WHERE Women Create - Fall 2022

INSPIRING WORK SPACES OF EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN

Fall 2022 Display Until November 15, 2022

CREATED BY JO PACKHAM

Y O U R N E T W O R K F O R A L L T H I N G S F LO R A L bloomtvnetwork.com

How To Contact Us

INSPIRING WORK SPACES OF EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN®

CUSTOMER SERVICE & SUBSCRIPTION INQUIRIES WHERE WOMEN CREATE—Fulco Inc. PO Box 3000, Denville, NJ 07834-3000 844-263-3472 WomenCreateCustService@FulcoInc.com

CREATOR + EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Jo Packham

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES WomenCreateAdvertising@Madavor.com SUBMISSION INQUIRIES Submissions@WomenCreate.com

From a woman’s soul, through a woman’s eyes, by a woman’s hands.®

WHERE WOMEN CREATE® FALL ISSUE 23 PUBLISHED 4 TIMES PER YEAR BY: Madavor Media, LLC 35 Braintree Hill Office Park, Suite 101 Braintree, MA 02184 Madavor.com WomenCreate.com POSTMASTER Send address changes to: WHERE WOMEN CREATE—Fulco Inc. PO Box 3000, Denville, NJ 07834-3000 Changes of address must be submitted in writing.

Where Women Create (USPS #000-310) is published quarterly by Madavor Media, LLC, 35 Braintree Hill Office Park, Suite 101 Braintree, MA 02184. Periodicals postage paid at Boston, MA and at additional offices.

Design & Editorial MANAGING EDITOR Jennifer Blot GRAPHIC DESIGN Wendy Dunning COPY EDITOR Toni Fitzgerald CURATORS Seth Apter Lori Siebert

NEWSTAND CIRCULATION Weekly Retail Service Thomas Smith | Smith@WeeklyRetailService.com Susan Harold | SH@WeeklyRetailService.com PUBLISHER Madavor Media, LLC 35 Braintree Hill Office Park, Suite 101 Braintree, MA 02184 Madavor.com

Where Women Create® is a registered trademark of Where Women Create, Inc. and may not be used without permission. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher or Where Women Create Inc. The information contained in this magazine is provided AS IS. Neither Where Women Create, Inc. nor Madavor, nor the publisher, make any representation or warranty with respect to this magazine or the contents thereof and do hereby disclaim all express and implied warranties to the fullest extent permitted by law. Where Women Create, Inc. and the publisher do not endorse any individuals, companies, products, services, or views featured or advertised in this magazine. ©2022 Where Women Create, Inc. all rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the copyright owner.

EXPLORE NEW DIRECTIONS IN MAKING WITH SCHIFFER CRAFT. Schiffer Craft brings you the most important currents of inspiration and knowledge, helping you and your audiences find new directions in learning and making.

THE HERBARIUM OF FABRIC FLOWERS: TWENTY FLOWER BROOCH PROJECTS TRANSLATED FROM NATURE Create standout wearable brooches with amazing natural “personality” by basing them on the flower’s botanical info.

The herbarium approach here offers you a window into the natural character of plants, which lets you make your fabric versions amazing. Includes full-size templates for every project.

STYLING BEYOND INSTAGRAM: TAKE YOUR PROP STYLING SKILLS FROM THE SQUARE TO THE STREET Up your styling skills, avoid common pitfalls, and turn your passion for prop styling into a career that feeds your soul. In this comprehensive guide to the business of styling you’ll learn how to organize and plan a photo shoot from start to finish, how to work with clients, and all the essentials to help you kickstart your career and thrive!

CREATE NATURALLY: GO OUTSIDE AND REDISCOVER NATURE WITH 15 MAKERS For makers of all levels, discover practical ways to become more creative and find inspiration and meaning in your daily life by reconnecting with nature.

Meet 15 makers who will describe their natureconnected works and talk you through the steps they took in creating works that tap into the importance of nature art in making a mind, body, and spirit connection.

ENDLESS FLORESCENCE: TRANSFORMATIVE CONTEMPORARY DRIED FLORAL DESIGN Jenny Thomasson’s boundary-pushing floral design breathes new life into dried botanicals. She shows how preserved floral arrangements can be lively and contemporary and fit into your personal style at home. Through lush photos and sketches showing her process, she explores materials, styles, and inspirations for these longlasting expressive works.

hellocraft@schifferbooks.com | schiffercraft.com | @schiffercraft

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FEATURES

CONTENTS 26 Ann Rene Alexander Sweet Annie Renee Arts

38 Laura Garcia 54 Colleen E. Monette 82 Kimberly Dodge Dodges and Daisies

96 Roxanne Evans Stout 114 Deanne Fitzpatrick 130 Eowana Bradley Jordan 146 Karen Roberts-Laughridge

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IN EVERY ISSUE 8 From My Kitchen Table

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Lori Siebert, Best Studio Photo Contest Winners

DEPARTMENTS 18 An Artist Lives Here Linda Solovic

70 What Makes a Studio Seth Apter

140 Art of Business

Patricia Olga Peuschold, PPtaller

154 Pet Tales

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Red and Deanna Tipton

Deanne Fitzpatrick

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ON THE COVER

M

y history began with the packaging or publishing of over 1,000 booklets and books during my first 25 years in publishing, and then I moved over to magazines, and now an impressive, ever-growing website has been added as part of our publishing story.

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there are so many opportunities for us as publishers to become involved with and feature so many more inspiring and creative women.

One perfect example of a brainstorming session with the magazine/website teams was the concept of presenting contests several times a year to give an opportunity to all artists to shine and receive the recognition they so deserve. Our first contest was, of course, Best Studio Photo.

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I love creating print magazines exponentially more than I love creating books. Books are a long commitment for both the artist and the publisher, and it is seldom, almost never, that you can change the content or add new content just because it is a really good idea. Each book takes months to create and just as many months to prepare, print and then get it on store shelves.

In this digital age of magazines with beautiful websites that can change or add content almost instantly,

women create contests Best Studio Photo Contest 2022

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F I R S T- P L AC E W I N N E R

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Kimberly McSparran

T

PHOTO BY BOBBY HAMSKI

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his is my studio where I have spent almost 30 years doing product development as an industrial designer, illustrator, painter and pet portrait artist. Over the years, I have designed flatware, dinnerware, crystal, giftware, cloisonné items, fabrics, wallpapers, needlepoint rugs and pillows; created stationery, greeting cards and paper party goods; and painted pet portraits on this drawing board.

I have been commissioned for decorative painting throughout the Hamptons for leading architects and top interior designers, including Mark, Kate and Alexa Hampton.

Prior to moving to the Village of Southampton to focus on my passion, painting, I worked for 15 years in Manhattan, enjoying a successful career as an industrial designer and illustrator, licensing my designs to more than 30 manufacturers and traveling to factories around the world. My crystal stemware “Vogue” for Mikasa is in the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City, and “Cove,” one of the flatware patterns I designed for Yamazaki, was shown at the Parrish Art Museum’s “Loewy” exhibit.

SECOND-PLACE WINNER

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Rhonda Larson

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his image shows the metalsmithing and enameling area of my studio. I also work in encaustic and multi-media collage, incorporating all of these elements together in artist books as well as wall art and, of course, jewelry. This space was formerly a closet in the primary bedroom, which was converted during a whole-house renovation in 2020.

Making art and jewelry is a passion I have always pursued outside of my career.

I feel so fortunate to be the owner and executive director of RL Design Studio DBA Heritage School of Interior Design in Denver, Colorado, where I get to cultivate a supportive, creative

community helping people discover and develop their talents to obtain a fulfilling career in interior design.

I am a designer, maker and curator, a multi-media artist in jewelry and metalsmithing, encaustic painting, collage and book arts. My homes and spaces have also become art projects, inspired by a deep appreciation of eclectic vintage pieces that tell stories through their history, soul and style.

My art always seems to reflect a vintage vibe.

Aside from running the school, making art and designing artful spaces, I love traveling for cultural experience, outdoor adventures with friends, gardening, family time, reading, and great food and wine.

and I started my own gardening business in my late 40s. I was lucky to have carte blanche in the backyards of some beautiful homes, creating garden oases … but the desire to teach myself to paint was stirring in my soul.

I started a blog where I shared my gardens and eventually some of my artwork. From the supportive community online, I gained self-confidence and started to sell some of my work. As a “recovering perfectionist,” I realized I could no longer balance gardening and painting. I retired from my gardening career after 16 years and now focus on my true passion for painting.

THIRD-PLACE WINNER

Erin Anderson

S

unny days in my studio ... courting my muse.

I’ve been an artist all of my life. My kindergarten teacher told my mother that I was an artist. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, I was blessed to have many awesome art teachers in the public school system. In college, I studied jewelry making and photography, but I dropped out after two and a half years, got married, moved to my beloved Tennessee and became a stay-at-home mom.

