A Gazillion Pictures of My Studio

****These are pics of my old studio.  To see pics of my new studio, take a look at this post!****

Hi Guys! I know that several times I've mentioned working on my studio and have promised photos. Well, finally I've taken the time to actually shoot them! As you can see, there are lots! I went a little crazy, but I know that I'm always interested to see the littlest details when I see others' workspaces, so I figure others share that sentiment as well.

But before I begin the tour, I just want to mention that there are still a few signed copies of my book available (see my last post for details). Thanks for all the orders thus far, but you've still got a chance if you are interested and thought you'd missed out! And on the same note, I've also still got several grab bag ephemera packs available. Still haven't taken the time to list them on Etsy, but again, you can order them directly through me if you'd like.

Okay, enough business, on with the tour!

So my studio is located in a bonus room we have above our garage. It's a really large room with its own bathroom and large closet- a perfect setup! We have potential future plans to also use this room as a playroom for the kids, but since they're so young, it really is mostly mine for now. And you can definitely tell that from the decorating!

Here is a view from the far wall with a large window on it. The doorway you see leads downstairs. That corner with the desk is my main work area. We have a sectional sofa for when the kids start coming up there a bit more, because it sort of separates the room into "my area" and the "kid area":

Here's a better view from the opposite side of the sectional, etc.:

And again from the window wall. There's the stairwell, and the door into the bathroom. The only part of the room that isn't really done is those large cubbies on the wall. They're great for storage, but they're real ugly. I think we may put doors on them or something...:

The window and again, those ugly cubbies...:

Here's a closer shot of my desk. You may remember this desk that Jason built from my last house. I've repainted the base...:

And an even closer shot of the bookcase portion:

Even closer. The head vases were my grandmother's:

Here's my workspace. It's pretty cramped, but that keeps me less cluttered, because I have no room to make a mess!

Here's a little table on the side. There are boxes of scrap fabric, ribbons, etc., and my CD player there. Above the table are all my cotton fabrics and my CD's. Again, another ugly cubby up there- that one we will probably cover over, because it's really too high to be very useful:

Miscellaneous stuff:

Detail of miscellaneous stuff:

More of the same!:

Under the table is this old doll bed which I just found at Goodwill for $3! Right now it's holding all those ephemera packs that I still have- see, I told you there were lots left! You know you want one...!

You could probably see in the far-away shots that I have this wire strung along the long wall, holding all kinds of bits and bobs. I love it! Easy display of whatever strikes my fancy at the moment! It's from Ikea, if you are inspired to do the same...:

Here's some display on the other long wall above the couch. I used to collect teddy bears and dolls when I was younger, so you see some remnants of that here. This is the only place in the house where I can put this stuff! Oh, I so need to have a little girl someday...:

Here was a great Ebay find. Two paper dolls who look just like my two boys! Blond/blue and brown/brown! I'm sure you'll be seeing these images in my artwork:

On the right side of the window. My mom thinks it's weird that I have children's book illustrations hanging with the nude painting. When I hung them, I honestly didn't even think about it- they were all just things I love in colors I love. That's an artist for you, I guess...:

The left side of the window. You may recognize the doll from the sneak photos of my book!:

Here's what I did with the vintage highchair back from Jamie. A perfect little shelf for these bunnies!:

Some more dolls, etc. from the couch wall:
More:


Here's the doorway into the bathroom:
Here's the bathroom. I found this really pretty shower curtain from Target. I don't know how well you can see it, but there are birds on it:

Bathroom, obviously:
And again:
And I think that's it! I will list these photos on Flickr, so you'll be able to blow them up and see larger versions. But that will have to wait a bit. Right now, I've got a baby whining from his crib at me, so I'd better run! Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Signed Copies of My Book, and Sleepy Noah

I've decided to go ahead and sell signed copies of my book that include a limited edition print (one that nobody has seen before-not even me, as I haven't even made it yet!), as I spoke about a couple posts ago. It's going to be a very limited run, of twenty-five books/prints. I'm not sure of a better way to go about doing it, so here's how it will go. If you want a copy, please email me directly at appendageassemblage at hotmail dot com. Once I get your email, I will send you a Paypal invoice for $30 (the cost of the book, including shipping), and as soon as I receive the books, I'll mail them out!

