It's the new & improved Art Barn!

When we first moved in, the poor place was a disaster! If we weren't sure where to put it, it ended up in the barn. Piles and stacks and bins, oh my! See the Disaster Site.

I did finally get a bit of organization going, setting up a sewing area...see, it was my Little Slice of Heaven!

Well, things have REALLY changed! Last Black Friday-day after Thanksgiving, my baby brother pulled up with his truck & trailer and unloaded a ton of wood & tools. We built a loft! Or as he calls it, a mezzanine. It is gorgeous! Sturdy, BIG, proper stairs, tons of space for storage!
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Dear daughter & I spent the next 6 weeks hauling stuff to Goodwill, to the trash, organizing, emptying bags, boxes, tubs and bins. Hubby installed the new eco florescent fixtures baby brother gave me for Christmas, and a great shop fan. And now.....


Unveiling the new & improved Art Barn!! There is a lovely seating area, with a coffee pot next to the furnace & fridge. There is Floor Space! There is organization! I actually KNOW where things are, and more importantly, can GET to them! Storage bins are upstairs, labelled. The only bins I still need to empty & organize are the fabrics, although those are semi-sorted already.



Room for cutting tables, all the supplies sorted and grouped together, Ana has her own area, plenty of room to move stuff around! My jewelry bench is finally put back together. Okay, so that area still needs sorted out, but at least it's all in one place! Stereo equipment & speakers are hooked up, and the CDs are actually right next door. I can put things AWAY and find them again the next time! Room for visitors, classes, parties, it's so wonderful!



Yes, I have been working, although most of what I've been sewing are UFO's (Un-Finished Objects) getting them done and tagged & properly put away. It has been really great to work in the new space, and I kind of hate to mess it up! That pile of tubs in the back, near the overhead door?? Empty!! There are still a couple items that need to go to Goodwill (anyone want some GIANT speakers?) but my, it is so awesome!

Re Vamped Hoosier Cupboard DIY!

My neighbor Mr. P remembered me saying ages ago, that if they ever got rid of their Hoosier cupboard, to let me know....well, a couple weeks ago, he called, and so on my back patio there's a cupboard!











Now, it needed a bit of a re-do, so I washed, sanded, primed and painted it with the help of Dear Daughter & Hubby, and now...Voila! A fresh cupboard in my blue room!

Originally of moderate quality, probably always painted, now super sweet! I ordered jadeite green glass knobs and they got here on the very day we were ready to move it into the house, yay! Dear Daughter "fluffed" it when she got home, so it's all done.

Now, I'm going to paint my OTHER cupboard to fit into the kitchen....I'm thinking red glass knobs this time!

Super Couponing

Dear Daughter and I have watched just about all the reality shows in the weeks that she's been on break, and one of our favs has been Extreme Couponing. I'm still not sure exactly how they manage to do it, but DD & I have decided to really give it a try, and see what we can do.




Yesterday, we went to CVS & Kroger's, armed with DD's research and packets of coupons. At CVS, we stocked up on some laundry detergent, personal and beauty items. After the store discounts, store coupon and manufacturer's coupon, we saved 50% PLUS got a $10 CVS card! At Kroger's we stocked up on personal items, some pasta, cleaning stuff, and saved 42% after all the store sale prices, e-coupons loaded on my Kroger's card, manufacturer's coupons, plus bonus savings.

It's not the stunning 90-99% savings they get on TV, but way better than I would normally do! I'm hoping to do even better each time; we would have done better at Krogers, but we missed some fine print; if we had broken up our purchases into 2 transactions, we'd have saved another $4.

Our goal is to get a nice stockpile going, so this summer when I'm off work from the museum, we'll be good!

Oooohhhh.....so full!

So much food!

So many presents!

So much fun!









Big piles of wrapping paper, family surrounded by their toys, Spook looking a bit dazed and confused, the AWESOME steampunk gun Dear Daughter MADE me! (nerf gun, painted and embellished, SUPER COOL!)

