More Inspiration- yes please!

I am a very lucky artist- that I even have a studio space- it was top on my list of "wants" when we were looking for a house 2 years ago. We found a house that had an extra room that I quickly put my massive amounts of art stuff in- granted, the studio is rather small- but I am happy its mine!

In our old house (that we now rent) I was up in the attic- it was large- but not heated or insulated and there was no sink on that floor- my dream would be to someday renovate that big attic space- put in a toilet/utility sink bathroom, drywall, new windows, and use that as my permanent studio (maybe share it with another local artist...)  anyway- that would be in the distant future.

For now...

this will have to do.

As I mentioned earlier- when we moved into the house I was very pregnant- and although I did set up the studio- it was done in a rushed sort of way- therefore I could be using the space better. I am especially noticing this lately as I am working larger and larger- and I am in need of more room- because my walls are starting to look like this-

not cool.

Besides the mere space issue- the inspiration in the basic design factor is very lack-luster.  The ceiling for example- looks like this...

This lovely paisley print fabric was the previous owners solution to the old, cracked plaster ceiling.

So, my choices are either reapply a better fabric (doable and fairly cheap), OR repaint it and deal with the cracks (cheaper, but not sure how the rest of the ceiling looks under the paisley's)- so I will be looking into that further.

Here are a couple things that do inspire me in the little space-

these paintings, Zella and I made together last year when she was tiny (probably around 2). I painted a creamy background and etched into the wet paint with the end of the brush- then gave her various grey pencils to make a monochromatic drawing.

I love these little pictures- just haven't found the perfect spot for them yet:)- but they make my heart smile.

The light in the space is great.  For a tiny room- there are an awful lot of windows (which need to be repainted and scraped, also on the to-do list). The little ceramic bird feeder top is the last piece of a gift I got from Em a while back that I love. (The  squirrels in our yard are insane and broke the other piece last year:(

Buckets of leaves I have that I use in my current paintings are one of my current inspirations.

Here are a few little paintings that I'm working on right now- one was inspired by a peacock, one by bones, and one by outer space. I will post them with my other paintings when they are done!

So- the plan is to

Empty out the room this weekend. 

Take down the remainder of the ceiling fabric and assess the situation. 

Either repaint the ceiling and walls or just the walls. 

Repaint my work table. 

Scrape the old paint off the window paynes. 

Rearrange furniture and organize materials.

Oh- and I have been REALLY wanting to make these fun, easy-seeming window shades (it took me forever but I just found the link!!!!) I found a while back on Design Sponge.  If I repaint the ceiling (I'm thinking a bright turquoise) the walls will be a shade of white (good for hanging paintings on)- then I will make the shades to add a pop of color and pattern into the room!

I'm excited for this project- we will see if the angelbabies cooperate and I get the time to do it!

Speaking of which....Zella was a lion this morning....

fierce lion

dancing lion- paws in the air

roaring lion- you gotta love that hair!

And we've had a breakthrough with the little guy- he actually likes baths now!- Which means I no longer have to cobath with the two of them! (Don't get me wrong, it can be fun, and I've mostly enjoyed it for the past 3.5 years- but our small tub, and their frequent growth spurts dictated another solution!)

 

As I was getting dressed the other day, I noticed them on Mosie's bed- Zella is "reading" to him, so sweet.  I am loving their sibling dynamic lately. Moments like this make me want to have many children:)