Workbench Wednesday...Something Extremely Rare....

This is actually a post from my on-going studio redo.

I have been busy trying to get it all cleaned up and organized as you know.

Here is a look at the workbench last week:

YIKES!

Wait, there is more...

And more....

and more

and more.

Sigh.

So it has been months of working and then just piling.

Time to get this done.

Even I can't create in this mess.

So on one of the hottest days of the summer so far, I worked and worked and worked.

Lucky for me my awesome husband put up a ceiling fan for me 2 years ago.  

It was not too bad standing right under the fan.

I am pleased to show you the workbench now...

Drum roll please........

Wow!  What a difference!

Of course, just moments after finishing it, I want to create.

Gets me excited to start again.

You can see I was dipping beads.

So enjoy a couple more photos and know a clean workbench is a rare sight indeed in this studio. 

If you are a neat artist, enjoy!

If not, don't worry!  

I am sure by next week there will be some level of chaos for you to enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by...

Wind Chime Workshop...

I took a break from cleaning the studio last week to have a fun day with a dear friend and my daughter.

My friend is gifted and creative and so much fun to be with.

A couple summers ago we had a weekly date and we would work on a new project together.

It was so much fun. 

Last summer we did not get a chance to do it so we decided to reinstate it this year.

Our first project was a wind chime. 

  We planned our strategy.

I got some materials ready on the tables for us to use....

Beads and baubles and marbles and glass.

Silverware.

I have been collecting it for three years for just this project.

Lots of possibilities...

From antiquey junk to metal scraps, bamboo pieces, CDs,  canning jar rings, candle holders, lamp shades, embroidery hoops and more...

 Fishing line, wire, chain, flower pots, flower frogs, and tools...

Another look at the goodies...

I spray painted these candle holders last summer...  

They were black.

I took these pictures before my friend brought her stash.

She added lots of fun things to the tables too.

Almost as important as the goodies and the friend is the chocolate.

We started with lunch and that took longer than we planned.

We worked on our wind chimes while my daughter worked on a painting.

We had to call it a night around 6 pm but decided to get together this week to finish them up.

So we got together earlier in the day this time and worked first, took a break for lunch (yum) and got back to work.

I am proud to say we both finished our first creation.

Here is hers.

I LOVE it!

Hers was much more melodious than mine.  

That bent aluminum bar in the middle really sounded lovely when it bumps the silverware.

The denim and tulle and twine give it such a cool urban chic look.

I love her seashells and beach glass pieces.  

The overall shape of it makes me think of a jelly fish.

She let me take a few photos before she took it home.

I wish I had taken a couple more but I didn't want to hold her up.

Here is mine from last week finally finished.

It started with that lampshade.

  I ripped off the fabric and just kept adding things until I thought it was done.

Old necklaces, muslin strips, beads,silverware, wire and marbles....

Very shabby chic...

Tattered, distressed Victorian...

Which is not really my style...

But a style I am drawn to and love.

I am just too messy to maintain that pretty white creamy color scheme.

I wanted to try something new...

STAZ-ON inks on muslin...

Those really pretty plastic drops that look like crystal...

I love my little caged marbles....

Here they are again....

I had time to make one more quick one from a few things before she left....

This one started with the flower frog.

I stayed with the clear crystal look.

This one makes me think of raindrops.

More of the caged marbles.

These look like the coolest raindrops.

This one was much quicker to make.

It was much easier without all the muslin to wrap.

I like the simple lines of this one.

I hope you have a friend who inspires you to create.  

Tell me about her...

Thanks for stopping by...

Linked up with......

Knick of Time

Stacey Risenmay - Not Just a Housewife

Ladybug Blessings

Coastal Charm

Lady Behind the Curtain

Snap! Creativity at Your Fingertips

Sugar Bee Crafts

Funky Polka Dot Giraffe

Confessions of a Plate Addict

DIY By Design

Polka Dots On Parade

Daisy Cottage Designs

\

Artsy Fartsy Mama

What's Cooking, Love?

Katherine's Corner

A Handful of Everything

Posed Perfection

Beyond the Picket Fence

The Gunny Sack

Elizabeth and Co.

Tip Junkie

Home Stories A to Z

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Busy Being Jennifer

Thirty Handmade Days

The Golden Sycamore

I Should Be Mopping The Floor


Creative Jewish Mom

DIY Showoff

An Extraordinary Day

Baby Steps to A Clean Studio...