Raising my kids became my focus, but I dabbled in all sorts of creative endeavors, including my new passion for gardening. I became a master gardener,

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In this magazine world, I work with so many talented women with so many good ideas that the next issue can have something new added to it after just one person shares just one idea as a random comment at lunch, on a podcast, or walking the aisles of a trade show.

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That is how “An Artist

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Lives Here ... Inspiration Everywhere” with Lori Siebert was created.

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Here are a few words from Lori on how it all came together:

VA L E R I E H O H K I TC H E N

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I

’ve always been fascinated by the lives of uber-creative people. Everything about them … the way they decorate their homes, the way they dress, what they cook, what they read, the music they like. … It is all a reflection of the wonderful way they express themselves. Several years ago, I had an idea for a magazine that I called Labor of Love.

This publication would feature these magical worlds created by inspiring, artistic friends of mine and people I didn’t know but greatly admired. With the help of my design studio, we actually created a handful of issues. I LOVED getting glimpses into these inspiring lives and learning more about how their creativity permeated everything around them.

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MARY ENGELBREIT HOME

M A R C I A S H O RT T H O M E

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A couple of months ago, I was a guest on Jo’s From My Kitchen Table podcast. Somehow, this idea came up in our conversation. I talked about how much I loved Home Companion magazine when it was on newsstands because it featured the homes of artists and makers. These homes were unique and told a story. When visiting my artist friends, I take millions of pictures because every room is chock-full of eye candy and ideas. So, after that chat, the idea for “An Artist Lives Here” to be featured in WHERE Women Create took root.

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M I C H E L L E A L L E N S TA I R C A S E

I am so excited about touring the magical homes of my friends with you! The first friend I would like you to know is: Linda Solovic.

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Linda Solovic Photography by Curt Dennison

AN

ARTIST LIVES HERE

INSPIRATION EVERYWHERE with Lori Siebert

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LINDA SOLOVIC is an artist and collector who hails from St. Louis, Missouri. From the time she could hold a crayon, all she wanted was to make art and to be an artist. Linda has been fortunate enough to be able to pursue her passion for her entire life. She finds inspiration in the traditional (art museums, books, antique shops) and not so traditional (roadside attractions, illuminated caves, miniature golf courses).

She has many collections, acquired over the course of her lifetime, including snow domes (1,000!), vintage fabrics, buttons, Christmas ornaments and children’s books. She loves to travel and delights in the exploration of the odd and unusual (giant balls of string, huge animal statues, tacky souvenir stands). She is inspired by everything from outsider art to the most sophisticated midcentury furniture. She loves to draw, color, stitch and collage.

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According to my husband, Gary Karpinski, if you ever hear a big boom in South St. Louis, Missouri, it will mean that I have tried, and failed, to wedge another flea market treasure into our home. Our house is chock-full of knickknacks, thingamajigs, bric-a-brac and tchotchkes. My car stops at all flea markets and antique malls, where I hope to score more treasures. And what is my dream vacation?

To go to either the Brimfield Antique Show in Massachusetts or the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena, California. Or both.

When you enter our house, your eyes will dart everywhere as you try to soak in all the eye candy, the pops of color, the textures and patterns in the pillows, quilts, rugs and whimsical artwork made by either our favorite artists, our friends, or me.

After the initial surprise of so many gems in each room, you will begin to see individual items that delight you, and a smile will appear on your face.

Our house is a small bungalow in a lovely neighborhood called St. Louis Hills. We moved to this house in 1996, when our daughter, Anna, was just 4. She is now 30. That means that I have had 26 years to fill this house to the brim with treasures.

I live with my husband and our two boy kitties, Dexter and Findlay.

When it came to decorating, I knew that my taste was not in sync with my budget (illustrators are not known to make big money) and that I would need to find a creative way to furnish and enhance our house. It was not hard for me to figure out how to do that. I could rely on my favorite passions: junking and collecting.

My dad got me started junking when I was a teenager. I accompanied him to auctions, where he would buy boxes of stuff, not knowing what was in them. Sorting through the boxes he purchased made me so excited. Who knew what treasures would be in them?

So as an adult, I started going to estate sales, flea markets and antique shops to find the unique, the quirky and the beautiful for my house, at prices I could afford.

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I am very sentimental, and my house is filled with items scavenged from the homes of my friends and family members. I knew I could do something with what they considered castoffs. So, I blended those items with my own family treasures and mementos. I remembered when I was a child, my grandmother always set the table with bright colorful dishes that matched in color value but not as place settings. I would have a blue bowl with a yellow plate (and an orange glass) on which to eat my Thanksgiving dinner. I loved those dishes. It turned out that those dishes were Fiestaware, which I asked for and was given for my first apartment.

I have added to the original collection over the years. We still eat our meals off them today.

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Our house is filled with artwork ... mine, Anna’s, my students’, my friends’ and pieces we see on Etsy or purchase at art fairs.

Luckily, Gary and I share the same quirky taste in decorative objects and framed pieces.

On our mantel, for example, sit portraits of our cats that I collaged onto vintage book backs and clamped to old clipboards, which sit behind baby blocks with each cat’s initials.

Images of houses, birds, donuts, anthropomorphic animals and family photos hang in groupings over our sofa and adorn the walls on either side of the stairs. My idea of a beautiful room — or house — is one filled to the brim and overflowing with treasures.

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I have a large cupboard in my studio stacked to the brim with fabric. And, of course, there is Marimekko fabric on these shelves, some of which I have had since my honeymoon in Chicago 46 years ago. I have a hard time using it since it is so beautiful.

I just like to gaze at it and dream of what I might make.

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I have been an illustration teacher at Washington University in St. Louis for over 25 years. I tell my students that I believe that all artists express their ccreativity reativity not just through their artwork but also iin n everything they do in life … the way they dress, the way they decorate their homes, their hobbies and interests, and even their world views. I stress that they are reflections of their creative minds and they should celebrate that. They should be who they are, regardless of whether society (or their family) understands their desire to own sheets from Pillowfort at Target, collect tiny Maileg mice or hula dancer lamps, or dress in vintage clothes (who looks better than Mrs. Maisel?).

You will find that you will have a big smile on your face just like I do, living in my creative world.

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More on Linda

www.Linda-Solovic-Studio.Squarespace.com Instagram: LindaSolovic Facebook: Linda.Solovic Pinterest: LindaSolovic Etsy: etsy.com/shop/LindaSolovic

Through the LENS

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CURT DENNISON has been a successful professional photographer since graduating from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 1982, the first five years at a small studio, then seven years at a Fortune 500 food company, and freelance since 1994. Over the past 28 years of freelance, he has worked in 43 U.S. states, Mexico, Canada and Europe. Curt’s passion is light, composition and color. He brings his sensibilities to life photographing agriculture, medical, people, places, products and food. Solving innumerable photographic challenges of subject, location, lighting, logistics, creative and budget, Curt has built a satisfied clientele of agencies, corporations and individuals. Most recently, Curt has become an FAA-certified UAS pilot and creates images with a high-resolution drone. As he has said, “I always wanted a helicopter; now I am one!” His work can be seen at www.curtdennisonphotography.com.

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More on Curt

www.CurtDennisonPhotography.com

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Ann Rene Alexªnder 26

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D

isneyland may be considered the happiest place on earth, but I found mine nestled among the gardens in my own backyard.

This is where so many of my dreams came true; not all at once, but each in their own time. Dreams do still come true, Dear Reader, just like the Cinderella story.

Ann Rene Alexªnder is a multidisciplinary artist from Carroll, Ohio, who expresses her creativity through painting, scratchboard illustration, chalk art, felting 28

and a variety of other mediums.

WHERE WOMEN CREATE |

She most enjoys trying to capture the beauty of the natural world through her colorful floral paintings.

When not in her studio, she is usu-

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ally gardening or trying to separate her two feuding cats.

I never dreamt of being anything but an artist.

My mom claims I was drawing in my high chair, and I believe her. Born with crossed eyes, I had many surgeries but still had a few visual challenges. Instead of playing games with my siblings, I was usually off somewhere alone dreaming, drawing or searching for fairies in the garden. My mom made every day a holiday at our house, and my dad always had a song in his heart. Dad even taught us all to harmonize, and we still spontaneously sing when we’re together … in perfect harmony, of course. Ours was a charmed childhood, raised on faith, love and Disney.

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We wanted to start a family but decided to first fulfill a lifelong dream for both of us: a trip to Europe. It was a jam-packed, back-packed whirlwind tour of six countries within a couple of weeks.

We loved it. The highlight for me was the centennial exhibit at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. We dream now of a kinder and gentler return to Italy and France.

It wasn’t long before God answered our prayers and gave us two precious children. We named our gorgeous ginger girl Holly, after my treasured Madame Alexander doll. She is our songbird and is musically gifted, poetic, kind and courageous. We never imagined this tiny girl would someday bravely fly off on her own two wings to faraway places. We named our son Vincent, after my favorite artist.

