Flare Magazine

Waaaaay back in April....(Errr yes, I haven't really gotten the hang of this blogging business),  a friend texted these two photos to my iphone...

Needless to say, I was surprised and pretty excited.  It's a little blurb about the cool space that the Phil + Sebastian is housed in  (as designed by the ever-so-talented-minds at McKinley Burkart). It may only be a few sentences long, but the fact that my little paintings have been included within Flare's pages, felt like quite an honorable mention to me!  Thanks Flare, and very cool!

Studio gets the limelight

My studio had a good day in the blogosphere yesterday.  It was featured twice, on two blogs. www.sfgirlbybay.com and www.the10centdesigner.com.  What studio could ask for more??

So, I thought I'd take the opportunity to talk about it.

So, a little history on my studio space.  It used to have beige walls.  Yes, beige.  And although it was my little painting space and I loved it, it definitely needed some loving.  It had part of a home office crammed into one corner, while another corner served as storage for all kinds of electronic devices and portfolio cases.  The remaining space was where I worked. 

Then, enter stage right.  A talented woman, Lori Andrews, part stylist, photographer, and interior designer, comes in waving her magic styling wand....and POOF! transforms it into something bright, airy and lovely.  She styled it like a pro, using stuff that I already had - transforming the banal into the cool and noteworthy.  Truly, like only a pro can.

I read once that if you want to inspire creativity in your life, then you paint your walls white.  I can vouch for this.  The space is now my haven.  Stepping foot through the door brings a wave of calm and creativity.  Plus it's super pretty.  :)

Here is a pic of the studio 'before':

BEFORE:  Blah-y beige.  Ironically, this photo leaves out the electronic storage corner and the home office corner.

And the 'After' photos:

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AFTER: Ahhhhhhh.  Like a breath of fresh air!

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And me. :)

photo credits: Lori Andrews, the10centdesigner.com

My favorite thing about the space is that there are books are all over the place.  On the shelf, on the floor....and the spines don't always face out!  There's something super liberating about this.  I also LOVE the light.  I Modge Podged white tissue paper to the windows, eliminating the need for blinds.  In doing so, it also made the light diffused, soft, and perfect for painting!  My previous impression of a studio space was that it didn't need to look good.  It was a place of practicality and it would inevitably get messy.  Very pragmatic.  The difference between my previous attitude and my current attitude can be summarized by this: "I'm going in the studio to paint" vs. "I'm so excited, I can't wait to go into my wickedly awesome studio to paint!!!"  Two very, very different things.  

It's amazing how you don't realize the true nature of something until that something changes.  I didn't realize how much my space needed improvement until it actually improved.  I love my little space now. 

And now you'll have to excuse me.  The studio calls. ;)