I am still chipping away at the studio.

It does get overwhelming.  

So I am trying to celebrate the little victories.

My workbench area is shaped like a U.  I have a long counter along the wall with old kitchen cabinets above and below.

At one end is our old kitchen table.

It kicks out from the counter at a right angle.

From the other end is a tall counter my husband created for me from an extra locker from work.

He suggested turning it on it's side and then we put casters on it so I can move it if I need to.

I wanted to put a lot of my tools and such on there so I can find them.

Over time it got really full.

Eventually I made curtains from an old shower curtain from the thrift store for the front to hide my mess.

Here are a couple before the cleaning shots:

That is a lot of stuff....

You can see part of the U shape work area here:

My target area is to the left in the picture.

When I went to Lucketts this spring, one of my finds was this amazing industrial style metal cabinet.

I love it and actually cleaned it and got it into the studio the day after I bought it...

A new record!

I love all those amazing little drawers.

I am filling them slowly with new flea market goodies and supplies I use frequently.

You can see this paint rack is actually accessible.

Remember, the one on the other side of the studio serves duel storage purposes.

Those cool copper canisters were a thrift store find this

spring. 

 There were 2 larger ones that said $4 for the set. 

 Cool, I thought.

  They will make great studio storage.

I paid for them, brought them home and got them out to clean them.

I opened them up and there were two more little ones inside!

A bonus!

Score!

Took them from a good buy to a great buy.

My daughter even likes them.

One is filled with lace.

One is filled with stained and dyed cheesecloth.

The other two are waiting...

Also on the counter now are three printers ' trays from a family junking trip this spring.

My husband spied these for me.

He knows my weakness for these trays.

These are actually the cleanest, nicest, least damaged trays I have ever seen.

So I paid a little more than usual.

I usually put them into my booth for jewelry display but I decided to enjoy these in my studio every day.

I am filling them with goodies from a recent junking score.

The vendor was liquidating. 

 He offered 7 jewelry boxes and contents for an unheard of price each.

I could not scoop them up fast enough.

I did not even really look at them until I got them home.

They were full of lots of cool pieces.

The rest we will put on Etsy.

There are some other junking goodies.

Pebbles and sewing notions.

So you can see I am making progress.

A little bit each day.

There is a reason behind the steady push.

I am working to get it done so I can work here again.

So I can find my supplies and tools.

And so I can participate in the Where Bloggers Create Tour 2014.

So watch for my studio tour on July 11th.

Until then I will keep updating you on my progress.

Thanks for stopping by....

Barn Tour....Part 2...the Ground Floor

Last week I shared one of my favorite places with you...

My neighbors barn.

Today I wanted to share some photos from the ground floor.

Let's head down from the hay loft...

At the bottom of the stairs is a small livestock room.

A relative got a lot of reclaimed house salvage pieces and stored them here. 

You can see them on the floor.

When you turn around, you can see the stairs to the hayloft that I just came down.

I love the white washed walls...So rustic...

I always end up touching the wood...

Running my hands along the walls and thinking about who else did the same while they were working.

You can see the small stall in this room.

Probably used for pigs.

I think goats would climb out.

Maybe a little donkey.

Looking out the window...

To get to the rest of the barn, we go out here...

There is another door into the barn but is is blocked with doors that relative left.

I love that exterior weathered wood...

I do not have as many pictures of the downstairs because the space is more filled with the reclaimed doors and such.

I love the ceiling and beams.

That white wash is gorgeous.

There is a big open side where the animals could come in.

Our neighbor told me when they bought the farm it was so full of manure the horses could barely walk.  

It was a couple feet deep.

My neighbors worked hard to muck it out.

There are lots of critters that take refuge here...

I find animal skulls and bones.

There are several groundhog holes in the barn floor. 

 Pretty smart groundhogs. 

 Out of the weather...

 very few people actually come here to disturb them....

You can see someone stuck a pillar in one of the holes.

It wasn't me.

I so love this place.

See those cool old hinges?

I am not as limber as I should be so when I try to crawl from area to another it is not a pretty picture.

I do it anyway.

I always take home some sort of treasure...

An old glass bottle.

Some walnut shells.

A rusty bolt.

Someday when this place is gone, I want to remember.

Join me again later when I show you around the outside.

Thanks for stopping by...

Do you have a favorite place?