Amazingly, he has lived up to his famous namesake as a red-haired, blue-eyed, passionate artist and writer. He is also a gifted cartoonist and animator and keeps everyone laughing.

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ot surprisingly, my great passions were art, music and gardening. I first attended a small Christian liberal arts school, where I studied vocal music and visual art. I loved growing in my faith with a wide variety of people. It was there I took a class that began my admiration for the art and culture of Japan, which many years later I was fortunate enough to visit. Eventually, I transferred to an art college to acquire skills and techniques I still use today. During this time, my parents helped set up a basement studio. It was dark but organized and got me through those all-nighters.

And then I met my very own Prince Charming: a cute rock ’n’ roll musician named John (not Elton).

He quickly became my best friend, soulmate and personal piano man (it was the ’80s, after all). A few years later, we married, found a humble home on a few acres, and began surrounding it with cats, trees and flowers.

B

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y the time I was 30, many of my dreams had already come true. My husband and I tried to give our children the gifts our parents gave us: unconditional love, a firm faith in God and a home filled with laughter and friendship. We both made career changes and sacrifices in order to home educate them. Before we knew it, we had taught them both to graduation, and they were off to college.

Our little ones magically grew up before our eyes.

Still, it was often challenging to (quite literally) squeeze my art in between meals on the kitchen table. I stored my supplies in our basement but found it too dark, cold and remote to work in. It’s hard to believe how much I accomplished, with so little time and space, in order to help support my family all those years. I also made edible works of art and specialty cakes for almost 10 years. It was hard to be patient and wait for my season to come, but that’s what I did. Until I couldn’t anymore.

In 2013, we lost my beloved brother at age 58 to an aggressive brain tumor in eight short but merciless months. Since then, we have lost other loved ones, and each loss leaves a gaping hole that can’t be filled. Every day is a gift from God. I decided it was time to finally become the artist I wanted to be and to use the gifts He gave me. I needed to be brave and bold. I needed my own studio.

Once I announced that, I could not be dissuaded. We considered many options but finally decided to have a customized shed built and delivered to our backyard.

She finally arrived one cold January day in 2016. I named her Sunshine, and my mom made her a birthday cake to celebrate.

She was perfect.

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35 My large and lovely wooden desk is where I draw with pencils and pastels. My easel stand is by my painting armoire, and there is a low table for mixed media. I have a comfy chair in the corner by the windows, where I can read, listen to records, and even doze off.

My two ginger cats, Sammy and Knabe, take turns visiting me and frequently join me in these little catnaps. My Sunshine was recently gifted a flagstone path to replace the straw one she so loathed. And now that she is being featured in this gorgeous magazine, her vanity has no bounds.

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cannot express the joy she brings me. It took months of hard work from friends and family before I made my first painting within her magical walls: daffodils, from the garden. Since then, I steal away to her every chance I get. On dark winter mornings, the freezing path leads me into her cozy warmth, and I can watch the snow fall through every window. I open wide her doors to welcome spring (and the frequent butterfly and bird visitors). In summer, she and I stay up late, along with the frogs and fireflies, and listen to the rain falling on the roof. In autumn, she waits and watches while I tuck the garden beds in for the winter, and she keeps the light on for me. Every time I enter, I breathe her in and give thanks.

Art is my therapy, and when my son had to go through surgery and radiation treatment last year, I taught myself to needle-felt to keep my hands and mind occupied. Later, I created and donated a wool butterfly shawl in honor of a friend and cancer survivor through Brushes with Cancer.

In the evenings, I often sit in my rocking chair with my baskets of wool and create tapestries and toys. I make aromatherapy flower fairies with wool and herbs. One of my dreams is to give them to children of all ages who are fighting cancer, to cheer them and make them smile. They are a labor of love for a cause near and dear to my heart.

I have taken so many photos of Sunshine that she has her own social media following. People are drawn to her, and I’m afraid she has become rather vain. The word “shed” is NEVER spoken in her presence, and she insisted recently on a complete makeover. We found beautiful Asian dressers and a desk with multiple drawers. It is perfect for lettering, watercolor and scratch art.

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W

ith so many dreams come true, can I still have more?

Indeed, I can. I would love to spend my days singing and dancing in my Sunshine studio, creating whatever is in my heart and supporting my family with my work. It is a BIG dream. But I have a BIG God, with BIG plans for me. I am in constant awe of His artistry. Jesus told us to “consider the lilies,” and I do. I marvel at the amazing creativity, detail, beauty and generosity he bestows on us in even just one flower. I try to

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express that fascination and joy in my art as I recreate it in my own way. He is the master, and I am His apprentice.

There is no end to the inspiration.

And so, Dear Reader, if you are still longing for your own space or studio, take heart. Savor each season as it comes, and go ahead and wish upon that star. But I’ll add a prayer for you, Dear Reader, that you find your happily ever after right here and now. May God bless you richly.

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More on Ann Rene

www.SweetAnnieReneeArts.com Instagram: AnnieReneeArt Facebook: SweetAnnieRenee Pinterest: SweetAnnieRenee

Laura Garcia 38

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Photography by Michael Van Auken

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As she held the shiny silver �ey in her han�, Laura Garcia realized a w�ole �e� world of creativity was about to be �nlocke�. Securing a beautiful, ligh�-filled studio space in the historic Benicia Arsenal was the first ste� toward entering a �e� chapter and living her

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life as an artis�. Su�orted by her family and friends, Laura began to build the studio of her creative dreams. A place w�ere �ot only can she escap�, create and explore but also one w�ere others feel comfortable to �ust sit and b�.

As a child, I arranged and rearranged my bedroom many times, searching for the right feeling. I would say my first studio was my bedroom. Once I got the space how I wanted, I sat on my freshly made bed with all the pillows and my favorite stuffed animals, calmly absorbing all the newly organized energy. Noticing all the mementos and decor set in just the right place and just the right way gave me a sense of peace.

Those were the early days of my life as a creative. I knew from a young age that I saw things differently than others did. I was only 8 years old when I told my mother I wished I didn’t notice EVERYTHING when I walked into a room. Not only the objects and the decor but also the energy in the space. It seemed like a burden back then. I knew if I could move a few things around, I could make it feel more “right.”

My mother was a “maker” in every sense of the word. She was constantly creating, and she set the example for what an artistic life looked like. Watching her raise five children and manage her time for pursuing creative projects was normal in my household. I used these early observational skills to build the foundation for a life full of artistic pursuits.

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As a collector,

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I have curated and created many pieces that I often rotate through my space. Each time they land in a new setting, I am able to see them in a different way. This allows me to enjoy them fresh once again. I like to move things from my home to my studio and back again. Being surrounded with interesting pieces of art and decor feels necessary to an aesthetic person.

I feel most relaxed in an environment that’s thoughtfully decorated with a mix of eclectic artifacts that are visually stimulating.

My studio has one big blan� wall

that I use as a palette for my work. Here, you will often find paintings, ceramics, weavings and even foraged treasures from the sea, all displayed together. I change the wall frequently and assemble things in ways that intrigue and inspire me.

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“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”

— Pablo Picasso

Once my children were grown

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and out of the house, I had the chance to commit more time to living the creative life I had been balancing for so long. I started taking classes. Lots of classes — including jewelry making, acrylic painting, watercolor painting, live model drawing and ceramics. I dove headfirst into all of it. The thrill of these new creative outlets and being involved in an artistic community was inspiring.

I turned an empty bedroom into a home studio. It was the beginning of a new freedom for self-expression, and it was magical. Having my home studio was nice, but I was never good at prioritizing time there. The distractions and busyness of home life seemed to get in the way. My best creative energy came out in my classes and workshops. This is when I began to manifest the desire to one day have my own studio.

I was familiar with the small coastal Northern California town of Benicia since I grew up not far from there. I also had worked in an eclectic gift shop/studio in the artist enclave known as The Arsenal. I had already met several artists and visited their studios. My new dream was to one day have a studio of my own in this amazing place.

I began taking a weekly workshop there and was invited to join a co-op art gallery in downtown Benicia. It was there that I started to meet more artists and become part of the art community. When I heard about a couple of Arsenal artists looking for a studio mate, I jumped at the chance to go meet them and see the space.

From the hundred-year-old brick buildings with their arched windows to the weathered facades, I was instantly smitten with the location.

I felt the adventurous opportunity in that space. I signed the lease the same day and began moving in the next!

At first, I didn’t want to cover the beautifully battered hardwood floors. They are a work of art in themselves. Yet every day I worked there, it began to fill with the things I needed. I took my time and let many of the pieces come to me organically.

When a fellow Arsenal artist and friend was giving away her studio couch, I said, “Yes, I could use it!”

The ornate and provincial shape of the couch was the perfect piece to set the stage for creating a place to gather. Unexpectedly draped with a multi-colored kilim rug, this is the spot where visitors and friends gravitate. Some studios are made for working only, and that’s fine, but not mine. My studio is a place to come and sit and relax as well as create.