All the presents I was making got finished in the nick of time (I wrecked my sewing machine on the last one!) I made a few more Etsy sales, very exciting! Dear Daughter & I have been watching marathon TV for 5 days; Hoarders, What Not to Wear, Extreme Couponing; all the stuff I won't watch when she's gone.

Looking forward to a couple of days straightening up and cleaning out, to welcome in the New Year!

Christmas Kitty!

Snapple, who says she's invisible because she's hiding behind the tree!

The year comes to a close

It's rainy again (or is that still?) I'm busy at the museum (which is good) and I'm trying to get the house decorated for Christmas and the holidays. I've got the green tree up and decorated, the pink tree up without decorations. I've unpacked lots of other little trees, and stored some of the normal objects I surround myself with, to make room for glittering little cardboard houses and manger scenes.

I feel like I'm on a roller coaster, though, with lots of exciting things, and lots of worrisome things hitting me from all sides.

Exciting: gave a presentation to the Delaware Artist Guild about my Red Panty clothing, learned to use Powerpoint for said presentation, got paid and sold a piece at presentation, sold another item on Etsy, have many many MANY gifts to be sewn before Christmas, started using Pinterest which is a really fun site to collect things from around the web into 1 place, wrestling a teensy bit of responsibility for scheduling from my control-freak boss, preparing for a show of my work in Newark, anticipating a lovely Christmas break at home with beloved daughter, family, friends, etc.

Worrisome: losing Go Figure as a retail outlet for the Red Panty Clothing, worrying about Sherri from Go Figure who is closing due to some health concerns, have many many MANY gifts to be sewn before Christmas, responsibility for scheduling the Library gallery, preparing for a show of my work in Newark, a long Christmas break with no work and no paycheck, beloved daughter in her final week of projects and papers and exams as she struggles to keep it together. sigh!

I am trying to maintain an attitude of open, willing, and wide-eyed wonder through this month, and keep casting around for alternatives, opportunities and possibilities. The whole "closes a door, opens a window" type of viewpoint. I'm looking for outlets for my art, my clothing, my friendship, my energy. I know I will find them.

Sometimes we become so comfortable where we are, we stop looking ahead to the next great thing, and are taken by surprise when things change. As they always do. ALWAYS!

I flipped through my notebook last week, which serves as a sort of journal for me. I don't sketch, I don't do dairy entries, but I make lists. LOTS of them! I stumbled upon a list I made last January, of blessings to be thankful for in the new year. I can still count them all! Under my "plans" for 2011, I did cross a few off. The few I didn't cross off, I guess I'll just use first in my new list for next year.

So I continue to gather up images, ideas, contacts and entry forms, and make lists of all the possibilities. And I continue to be thankful for all my blessings, which includes every single friend!

It can't be the end of the summer yet!

There are SOOoooo many projects and trips and books and movies I haven't caught up with.

Tomorrow, I take dear daughter back to college for her Senior Year....wow! Incredible how quickly it's gone, and how much she's accomplished so far.

She did help me paint another room in the new house (can I still call it new after the first year?) A lovely blue, "Aqua Spray", and I'm still putting final touches on the decor, but I already think the room looks larger, more open and airy.

So many entries creeping their way in to my fall calendar now; receptions and meetings and work, musical events of my own and my friends. Lots and lots of Art Barn activity on the agenda, too: must create new art quilts for my upcoming exhibit in Newark; must create the fall Red Panty clothes...I think we'll aim to do the live mannequins in the window again, on a Gallery Hop night. It was a lot of fun in July!

Must keep up with the exercise, since it really helped get me in better shape over the summer. Although, I won't be hiking in boots and backpack in sweltering heat anymore. All that digging and sifting with Dear Daughter did help me lose a bit of weight, though; I've got to take in nearly every pair of pants and shorts I own. I've walked to work a few days already, but unfortunately, I have to carry extra clothes, as I do not arrive as fresh as I'd like.

