shiny happy workroom

 Since I have not done anything really creative (other than make the odd thing for H) for MONTHS, my poor workroom (old shed) has pretty much been left neglected with the door shut all through the winter and wet summer. As it is after all, just an old outbuilding, it does have a bit of a problem with damp and ventilation. Although we did our best to make it useable when we first changed it into a workroom, it needs a bit more constant TLC. After a big clear out of mouldy fabric and old bits of tat, everything was cleaned, treated, sealed, painted and generally made better and brighter.

Instead of the old white walls, I wanted turquoise walls to make it feel more uplifting and calming. It is also supposedly good for creativity!..  and is a good backdrop for the odd splashes of red and orange in the room. We rearranged some cupboards, bought big, sealable boxes and a long table suitable for screen printing and fabric cutting. I love it and want to live in there, looking right across the garden is lovely when the sun is shining, the buddleia is in bloom and H is playing! All I need now is the time to use it...

a room of one's own

I have come to the conclusion that for now, I am going to put my screen printing/Etsy shop on hold... although I do not feel as if I ever really got started with it! I started off about a year ago wanting to screen print & sell my designs on Etsy. I began with with baby/kids tees as a way to print my designs onto textiles. I was returning to work with a one-year old and needed to keep it accessible for myself, so I decided that printing on ready-made garments is easier than printing on items that I also have to sew myself.

My big idea was to eventually include handmade home-wares and accessories, combining screen printing and recycled/vintage fabrics. The vision is still there but I have to accept that it is just not possible for me at the moment. I work three days a week and the rest of the time I am with my two-year old daughter. I do have a workspace which is a converted garden shed, and though it is adequate, it is sill cold in the winter and besides, I rarely get the time to actually go in there and try to create anything!  I know that things would be different if I had a work-room in the house as I could shut myself away and create, returning to ideas without having to pack it all away or leave things for weeks before picking up again. I may feel differently in the summer, when the evenings are longer and it is warmer, otherwise I may have to wait until we can either move, or my daughter is in school...or we win the lottery?!

Anyway, all is not lost. The other great albatross around my neck is the KLC Interior Design course that I enrolled on some ...ooh a few years ago. It is designed to study at home around work/family commitments but I never managed to do it when I was working full-time and certainly not with a baby...not to a standard that I was happy with anyway (I think I'd rather not do something than do it badly).  But as I spend most of my evenings glued to my laptop and even more recently, to Pinterest, this has got my passion for interiors fired up again. I may not have much work of my own to talk about but I can still use this blog to share design finds...which will ultimately help me with my course-work...when I get that room (and time) of my own...

Inspiring work spaces...

All sourced on Pinterest, from top: mintdesignblog.com // heartfish.com // seventhingstowritehomeabout.blogspot.com // scandinavianretreat.blogspot.com // bloomingville.com //