Now, every day in my studio is truly a gift.

From the moment I pull into this historic area, I feel excited and so fortunate. Once a military port, the large brick buildings now house mostly artists. I know painters, sculptors, photographers, musicians and many other creatives from all walks of life. It’s been nearly five years, and I still get a sense of being centered whenever I am here. I like to walk through the arched hallways and up metal staircases to wander around the building.

Scenic vignettes are around every corner. And I take advantage of this treasure every chance I get. I relish the ability to sit outside with my sketchbook or grab a basket and go foraging for inspirational bits of flowers and leaves. Nature encourages me to be happy every day. The simple perfection of each leaf and petal makes me smile. These organic influences often show up in my work.

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“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.”

— Vincent van Gogh

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“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”

— Rum�

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I’m frequently bringing found objects into my space. I keep buckets of driftwood and glass jars full of rusty bits. I don’t always have an immediate plan to use them, but I know they are there. Looking at them gives me pleasure and new ideas.

Nothing compares to the patina Mother Nature so perfectly casts upon things. The colors and texture of rust and corrosion are my go-to palette. I am constantly layering any and all materials I can get my hands on in an attempt to capture a finish that is so rich and textured, yet so effortlessly perfect.

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I began with drawin�,

then watercolor and acrylic painting. Filling my baskets with every richly colored paint tube and pigment I could find. My impressionistic work is drawn from my intuitive ability to observe people and interpersonal interactions. Having this acute sense of awareness allows me to share the human experience we all desire in this life … connection. My paintings explore this fascination with the fleeting moment and seek to capture its energy with vibrancy and emotion.

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“We do not see things as they are, we see things as we are.”

— Anaïs Nin

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Transitioning from paint to ceramics felt completely natural to me. Stepping into that first sculpture workshop was an explosion of stimulation to my senses. Everything was new, from the materials to the language, and I was fully present to absorb it all. The organic nature of the clay in my hands touched a part of my artistic soul. As an earth element, working with clay is a therapeutic as well as spiritual experience for me. Earth elements act as purifiers, connecting us to the earth’s forces and energies.

My ceramic work, which is largely figurative, explores my relationship with color, texture and the human form. I use my observational skills daily to draw inspiration. The moment we connect with another person can be captured and artistically cultivated into a piece of art that stirs the emotions and intrigues the viewer. This conversation is vital to our daily relationship with each other.

Sometimes I plan a wor�day in the studi�,

which starts by opening the drapes to let the sun stream in through two large windows that face the Carquinez Strait. Exposing this view of the busy waterway with several shipping ports, I find myself watching the water sparkle like diamonds. Watching the giant ships pass by on the strait. Watching the sailboats and the tugboats silently glide by with the wind. Watching the clouds move and cast shadows across my wall. Then I browse my music playlists … selecting the perfect genre to fit my current mood. I sink into the welcoming couch and let myself just be in the moment.

It will often end up that I never tend to any “work” at all. Yet, I consider all of the above parts of my process. And I could not create without them.

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Whether I am painting, drawing, sculpting or just browsing through books and magazines for inspiration, my studio is a sacred space for all these activities. What started out as a burden to my 8-year-old self has lovingly grown into a beautiful blessing. One of the many I count daily.

For me, life is all about the present moment. Letting go of the energy of the past and not anticipating the uncertainties of the future. Being able to enjoy all that surrounds me without the desire to change any of it. Along with my creative pursuits, accepting life as it comes is my daily practice. It’s in this peaceful state of mind where my creativity begins, where I am happy to show up and just be.

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More on Laura

Instagram: ElegantNest Facebook: Laura.Garcia.50364592

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Through the LENS

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www.MVAPhoto.com

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More on Michael

Michael Van Auken was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. His love of photography began in high school, and his career as a professional photographer has spanned four decades. Michael specializes in photographing people at all times of their lives, capturing the moments that become memories. One of Michael’s personal projects includes a series of collaborative artists’ portraits. Using a combination of surreal settings and digital manipulation, each completed portrait image embodies both artist and their artwork.

Michael’s studio is in the historic Benicia Arsenal. He is an active member of Benicia’s artist community.

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Photography by Chris Villiers/ VilliersMedia, LLC

COLLEEN E. MONETTE

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COLLEEN is a Seattle-based artist working with found and salvaged vintage and antique materials for assemblage and collage art as well as encaustic painting. She balances her work between her home studio and her studio at Fogue Studios & Gallery in the Georgetown neighborhood.

Colleen lives with her boyfriend, Larry, and their blind dog, Tater, in the Magnolia neighborhood overlooking Puget Sound and the mountains of the Olympic Peninsula. When she isn’t painting or teaching, she loves spending time with Larry and Tater, just puttering around the house or searching for new-old treasures.

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become an artist. I preferred pencils and plain paper over dolls, I started “collections” of found objects (tiny old bones, dimes snuck from my father’s work pants, handmade Christmas ornaments made with my mother’s hair clips), and I loved all my treasures intensely.

Born in 1961, I was a country kid, barefoot in the summer and riding my bike everywhere in our little Eastern Washington town of Arden, where my mom still lives in the same house I grew up in. Though I couldn’t wait to get away, I like remembering how easy it was to live simply.

I excelled at art in school, and I dreamt of becoming a famous artist. I wanted to believe that Claude Monet was a long-lost relative and that I would move to France to live and paint. In college, I took lots of art classes and studied French but left after two years to move to Seattle to find myself.

My first real job fell into my lap, a position at Nordstrom in the display department. It was a great opportunity to learn how to build props, design sets and arrange merchandise. I was fortunate to have several more creative careers after that; I was a high-end florist and antique shop owner.

These choices shaped me into the artist I am today.

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trUly believe i entered this world to

A

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fter leaving my job with Nordstrom in 1999 (best job ever), I opened a little flower shop in Old Burien, south of Seattle. I filled it with amazing fixtures and antiques, focusing on handmade merchandise and scrumptious flower arrangements. When the space next door became available, I knew it would become my antique shop, Nest Vintage Home and Garden.

What could be better than being surrounded by antiques AND flowers? Nothing … best jobs ever! And in between flowers and dusty antiques, I took encaustic painting classes and other art workshops where I made some wonderful art just for myself. I lacked the drive and confidence to take that final step to be an artist (I was one, I just didn’t know it yet), but I learned to appreciate beautiful things: hand-crafted objects, fragile and fragrant flowers, and unearthed finds from a different time and place.

In 2010, we moved to Walla Walla, Washington. This was such an important time because it was the start of my journey as a working artist. Knowing I had time on my hands, I put all my energy into our beautiful 1907 house, filling it with antiques I had salvaged from my business. I designed a beautiful workspace to create in. Though I traveled to Seattle several times a year for large floral jobs, I decided to try teaching encaustic painting as an additional means of income and to fill my time.

I discovered I really enjoyed teaching. Walla Walla is known for wine, so I included the wine, creating Wax and Wine encaustic workshops. I joined the local art group and started showing at festivals and in tasting rooms and restaurants around Walla Walla. I finally felt like an artist.

We returned to Seattle in 2014, where I now felt invisible as an artist, so different from my time as a florist where my confidence and the demand for my work was high. I knew the path ahead would be up to me to create. I retreated to my home studio, a safe and soothing space, and continued making art. Over time, I found my voice and found my joy.

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It was neither preaching nor praying that made a better person (man) of me, but one or two people who believed in me better than I deserved, and I hated to disappoint them.

”

— OWEN WISTER

made a promise when we returned

to Seattle to do three things: create a website, find a studio space and apply to a residency. I slowly moved away from my floral commitments and toward my art practice. Finding a place to create was serendipity, as a new gallery was opening in early 2018: Fogue Studios & Gallery, a community of older (as in old fogeys) artists. I happily joined, and in November 2018, I was accepted into an artist residency at Chateau d’Orquevaux in France. That was truly an amazing experience.

In early 2019, I was able to rent a studio space at Fogue (FogueStudios.com), where I had been showing my work.

Though my website took the longest to complete, speaking my intentions out loud really does work. My encaustic painting became encaustic collage, which led to straight-up collage, which, as you all know, is a sure gateway to assemblage art. All my collections, my found objects that I’d been hoarding, had been patiently waiting for me to discover that they were material for my art all along. Giving them a new and honored life fills my soul.

There is also an intention to everything in my two studios. Whether it’s a gift from a dear friend, something that makes me giggle, or something that becomes an element within my work, I find a place for it. Some days are filled with moving fixtures around to make space for a new one, reworking my cabinet of curiosities or binge-watching Netflix. I’m in my space.

I’ve filled it with other people’s long-lost memories and belongings that I like to think they’ve gladly given their permission for me to create with and love.

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I’ve dedicated an entire wall in my home studio to the work of others, those I admire and am inspired by.