The current date that the book is scheduled to be released is October 11th. However, I'm not exactly sure when I will get my copies, so I can't absolutely promise that by ordering it through me, you'll get it earlier than through Amazon-sorry... Soooo, order away!

Beyond that, I had time the other day to do a spread in Noah's book. I've had this crib "diecut" from the scrapbooking section forever, and figured I should use it before he outgrows his crib! So I compiled a group of photos of him asleep and talked about how much I like to look in on him while he's sleeping. Babies are just the sweetest when they're asleep, aren't they? Even if they're driving you crazy throughout the day, they always look like they're so good when they're asleep....

That's all for today! Let me know if you'd like a book- first come, first served- when they're gone, they're gone!

Grabbag Winner & Babies in Pockets

And the winner is.... Kari from ArtsyMama! Congratulations, Kari! I hope you like your collage pack! Kari's favorite word was "bliss". It was really fun reading everyone's favorite words- so many interesting choices! I realized that I never told you what my favorite word is-it's "cloister". I love the sound of it and the meaning- "a secluded, quiet place; a sanctuary". (On a side note, my sister lives on Sanctuary Way- isn't that a wonderful address?)

For those that didn't win, I do still have several collage packs left if you were waiting to hear whether you won or not. I haven't had time to get them up on Etsy yet, but I can sell them to you directly if you don't want to wait. Just email me at appendageassemblage at hotmail dot com.

So, in artsy business, I've been working on a couple different things-some stuffed owls for birthday presents and a page in my "Me" journal. We've got three birthdays in our family within a couple weeks- a niece who will be four, a nephew who will be two, and Riley who will be two (my husband's birthday is also in there, but he doesn't count!), so I decided to make some stuffed animals for the kids. I also made one for Noah, so that he isn't left out! I came up with a design by looking at several different stuffed owls on the internet, taking a bit from this one, a bit from that one, etc. to make my pattern.

Knowing that a simple stuffed animal probably won't be enough to hold their interest for long, I wanted to think of a way to make them at least a little more interactive. So I came up with the idea of making babies that would go into pockets on the mothers' bellies. I think they came out pretty cute. We'll see if they pass the toddler test for interestingness though!

So I also did a page in my "Me" journal. I didn't have a lot in mind when I started the page, but I found these two cardboard little boys I bought a few weeks ago that I wanted to use. One is blond and one is dark-haired, just like my boys. I decided to use an image of myself looking down at the boys, and went from there. While working, I never actually attached the figures because I still wasn't sure where I was going to use them- in the birdcages? in my arms?

Finally, I got the idea of making little pockets for them so that they could go either place! Obviously, I must have been influenced by the owls I made! But I'm pleased with the results, and while I was working, I came up with the idea of making an entire book for these little guys, with pockets on every page so that they can go on different adventures! Wouldn't that be cute? I've got to think a little more about it, and see if I want to take another project on...

Okay, guys, have a great weekend! Let me know if anyone wants some collage packs!

My Book!

Well, as I mentioned, an advance copy of my book finally made it to me a couple weeks ago! What a wonderful surprise, as I didn't think I'd get to see it until it's released sometime in October. It's so exciting seeing what those many months of work all culminated to become!

Obviously, I knew what the text was going to be, since I wrote it, but I had no idea what the design of the book would look like! My designer, Amanda, did a wonderful job of creating a book that really melds well with my artwork. What a fun job she must have-taking an artist's work and trying to design a book around it! It's really interesting to look through and see bits and pieces of my art that she's used in the background or as accents.

