fair game when he goes into his hunter mode. He likes to attack the corners of my laptop and there are now toothmarks on the cover..how cute? No matter that he gets treats, has his own toys, & etc....somehow, my stuff is always better and more interesting. If he weren't so cute and innocent, I might.....................................

Wordless Wednesday (Studio Window)

But I Digress - A Peek into My Studio

I'm part of a blog carnival that starts tomorrow, Friday, 2-19. The Blogfire group, artist-bloggers who sell on Artfire, is the organizing host. The first carnival I did last month was about Valentines and I had an older post all written and ready to use that I could readily link with. This month, the choice was either to do a show and tell of my studio - or something about "the kitchen." Well, "the kitchen" and I aren't on the greatest of terms. I've mentioned before that I get by, but that cooking isn't my big interest, & isn't my forte, so I've opted for a few words and images of my actual WillOaks Studio workspace.



The room I use as a workspace used to be the master bedroom of the old family farmhouse that I'm now living in. It's up on the 2nd floor and one of the best parts is a couple of nice sized windows--one facing east and one facing west. I can watch the sun rise (not very often, frankly) and the sun set (every day.) I've rigged up one window to quickly throw it open to poke my camera outside for shots such as this recent sunset series. The past few days, the sunsets have been very brilliant and colorful. When it isn't winter, this tree that I'm looking through right now (a big basswood or large leaf linden) is in full leaf and it's beautiful. Quite an active habitat for birds and squirrels, too.



Inside, I've chosen a couple of images that don't show the worst of the mess that sometimes happens here when I'm in a creative frenzy. I've actually got a fairly good organizing system--when I bother to re-file things! On the other hand, having some odds and ends handy and visible can sometimes lead to an "aha" moment that might not happen if I had to go hunting for everything all the time. The challenge is that balance between being too organized and too messy! As long as most things are filed "like with like" I can usually find what I need when I need it.

What isn't in sight here are 3 other shelving systems with more materials in labeled boxes and drawers holding stones, pearls, fibers, leather and all the other materials I've collected over the years. It's hard to turn down a pretty strand of beads or handful of stones when your whole philosophy to making art is "You never know where a good idea will come from!"

And when it comes to more serious metal working, including chemicals, fire and the like, I don't use this room--I have an auxiliary space downstairs--which isn't particularly photogenic! Thanks for visiting!

A View from my Studio Window

When I sit at my work bench here, my back is to the window. The window faces west. As evening fell, this was such a treat to behold, I had to share. I did nothing to change or enhance these colors. I just love the skies this time of year.