Many were created by my teachers, my motivators and my dear friends.

I was quite excited when I found an old snack machine on Etsy during the unexpected globally imposed “downtime.” I thought I’d just as well buy it, not knowing if I’d be able to return to my studio or not. It has been a fun addition, which I’ve filled with small one-of-a-kind pieces of my art.

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define myself as a salvage artist. I

am drawn to the beauty and the destruction of objects, making art from life. My style, my aesthetic, is much like a historian or archaeologist — to preserve what I unearth. There’s a deep connection I feel to the past, to the person who penned the letter, the faces in a photograph, an old workman’s tool, the beauty and the decay. I collect ancient documents, old letters, small objects that have seen better days. All these things need a place to wait for me, so finding the right fixtures became an obsession and a life of its own.

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Drawers. Need I say more? I am obsessed with drawers. Wood flat file cabinets, metal map drawers, small boxes and discarded drawers that I can fill and fill and fill. And the older, the better. When I first moved into my studio, the previous artist had graciously left me a modern table. I tried covering it with an old canvas but eventually had to replace it with old, well-worn worktables.

My favorite piece is an old fixture of drawers left behind in the basement of a house. It was free; all I had to do was figure out how to get it out of that basement! It was most likely used to hold tools, all marked up with kids’ initials and obviously used for BB gun target practice. It’s just perfectly imperfect.

R

i g h t n ow , I am in love

with collage. I combine bits of ephemera, some centuries apart, through folding, tearing, layering and peeling back, exposing an identity lost and creating a new history. I also feel the importance of using the original materials, not copies, to lend authenticity to myself and the voices I’m hoping to bring to the original owners. Happiness for me is an old book, a handwritten love letter, a child’s drawing. A scrap of paper kept to remember an event so magical that it was glued to a page in a scrapbook, saved for all eternity. I find collage to be a way to give life to an old story. It’s in the retelling that we find meaning.

What’s ahead? I have no idea. I do know I will continue traveling this path I’ve made for myself, tripping on the stones in the way, jumping over puddles and breathing through the steep elevations. At 61, I am right where I want to be. It’s never too late to travel your best path.

Postscript: Tater, our blind English

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Pointer … how I have tried to bring him to the studio but to no avail. We lost his sister, Maddy, a GSP, over a year ago, and since then, he has been content to sleep and eat cookies and dream about when he once could chase the ball and wrestle with his sister.

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More on Colleen

www.CEMonetteArt.com Instagram: C.E.MonetteArt Facebook: ColleenEMonetteArt Pinterest: CollieBeth

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More on Chris

www.ChrisVilliers.net Instagram: Christopher.M.Villiers

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Photographer CHRIS VILLIERS doesn’t believe the old adage that there are two sides to every story. “There’s probably a dozen, if not a hundred,” he says.

Villiers’ photography reflects that view, as he uses multiple cameras and techniques (including soaking film in seawater, soaps, and alcoholic beverages) to uncover the beauty of commonplace items.

He picked up a camera following a 30-plus-year career writing for newspapers and major corporations. Working largely in black and white, Villiers now focuses on fine art photography and supporting nonprofits, artists and musicians.

His images have been featured in galleries and magazines throughout the country, including the Midwest Center for Photography in Wichita, PhotoPlace Gallery in Vermont, Las Laguna Art Gallery in California, Fogue Studios & Gallery in Seattle, and Black and White magazine.

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Curated by

Seth Apter

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As an artist, the space I create in has a tremendous impact on the work that I do. One room in my NYC apartment is my dedicated studio space, and it is filled with supplies, materials, objects and art, all of which definitely impact the art I make. These surroundings set the tone, inspire me and signal to me that it is time to work. My inspiration wall, in particular, measuring about 3.5 feet by 2.5 feet, often serves as a muse for my creativity.

I am also mesmerized and fascinated by the space in which other makers make. Each is unique and uniquely reflective of the individual artist’s voice. Many people are inspired to make their creative space more than simply functional.

They turn a corner or an entire room into a living art installation. Tables, walls and shelves become the substrate, and their art, supplies and collected objects become the materials used. The studio becomes a work of art that expresses the maker’s voice, passion and imagination. www.SethApter.com | Email: shap97@gmail.com

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All makers need supplies to create, and some choose to keep their supplies unseen in boxes, drawers and closets. But many creatives are as likely to use these supplies as ingredients for their studio space as for their art.

Eileen Williams,

a mixed-media and fabric artist from Maryland, uses fabric as her paint palette when creating her unique 3D mixed-media artworks. And a lot of it. In Eileen’s words, “I have been told more than once: ‘You’re a fabric hoarder.’ Guess what, I own it.

I’ve turned a bedroom in my home into an art studio, where my fabrics are stored floor to ceiling.

The ability to scan the room for the next piece of material to use is part of my creative process.” www.ELWilliamsArt.com | Email: elwillart@lycos.com

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is a mixed-media collage artist living in the Pacific Northwest. Amy describes her space as “a visual feast for my eyes ... combining small works of art along with the rescued remnants that I collect. Memories of past times mix with pieces of ephemera that spark ideas of creative combinations. These sparks lead to compositions of my photographic elements, found objects and well-loved remainders, held together with glue, wire and a bit of paint to tease out a story told within my mixed-media collages.” www.StudioFourCorners.com | Email: amy_duncan@yahoo.com

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Amy Duncan

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Mags Woodcock,

a mixed-media artist from Yorkshire, U.K., inspired by vintage finds, describes her studio as “chaotically organized.” She shares: “In amongst the mass of supplies, mediums, brushes, pens and paints are my many vintage objects. Most are weary, worn and unloved by others, but to me, they are inspiration and treasure.” The vintage egg collector’s box pictured here houses her rusty metal objects, all of which at any time could make their way into her work.

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Facebook: Mags.Woodcock

Flat surfaces are a must for most makers to be able to actually create their work. Nevertheless, if you go into many (if not most) studios, much of the flat surface in the space will be dedicated to inspirational vignettes. This fact highlights the importance of the surroundings for a creative individual.

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an artist and owner of a private art school in Germany, has a large window and windowsill above her work surface overlooking the oak trees surrounding her home. Here, she keeps “the most current or particularly loved things … always right in front of me.” She notes that “all my other treasures surround me in overflowing shelves, drawers and boxes.” These papers, materials, plants, seedpods, pottery and found objects are playfully arranged and added to her art as she creates.

Instagram: Original.Mamuelei | Email: mail@mamuelei.de

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Maria Müller-Leinweber,

Vanna Tursini,

who is a mixed-media artist from Caracas, Venezuela, now living and working in Madrid, says her space is “nourished daily by the objects that I am collecting, discovering or simply finding on my way; they not only decorate, they also inspire me and support the content of my work. It is like a Cabinet of Curiosities from the 16th century, or, as they were also called, Rooms of Wonders. The space is filled with magic, giving life to each piece I make.” You can find her treasures and relics pinned to boards, hung from string, and laying on surfaces and the table pictured here. In Vanna’s words, “They dialogue with my pieces, creating my story.”

Instagram: VannaTursini | Email: vannatursini@yahoo.com

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a mixed-media artist living on the far southeast of Australia, has filled her space with “all of my collected vintage findings, vintage books, baskets and boxes of vintage textiles, laces, quilts, drawers of ephemera, paints, papers, etc.” Even her old wooden bookcase is inspiring, as it is “a box from the 1920s that originally stored tins of sheep dip rescued from an old shearing shed.” It is filled with some of Suzy’s handmade books, with her “earthy textile grungy ephemera collage freestyle,” along with old editions of books that also inspire.

Instagram: QuaifeSuzy | Email: suziqu@tpg.com.au

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Suzy Quaife,

One thing most makers crave is more space. But being creative means thinking outside the box, and when surfaces are filled, beauty and inspiration begin to climb the walls.

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Nicole White

is a self-proclaimed wild, Wild West mixed-media artist in New Mexico. For Nicole, the process of creating an inspiration board “sets down a sense of roots that was not there just months ago, as pieces were stuffed away in boxes and cabinets, out of view. It started with just one picture, which inspired another, and just like that … just like an idea forms on the sketchbook and then into a painting, the wall presented itself.” Creating this board has now changed how Nicole feels about her space. “This room, this creative space, this amazing wall of decades of my own work and works that inspire me, lives and breathes on its own.” www.RavenArtCenter.com | Email: ravenartcenter@gmail.com

Janet Toto

describes herself as a mixed-media artist embracing and celebrating the layers of life through her work. Like many of us, she has been challenged by finding the right place to display all her own work. Her solution: an ever-growing inspiration wall.