Must create a new Equestrian shirt for Dear Daughter, for her final year of riding. More sparkles, I think. Maybe with a touch of the Wooster plaid.

Looking for a good bruschetta recipe to use up the bumper crop of Roma tomatoes I've got....planted them in topsoil bags, and they've been staked and double-staked, and are still falling over, they're so laden with goodness! Sadly, the basil-flavored olive oil I put up MOLDED over. So had to dump it....and I've used nearly every drop that I made last year....maybe I'll do pesto with the rest of my basil, and freeze it. I love the summery taste!

And still trying to keep up with family and friends who deserve more attention than I've been giving them lately....I need to make more lists (there's that OCD again!)

I'm a travelling Gal!

This week is a busy one; took Dear Daughter to Wooster today to pick up equipment for her archaeological dig which starts THURSDAY!!! YAY!!

Tomorrow I go to Newark to interview for an exhibit of my quilts at a lovely new art space....wish me luck!


Wednesday I buzz to the Short North to see Sherri at Go Figure, and I'm taking a few new items that I just finished today. I love the raglan pattern, it's so comfortable, very flattering!

Where are You going this week??

Working for a living

ugh, after a lovely Thursday, and a promising start to today, it's raining again! It could definitely be worse; there are so many counties under flood watches and warnings, and I'm dry for the moment!

This month is starting off well; I'll be working every single day for the next 2 weeks, which means extra hours in the paycheck before the museum closes for the summer and I start to panic about how I'm going to pay my bills. I think I will have enough to pay my bills through June without having to start a summer job!

On the plus side, my ebay sales are improving: I find the more items I have listed at a time, the better I usually sell. Also, I started raising my prices a bit last month, and do you know, I think I'm selling more? Maybe it is all about perceived value; I've heard craftsmen selling at festivals say that when they raise prices, they sometimes sell more. If something is priced too low, people think it must be subpar.

Also, I sold a Red Panty top yesterday on Etsy; I feel giddy with happiness! I think my clothing are a hard on-line sell; they are all so individual, so unique, and half the pleasure comes in trying them on and seeing how they feel on your own body. So for some in Maine to take a leap of faith and purchase one of my tops really makes me feel great and nervous at the same time. Hoping they like it when it arrives!

In honor of the rain, I snapped some pics of the retaining wall behind the museum; the moss and lichen fairly glow in the drizzle, and I just think it so beautiful!

In like a March Lion...

for Weeks now I've felt as though I didn't even have the will to live; bleak, grey days, dark so early, cold, snowy, wet....I was uninspired and disgusted at myself for not having an ounce of initiative!

But it's a new month, and while it's cold, the rains have finally stopped and the sun came out today. I have the day off, and have spent a bit of time in the art barn...yay!

This is what I've worked on today:

Cut out a black & white toile knit dress for myself, to coordinate with a cute linen jacket I got at the thrift-dress is 1/2 sewn together!

Cut out a black & white toile knit top to sell-finished it, too!

Used the scraps to cut circles for yo-yo's...I want to make a cute coordinating pin to wear, and it's just as easy to cut alot as it is to cut 1

Sewed up some new Ghost Bunnies and Ghost Kitties in white, since Easter is on its way

I did buy some good fiberfill yesterday; I had a nice bag of it, but unfortunately, it wouldn't stay in the little ears and arms! It was Soooo soft, Soooo un-clumpy. However, when you're stuffing creatures, you need a certain degree of "clump"!

Anyway, I intend to cuddle up on the couch this evening with my decidedly UN-ghost-like Snapple and stuff up some new stuffies!

Kitty in the sun

It's just Spook, enjoying a rare moment of sunlight this winter!

Blue Bottles and Poison Ivy

I think that Autumn is starting to creep in....I do like the smell of burning leaves, although any more, most cities don't allow it.

I've lit my chiminea a couple of times and have been burning the dead sticks that constantly fall out of the giant maple trees; what is it about them, everywhere we've lived, they shed like cats!