So here are some sneak peek photos of the results. To see more, you'll have to, as they say, "buy the book!" I've added an Amazon link over on the left. However, I'm also thinking of offering signed copies which include a limited edition print of a piece of artwork. I've seen that a couple other authors have done this. I would sell them for $30, shipping included. Is anyone out there interested? I haven't decided for sure whether to do this, so please let me know if you'd be interested- it will help me make my decision!

That's all for now. Don't forget to get your name in the hat for the give-a-way from my last post- there's still a few days left! And there are still plenty packs which haven't sold as well, if you'd like one!

Grabbags & a Give-a-way!

First, let me thank everyone for your well wishes for our sick family! Thanks to all the positive energy out there, everyone is physically doing much better, and Mommy is feeling mentally much better as well!

And next, I know that I said I'd talk about the advance copy of my book I received in my next post, but I decided to do something a little more fun instead! I spent several hours yesterday and today doing a massive studio cleanout. And I ended up with a pretty big pile of stuff that is pretty cool stuff, but stuff that is really not living up to its potential just sitting in the drawers and closets of my house!

So I've loaded up 24 9x12 padded envelopes with all this stuff (I said there was a lot!) and have decided to sell them for $15 each, shipping included (and they're kind of heavy!). Although I guarantee the contents are more than $15 worth, if bought separately. The photos here are a sample of what is in one of the packets.

Let me tell you what sort of stuff is in them. They each have most of these items, if not all of these items: vintage ledger pages, vintage flashcards, human anatomy book illustrations, vintage photos, vintage postcards, photocopies of vintage photos, german foil items, vintage game pieces, various metal and other three-dimensional items- filagree, numbers, stencils, and lots, lots more miscellaneous stuff. I tried really hard to make them all comparable, so certain ones aren't much cooler than others. And they really are full of cool stuff- these are all items that I bought at some point because I planned to use it in my own collage. But, alas, it never got used, and I just needed/wanted to do some paring down.

So, if you'd like to buy a pack, send me an email at appendageassemblage at hotmail dot com. I can take Paypal or check. I will list them on Etsy sometime next week if there are any left, but you can get them directly from me this way.

And, to add to the fun, I've decided to give away one pack as well! I've never done a give-a-way on my blog before, so I thought it was about time. You guys are so good to me with your comments that I owe you that! Here are the rules for the give-a-way. Leave me a comment between now and next Saturday (Sept. 15th) telling me what your favorite word is, and I will randomly choose a winner. It will be fun to read what people's favorite words are!

Good luck, let me know if you'd like to buy a pack, and I'll write again soon!

What a Week!

Well, it's been a tough few days around here. Both Noah and my husband are sick. Noah's got "hand, foot, and mouth disease", which is a virus that causes sores inside his mouth and a fever- ouch! The poor guy, it hurts his mouth to take a bottle, so we're having to try and mix formula with everything he eats, and even so, he's not taking in much fluid as a result. So he's been extra cranky and difficult to deal with. Then my husband has come down with some unknown virus which is causing his entire body to be incredibly sore and achey from a fever. While I feel bad for him, it's just made things incredibly difficult since he can't help take care of the boys! And Riley, out of nowhere, has begun waking up several times each night. All this results in a cranky and tired Mommy, for sure! The photo above is a pretty accurate representation of what the state of things were until yesterday.

But luckily, things seem to be on the upswing today, and it doesn't appear that Riley and I are going to get anything, thank goodness! So, I haven't been doing much in the artsy realm of things lately. Although I did force myself to create a spread in Noah's book yesterday, much as I really wanted to just take a nap! I just can't let myself get behind in the boys' books or I'll never catch up!

Okay, that's about all the time I've got today! Once things have settled down around here, I will tell you about the advance copy of my book that I just received!!!

Oh, and if anyone's interested, I'm selling all my back issues of Somerset Studio on Ebay right now!