“I’ve seen beautiful inspiration boards and mood boards, but I never realized the immense joy of curating one of my own.” Janet adds, “When I am working at my desk, the inspiration wall is behind me, but I can always pivot on my chair and get some great reinforcement because I know all those faces, figures and forms have my back!” www.JanetTotoArts.com | Email: janettetotoarts@gmail.com

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Kerry Molina,

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an artist, writer and instructor from Gainesville, Virginia, not only created an inspiration board but worked with a contractor to create the wall on which it hangs. Wood planks were cut from pallets, sanded, stained and ultimately each decorated with different material. “I used the fabric from one of my favorite dresses my daughter wore as a toddler, a dress that I wore as a teenager, bits of old recipes in the handwriting of my grandmother and great aunt, and even pages from one of my father’s childhood workbooks.” In the center of it all is her bulletin board filled with memories and inspiration. Her space is called Yellow Brick Road Studio because creativity, just like the yellow brick road itself, symbolizes a path to personal discovery.

Instagram: Kerry_Molina_Art | Email: kerryc627@yahoo.com

Creatives are often thought of as people who think outside the box. That also applies to their studio spaces. While the four walls of a studio contain the actual evidence of an artistic practice, why limit it to that? For many artists, the view outside the studio space can be as inspiring as the view within.

Betsy Skagen,

a mixed-media artist and craft product designer, moved her studio and home in 2020 from an urban neighborhood to rural northern Minnesota. Now inspiration is waiting for her right outside her window. “The studio looks out onto rolling, pine-covered hills and a shimmering blue lake — at least when it is not covered by a couple feet of ice.” She has named her space Blue Waters Studio and named the tamarack tree the Joseph’s Tree of Many Colors, as the deciduous conifer displays brilliant hues throughout the seasons. An ever-changing inspiration always in view.

From floor to ceiling and every inch in between, the maker space becomes art itself. In this way, creative inspiration is always only a glance away.

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www.BetsySkagen.com Email: bskagen@gmail.com

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Kimberly Dodge

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KIMBERLY DODGE is a paper artist, creative journaler, stationery

designer, snail-mail enthusiast and vintage lifestyle creator from Long Island, New York, who currently lives in South Carolina. She specializes in creating art journals and decorative mail, as well as designing a vintage and hygge aesthetic in her studio space. She owns a stationery business, Dodges and Daisies, where she designs and sells her own stationery and vintage paper goods, as well as a carefully curated stationery collection from other small businesses and independent artists. She is an active member in the art journal and mail art communities and occasionally is a brand ambassador for stationery companies.

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When we’re young, it’s funny how much we can adore our hobbies. But it rarely enters into our minds that we could one day be known for them or make a career from them.

Paper art has woven its tapestry throughout my life: from keeping art journals and scrapbooks in high school, college, and through my 20s, to girls nights with my best friends, and making handmade cards to send to each other once we had all been married and lived in different parts of the country.

Collecting vintage books brought more joy than collecting more expensive items, and my happiest memories are getting dusty in an antique shop searching for treasures instead of in a mall or more conventional shop. And how I’ve always

“ The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places.”

—ER NEST HEMINGWAY

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I

have loved paper my entire life.

And I have been a paper crafter for as long as I can remember.

loved the excitement of opening a mailbox to find a physical piece of care from someone else. How holding a physical card or postcard scrawled with handwriting has always meant so much more to me than a text, DM or email. I’ve always been an old soul. An analog lover in a millennial culture.

Life is a mixture of hardships and joys.

Difficulties and silver linings. Sometimes the difficulties and trials are so overwhelming it’s hard to look past them and see any good. But if we can, sometimes silver linings appear in the most surprising of places. Sometimes our hardships are the exact things that open the door for our joys. How strange life works sometimes.

I’m a strong believer, though, that the silver linings are seen when you don’t give up during the trials … when you continue to hold on to hope and push forward, even if your pace is much slower than the “average” person’s. If you keep putting one foot in front of the other moving toward your goals, eventually you’ll get there. Or a pretty good version of there. It might take longer than you’d like. It might not look like someone else’s journey.

But if you keep going, you’d be surprised at the progress you’ve made when you take the time to turn around and look at the accomplishments behind you.

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y life has not gone according to my plan. I had fully thought I

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would have a thriving career in my 20s. With everything figured out, everything accomplished “on time,” everything being a success.

Because I was driven and focused and knew what I wanted. What happened instead was a severe battle with endometriosis and multiple rounds of tumors, multiple surgeries, chronic pain and chronic fatigue. What also happened was a lifelong battle with panic attacks, severe anxiety, PTSD and depression.

My younger self would never have seen these hurdles taking me out in the way that they did. I’ve always been a fighter. A never-give-upper. An encourager of the hurting.

A champion of the ones in pain. I worked as a crisis counselor and a minister. I always thought if I pushed myself enough, I could “keep up.” But sometimes things are stronger than we are. Sometimes things we fight with all of our might still can overpower us.

This does not mean giving up. It just means adjusting our expectations of ourselves and allowing ourselves grace. Grace to heal. Grace to work at a pace our bodies and minds can handle. Resting when rest is needed. Being honest with others when our health is affecting us. But it does not mean giving up. Because not giving up means that you can still reach so many of your goals. The timing might be different than those around you or than what you expected of yourself.

But doesn’t that make it all the more special and meaningful when you reach a milestone? When a goal met has come from perseverance, tears, sweat, determination and pure love of what you’re working for?

Isn’t it that much sweeter to reach your goals when so much of yourself has gone into them, and they haven’t come as easily? I’m a firm believer that people who experience sickness, pain and hardships have a deep appreciation for things. For the things they’ve worked for.

Accomplished. A deep appreciation for even the smallest things in life.

When many years of your life have been spent in bed, struggling to do simple tasks that most people take for granted, the smallest things fill you with a sense of joy and appreciation. Getting outside and seeing the blooming flowers or the vibrant changing leaves in the fall. Feeling the warm sun on your face or the cool breeze of autumn bringing about change. You drink it in. Grabbing a good cup of coffee in a beautiful coffee shop and savoring each sip. Antiquing and finding small treasures that fill your heart. Exploring a town. Hiking a trail and surrounding yourself with nothing but trees and mountain views. For someone whose days are filled with constant pain and fatigue, little things are huge things. Noticed things. Appreciated things. Things your heart holds onto.

A

nd that is what my art studio became. A collection of treasures, of

memories, of moments and prized possessions. Nothing in it is frivolous or without meaning or function. My studio is a sanctuary that fills my senses with vintage paper treasures, antique books, mindfully made art journals, calming plant life, large windows that filter in comforting natural light, unique antique storage … all carefully curated with intention and love. All a reflection of what makes my heart come alive.

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ecause of my health issues, I spend most of my time at home in my studio. For someone whose natural joy

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springs from the outdoors and exploration, being homebound was something that I had to adjust to. I began to study the Danish practice of hygge — intentionally creating a space of coziness, comfort and peace. It includes things like bringing the outdoors in, burning candles, sipping warm beverages and making your home a sanctuary. And I dove straight in.

Always a plant lover, adding houseplants throughout my studio was an easy thing. My problem lies in having too many plants and not enough space — ha ha. I keep them in rich terracotta pots, antique china teacups and other interesting things I can envision a plant spilling out of. It’s how I approach storing my art supplies as well. Antique china teacups and bowls become holders for my shop items. Vintage boat-part boxes house my wax seal stamp collection. Antique boxes and tins are filled with vintage stamps and other small treasures to collage with. Vintage brass items hold my pens, markers and paint brushes, as well as a cactus or two.

Antique cupboard drawers from an old grocery store, which still proudly display the store’s name in stamped metal, hold antique papers, book pages, midcentury magazine ads, beeswax candles and photography props. Antique cameras serve as bookends. And my most-used work space in my studio is an antique drawing desk. My studio is a studio of these small and sometimes large … treasures. Small items, large items — but all items that represent my heart.

I’ve often referred to my studio space as a place of “Easter Eggs,” or things with meaning to me that the casual passerby might not notice. A vintage paint-by-number painting showcases one of my favorite towns on Long Island, New York, where I’m from. In fact, many pieces of New York, my home for most of my life, where I was born and raised and lived until my mid 30s, are scattered throughout my studio. Treasures picked up upstate in the Catskill Mountains. Vintage postcards from Long Island, which I still consider home, even though we currently live in South Carolina. Antique paper goods from New York City. Seashells from the beaches I grew up on.

My heritage and family are also represented in these Easter Eggs. Persian rugs and antique furniture pieces passed down to me from my parents.

As well as smaller things, like a vintage brass whale paper holder or an antique printing tray that holds my collection of rubber stamps and washi tapes.

Russian nesting dolls and Ukrainian hand-painted eggs given to me from my beloved Ukrainian grandmother. A hand-carved edelweiss plate representing my paternal side. Special antique bookplates hang on the walls from our antiquing excursions.

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es, my studio has the normal things a stationery artist would need. A professional printer, a

“ Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.”

— HELEN K ELLER

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desktop computer, mailing supplies. But they are surrounded by hand-sewn linens, greenery, antiques and the most intimate of treasures that are appreciated by a heart that appreciates the little things.