I'm working on my blue bottle garden, though...I need to find some bolt cutters to use on my rebar, but dowels work fairly well for the shorter limbs. Sad, though, the tall ones bent right over from the rain. Yep, that's poison ivy peeking through the pine needles and snaking up the tree trunk. I'll have to deal with it soon, before it gets out of hand.

I've been collecting sculpture to fill in around it...Killer Bunnies that I bought from a graduating senior a few years back, and a turtle and cobra my brother Michael made me from parts when his engine exploded.







My father-in-law's dog is enjoying the backyard more, now that it is a bit cooler. Floyd, too, likes to sit outside and enjoy the antics of the squirrels and stray cats.





Lots of exciting things coming up for me, with my clothing line....Stay Tuned!

Art Barn - the disaster site

Well the move is complete....we are totally moved in to the new house, nothing remains at the old place (except some lovely herbs and some brick pavers). The new place gets homier every day...at the end of each day, we proudly point out to each other the boxes we've emptied, the pictures we've hung, the new plants we've nestled into their beds. Soon, very soon, it will be our HOME!

The Art Barn, well, that's another matter! As the final days approached and we were desperate to be finished, boxes and bags and items which we just couldn't make a decision on (keep, toss, donate, sell?) were all tossed into the barn. MY barn! and so Ana & I made the brave first step last week, to try to clean-sweep and make some headway.



Here is the Barn immediately after the move....Ana is standing near the side door, in the only free space available. Mountains of rubbermaid tubs, plastic bags, furniture that had to be emptied pre-move, and the boxes of contents that came from within. Plus knocked-down shelving units, the barbecue grill, a completely over-the-top wheelchair ramp that came from the University....we need to put a small ramp off the back porch for Ron's dad Floyd, who uses a walker, and the university was going to trash a ramp, so the B&G guys dropped it off.....14 feet long, 48" wide, built to carry a rhino! Serious overkill for our needs! so THAT'S got to go!


Ana & I managed to carve out a tiny workspace for each of us, and I've put together 3 shelving units....a bit rickity, we'll have to move them around again before we're finished, but it gets some of the clutter out of the way. We've moved bookcases around and filled them back up, creating a nice pile of empty totebags, "borrowed" post office carriers and some empty boxes....I can see a teeny bit of headway!


Yesterday I actually got the Bernina plugged in and turned on....yay! At this point I can at least do some work while we chip away at the big pile of belongings. I dropped off another 2 bags to Goodwill this morning on my way to work, and we'll continue to rid ourselves of this baggage, I'm sure. It can't possibly be healthy to cling to so many objects. But I do look forward to the day when my friends and I can gather in the barn, to create and collaborate!

New House means lots of work!

In amongst the creative endeavors, I must make time to move! I do not like the physical moving, very difficult, but it must be done. This week I have dropped off 1 car load of things each day. Saturday, the parents came over and took 3 loads in the pickup, which sounds like a lot, but isn't a drip in the bucket.

I've got 2 more gallons of paint ready to use; Iced Lemonade (yellow for the kitchen) and Jericho (green for the dining room). The tan/gray color in the middle is Ashen, and I've already painted the living room that color.

I've decided not to paint the den; since it won't be my sewing room, it will take on a slightly more masculine air. I've got 3 white bookshelves in place to accept carloads of books. In our current home, we have a WALL of bookshelves, built-in on either side of the fireplace....I'm really going to miss them!

However, in consolation, I now have command of the Barn! YES!! The ART BARN! It is about 28 feet by 16 feet, I believe, and very tall. Heated and airconditioned, super great! Most of what we moved on Saturday was bins and more bins of yarn and fabric.

The walls are corrugated stuff, maybe fiberglass, I'm not sure. I'll need to figure out a way to surround myself with beauty, or it's going to look very garage-y! Someone asked me today if I'm planning a vacation this summer, and while I'm not going anywhere, I'll be busy!