Confessions of an ADD Artist

For a very long time I was all about the beads.  I am not complaining but there were those times when the beads weren't working for me and I stalled.  I thought it was because I needed a studio.

I love having this studio now but it is not turning out to be what I planned and that is perfectly fine because in the past few months I have been exploring other artistic avenues and I am enjoying it so much but.............

How do I make all of these a part of my life without letting any one of them get put aside?  I didn't want to have to always put one away just to work on something else.  I know some of you may not be able to use my plan but it may give you ideas of your own.

I created stations for each of my passions or rather the stations presented themselves to me.  First up is beading which is still a very important part of my artistic life.  I found that I love my studio for storing and picking out the beads but when it came to actually beading at the desk it just didn't feel right so I went back to the best little space on the couch. That is also where I have my OTTlite which some of you know is essential for tiny beads.

Under my tray is my tool box with all my needles, scissors, thread and thread burner.  All I need to do is pick a project and put it on my tray and it is always ready to pick up.

Tucked away along the side is a small quilt and a cross stitch project for those times either my eyes are too tired for the tiny beads or as I am sure has happened to you something is not working and you come to the point you just need to put it down.

What I found is that I needed the studio desk for is felting.  You have heard me talk about how much I have enjoyed starting this and I found that I need the desk for concentration and minimal distractions to prevent stabbing myself.  I really didn't think I would enjoy working at a desk so much and having it in front of the window is refreshing.

My ever growing gang is always there to encourage me to be creative.

I have taken my artistic journey a bit farther than I thought I ever would and took a class on Primitive Rug Hooking which is a primarily North American craft that began in the 1800's.  Here is the class project.

What I immediately fell in love with is the freedom you have in creating your personal rug.  Here is my finished (except for the binding) rug.

I knew going into this project that the flowers were just not something I wanted to do so with help from our amazing teacher Deb we created trees for me.  I love it but, with the frame and supplies needed there was no room for this to stay in the living room.

A funny thing happened when we had that snowstorm a couple of weeks ago.  My husband was working from home and actually enjoys my company while he is working down stairs so that is where I now have my rug hooking station.

A couple of Christmas's ago my daughter gave me this tote when I was attempting to do shows with my jewelry but that did not work out.  It works great for storing all the supplies needed for hooking and I can take it back and forth to class.  Oh and it keeps the kitty from stealing all my wool strips too!

As you can see I do flit from one to another easily and now it is not a time consuming challenge to put one away just to work on another.  Have you had this issue?  Did my tips help?  Let me know!