The little things are the big things to me. And maybe being so sick has made me appreciate them even more.

I’ve always been sentimental. I’ve always been observant. I’ve always been appreciative. I do not feel thankful for the years of pain, the months spent bedfast, the trials I’ve had to face. But if the silver lining is experiencing joy whenever I see a vintage postcard and feeling truly fulfilled and enveloped in love whenever I’m in my studio, how can I complain about that outcome? I could complain about my life, I guess. How physical illness and anxiety have impacted my life so greatly. But I cannot complain about the appreciation for beauty that those hardships have produced. And I can’t complain about the most beautiful studio I’ve had the chance to create in, one that was brought about partially because of my appreciation for details, the little things and the nature of hygge.

My studio itself is a vintage treasure of sorts. My favorite things in life are older things, unique things … things with character, age, cracks and stories. I love the romanticism, the mystery, the stories behind things with character. So it’s no wonder that my current studio is my favorite that I’ve had, as it is in an old textile mill that was transformed into a loft. The windows are large antique frames that span almost floor to ceiling. The walls have exposed bricks and cracks, pipes from machinery that once ran in the mill. There is character here, and I love character.

And it matches so well with my aesthetic of vintage lifestyle in both my artwork and my studio decor.

“ If you get tired, learn how to rest, not to quit.”

— BANK S Y

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nother silver lining, I realized with a lot of surprise during a very trying time in

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my life where I was recovering from a few surgeries in a fairly short amount of time, was that this slower-paced life, this “not being on time with my goals,” allowed me to pursue the biggest goals in my heart — paper art, crafting, stationery and home decor. If my life had not been sidelined, I would have pursued a career in psychology and ministry, both of which I went to school for.

Which would have been fine. I loved both. And I love helping people.

But if someone had said to me: If money and time were not issues, what would you be doing?

I would have said: Working with paper. Creating and selling stationery. Reminding people how beautiful an analog lifestyle could be. But I never would have pursued it. Having so much time on my hands during bouts of illness and recovery allowed me to pursue these passions. To get back into creative journaling, letter writing, collage.

To meet others with similar passions. To form relationships, open up a shop, and even start to design my own stationery. As I grew my social media presence, as opportunities started to open up to me, as I started working with larger companies, it occurred to me: None of this would have happened if I hadn’t been forced to live a slower lifestyle. The very things that tried to destroy me opened up doors for my happiness.

And again, I would never, ever call debilitating sickness or severe anxiety happy things. They are the opposite. I honestly did not know pain so deep could exist. But when I looked for the silver linings on those very scary storm clouds, I began to see

them. And then I began to consciously keep my eyes out for them. I began to focus on my blessings as well as my hardships. And I was determined, as I have been determined every day of my life, to not give up. To keep pushing forward. And each time I feel discouraged, I look back. And I see opportunities I never thought I would have. Magazines I’ve been published in. Companies I’ve collaborated with. And I tell myself: This is because you haven’t given up. To quote Winston Churchill, “Never, never, never give up.”

My hopes for the future are to continue growing my stationery business. To continue spreading my passion for analog things like creative journaling — which combines art, collage and words into journals; sending out “old fashioned” snail mail that is beautifully decorated with artwork; and making art with my favorite medium — vintage paper. I also hope to grow with my love of vintage and hygge lifestyle. To continue to post photography of candles burning in antique brass holders, gorgeous old bookplates lining my walls, tea in delicately detailed antique china cups. Plants growing out of brass holders, vintage postcards lining my workspace. To me, decor is art. Life is art. And one of my greatest goals in life is to give others a place of peace and escapism when they see my studio and my artwork.

Every day, I aim for peace, for mindfulness, for hygge. And I hope to spread it to anyone who sees my work or my studio. These practices have uplifted me. And I hope they uplift others.

I also hope to be an advocate for those with anxiety disorders and endometriosis. Struggles can make you feel like there is no good ahead.

How I long to be an example for someone who has experienced these things but who also continues to fight and continues to hope. How much strength hope can give us. And how much hope art can as well.

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More on Kimberly

www.DodgesAndDaisies.com Instagram: DodgesAndDaisies Pinterest: DodgesandDaisies YouTube: DodgesAndDaisies

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DAWN CONTRERAS, HELEN STEWART, LISA DAWN WHITE, IRENA RUSSMANN, VERONIKA FUNK

MAKER MOMENTS

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Evans Stout

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ROXANNE lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, and dog, Molly. They both grew up in cities, so living in their small country town is just where they want to be. Behind their house are the Cascade Mountains, and below their home is the beautiful Klamath River.

Roxanne is inspired by the birds and the wildlife of this little corner of the world. She is also intrigued by the history of the land surrounding her and enjoys exploring the old barns and little towns. She has shown her artwork in galleries in Ashland, Oregon, and Mount Shasta, California.

Roxanne teaches art workshops internationally and online, helping her students find their own magic.

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y worktable is the first thing that I see when I enter my studio, and it is the place I go to first thing in the morning. It sits under a big picture window that looks out on our back garden. My worktable is made of white-washed chunky wood, and I designed it with the help of my cabinetmaker, who did all built-in cabinets in this room two years ago. The cabinets are light and simple and have textured-glass doors that have a vintage feel that I love.

The glass doors add an airy, light-filled feel to my studio.

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“What is it I have to tell myself again and again?

That there is always a new beginning, a different end.

I can change the story.

I am the story.”

— Jeanette Winterson

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n my worktable, I find the projects I am working on, my art supplies, piles of papers and fabric for collaging, little altars I set up for inspiration, little bowls of stones and shells, and gatherings from nature. I love to have fresh flowers and plants in my studio, too — either from my gardens or from a local market in the winter. They inspire me to always find beauty in the details and to be thankful for the gifts of nature.

Because my worktable is quite large, I have room on it for different projects.

I can paint on one side of the table, create collages in the middle, and work on stitching projects and artist books at the other end. I keep a table lamp at one side and plants on an old rusty shelf right under the window.

As I am writing right now, I have a dish full of paper clips that I rusted myself, a straight edge for tearing paper, old lids for palettes, scruffy paintbrushes, pencils and a water dish. And an old white pitcher filled with carnations and baby’s breath.

When I paint with encaustics, I bring out my encaustic station to my worktable. This includes a griddle, small tins of different-colored wax and encaustic medium, waxy brushes, a brayer and a scraper that was a ceramic tool and a heat gun. I always have the window open and have a fan going when I work with encaustics. This year, I am honored to be one of the instructors for Painting with Fire 2022 and am so happy that I get to share my processes and ideas with our students.

I love so much about encaustic painting. It’s luminous, timeless and mysterious. The smell of the beeswax is enchanting. And the mesmerizing process of applying layer after layer of colored or clear wax and hiding things below the surface is addicting.

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“There is a beautiful thing inside you

that is thousands of years old.

Too old to be captured in poems.

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Too old to be loved by everyone.

But loved so very deeply by a chosen few.”

— Nikita Gill

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y studio faces the west, and I have the most beautiful light that comes in each afternoon and evening. I have tried to capture this light here in these photographs. It is filtered through the pine trees behind our property and through the maple trees in front of our back garden and closer to the house. Because I love to photograph my work and my worktable, this back lighting adds a magical feel to my shots. I love to capture the magic of my worktable and studio in vignettes and arrangements on the wall. And I love to share my photographs on Instagram and the way even an unfinished project is complemented by the other things around it.

“When words are not enough, we turn to images and symbols to tell our stories.

— Cathy Malchiodi

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And in telling our stories through art, we find pathways to wellness, recovery and transformation.”

For me, the remodeling of this room came at the perfect time; it was finished right before the pandemic in March of 2020 and gave me a place of refuge. My studio is my sanctuary, and my days are divided with time working in it and out in the garden. No matter if I am happy or sad, my studio fills me with peace, and my work seems to flow out from me, and I am captivated.

I decorate my studio with a combination of natural and man-made objects that are old and worn.

Some of these pieces come to life in new artworks that I make myself. And some sit alone, or in a group or collections, just to inspire me.

Some of my favorite man-made collections are small vintage coin purses, old door hinges, old tin boxes, square nails, old paintbrushes, old book covers, vintage clipboards and decorative architectural pieces. My natural collections include shells, stones, beach glass, seedpods, sticks, and dried and pressed plants.

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y favorite thing to do in my studio is to move my collage bits around and rearrange them into groups or piles. I find this process to be meditative and playful. Sometimes the pieces are fabric scraps that are partially stitched on or papers that were textured and glazed with a brayer and a Gelli plate. And sometimes the pieces are torn off a larger painting, making smaller abstract pieces that I love to use in my collages.

Every day, I take breaks every hour or two and wander outside to my gardens. Outside, my favorite thing is to water the plants by hand. I love the feeling of watching things grow that I have planted myself. I love the way the water droplets shine in the sun and glisten on the plants and trees. And I love being immersed in nature and being right there as the seasons change.

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I also love to sit in one of our cozy red outdoor chairs and write. I write notes and poems and observations about nature, plans for future artwork and workshops and ideas, and favorite quotes and thoughts or ideas that will inspire me.

Often these notes end up in my studio on my worktable, and even in my photographs.

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Storytelling with Collage was my first book published. I was very honored to be able to take all the photos myself, and it was then that I really fell in love with using photographs to tell my story, especially those that I take on my worktable. Dancing on Raindrops is my second book, this time self-published, and designing it and watching it come to life was such a joy for me!

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ometimes, I do large canvases or work on different-sized blocks of wood that my husband cuts for me. These are a combination of acrylic paintings and mixed-media collage. At other times, I work on artist books; these are smaller and more intricate, abstract stories of my journey from this moment in time. I also love making assemblages, small talismans that I call Victory Shields or Alchemist Shields (named after two of my online courses), and adding stitching and found objects to my pieces.

On the wall behind me that faces the window and garden, I have things that inspire me.

Actually, I have things that inspire me everywhere in this room! On this wall, I have a vintage window frame with chipped white paint, a few of my pieces and other vintage frames, old paint tubes hanging from a string and an artist book that I made before and after my trip to Ireland. It hangs on a vintage clipboard.

Leaning against the wall is a big abstract mixed-media piece that isn’t quite finished.

This has simple rectangular collage pieces that I painted myself using deli paper and my Gelli plate and makes a beautiful backdrop for some of my other works. Vintage windows, drawers and clipboards — and these often decorate this space.

My cupboards below are filled with art books, magazines, boxes and baskets of scraps of fabric and paper and encaustic tools. I also have baskets filled with fabrics and paper for my collages and metal bits to use for collages.

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nside is where I make my art, and I move effortlessly from the inside out to the garden throughout the day. I love to garden and have been doing much more of that since the pandemic, too. Our chocolate lab, Molly, is always by my side. Outside, she loves to play! She has a large, kidney-shaped red ball that she kicks and chases around on the stones like she is playing soccer. She makes me laugh, and I love to play with her.

It seems as if I have dreamed of this studio and these gardens forever. All my life I have done my art on the kitchen counter or the coffee table, at the dining room table, at a desk in our bedroom or a table in our sunroom. But this room is my own special place and has a purpose … to be the home for art making, be a place that I can become more myself.

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More on Roxanne

www.RoxanneEvansStout.com Instagram: RoxanneEvansStout Facebook: Roxanne.EvansStout Pinterest: RiverStudio

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Fitzpatrick Photography by Meagan Cormier

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Unmistakably Art

DEANNE FITZPATRICK is an artist and writer living in Nova Scotia, Canada. Her inspiring studio in the heart of downtown Amherst attracts rug hookers and fibre artists from across North America, who visit to see her one-of-a-kind hooked rugs and amazing stash of hand-dyed cloth and yarns. It is a place where the kettle is always on, and tea and oatcakes are offered just because you came to visit.

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hirty years ago, I began using the word “studio.”

I remember when I first began saying “the studio.”

It felt like I might be FAKING it.

It felt so UNFAMILIAR. It was like a word that BELONGED to someone else.

I had grown up in rural Newfoundland, and there were no artists around that I knew. The idea of being an artist was an unfamiliar thing. I had never known, or even known of, anyone who made a living from making art.

By the time I started using the word, I had been hooking rugs for a couple of years. I knew I had found something that I always wanted to do. I knew that I made hooked rugs, but I was still not sure that I was an artist.

I thought I MIGHT be.

I knew I WANTED to be.

I decided I was GOING to be.

And I knew an artist NEEDED a studio.

I knew I was going to have to get comfortable with that word. I knew language was important. Calling it a studio instead of a back room or a summer kitchen would help to define who and what I was. I had just taken the summer kitchen that was falling off our then-150-year-old farmhouse and restored it.

I decided that if I wanted to be an artist, I needed to call it my studio.

I needed to talk like an artist, and I needed to act like an artist. So, I did. I referred to that room as my studio even when it did not feel right, even when it felt a bit pretentious. I wanted to reach my goal of not only being an artist but thinking of myself as one.

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And I wanted to make rugs that were UNMISTAKABLY ART.

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t was there that I began my business, where I create one-ofa-kind hooked rugs, rug-hooking kits, patterns and supplies.

Now, when I look back on it, my first studio was a trunk and a rug-hooking frame in my living room — before I ever thought of taking over the new space. It grew to include an armoire that I could open the doors to before it took over the summer kitchen. Wherever I make is where my studio is.

That beautiful space that I claimed was my studio for nearly 15 years, and the loft of it remains my home studio.

Since then, my studio has grown a few times.

When my children got older, it was difficult to have a home-based studio business, so I found a small space in downtown Amherst, Nova Scotia, that I was able to rent. I kept the loft space at home so I could work there as well and be home after school.

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y downtown studio has grown, too, over the years. It now occupies five beautiful rooms in two old downtown buildings that have grown together. About seven years ago, we chipped through two brick walls to marry the spaces. One part of it is about 100 years old, and the “new” part is about 70 years old.

When you arrive at my place, there is an old, covered terrazzo patio that I fill with cast-iron planters of geraniums in the summer. In the winter, we warm it up with pine boughs and branches. Once you step inside, you are welcomed by thousands of colourful skeins of wool and bundles of hand-dyed cloth. These are the materials I use to make my rugs.

Four of us work full time in the studio, and there are six to eight part-time people who help us dye wool, make kits and ship. We ship rugs, kits and wool all over North America every day of the week. And we do it with joy.

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eople come to the studio from all over the world to soak up the atmosphere and colour. Before the pandemic, we held several in-studio workshops and classes — and I expect to again in the future. In the last two years, we have taught thousands of people on our online courses on rug hooking, art and creativity. We even have a free beginner course on my website and do a free live video there every Thursday at 2 p.m. AST. So, I have the retail studio where people are welcome to come and bask in the colour, hang out, play with wool, try hooking and get advice on their rugs. You go round the corner, through the opening of the two buildings, and pass through the tea kitchen, and I have a small space filled with warm light that is just for me.

It is my artist’s studio, and every time I walk in there, I feel gratitude. I often think: How did I go from a young woman who was embarrassed to call her back room a studio to this 56-year-old grown woman who has this space full of books and bits of paper and wool and rugs that is a room of her own?

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It took me a long time to claim a beautiful space for myself. For years and years, I used a narrow room in the middle of all the action in the front of retail space to make my rugs. I was easily interrupted, and I was always in the heart of everything.

You know, it seemed fine at the time. I was grateful for it then. When I look back on it, though, I can see that my work did not deepen and grow in that space as it has since I claimed a larger, more private and well-lit space for myself. Honestly, it is like I gave myself room to grow, room to be more, room to be better.

When I claimed that space, it was like I was reclaiming the artist inside me again. I was less of a manager and more of a maker. My job became more about creating than it did about fixing small issues that arose in the day-to-day business operations. I have great people who work with me who are good at that.

Taking myself away from the middle of things helped me find my centre. That, in turn, helped me grow both my art and my business.

Five things I have learned about being an artist

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Claiming space can start small. For me, it began with an antique trunk and rug-hooking frame under a window in the living room. Leaving your work out where it is available and easy to access is the first step to creating a studio. It is about having a place to go where you can make.

Don’t be afraid to call yourself an artist even if you are not sure you are one yet. Start acting like an artist, keep making what you make, and you will become an artist.

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Language is important. It helps us define who and what we are.

Words like “artist” and “studio” help us become who we want to be.

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Use your studio as a wonderland. A place for you to play and take time out from work as well as a workspace, and you’ll love it even more.

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Give yourself the gift of focus when you are in the studio.

Take blocks of time and put your phone on silent in another room, avoid checking your email and let yourself be present.

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or me, my personal studio at my business is not just the place where I make my rugs.

It is the space where I sort myself out. It is the quiet space where I can be on my own and make. I use it to do research, to learn, to meet with other creatives online. I read there. I have written all my books there. It is also the place where I just hang out and find my way. It is more than a work space, it is also a play space.

When I am at home at night, I’ll often retreat to my loft home studio, after sharing supper with my husband, and catch a show or read a novel or paint my nails.

An artist’s studio is not just a place to work because part of our work as artists is to play and renew, and I use my studio for that, too. It is my go-to place. As soon as I get there, I feel like it is a prayer that has been answered, and I feel like this day after day.

When I travel, I am often homesick for it. I miss my wool, my frame, my sketchbooks, my bits of paper, twigs and rocks, pictures and all the bits of inspiration I have around it.

Part of being an artist is claiming space.

We have to claim space within ourselves to bring to our art. We have to claim space within our day to make. And we have to claim space within our homes to work.

Claiming this space, and the word it is called, “studio,” has helped me become an artist. More importantly, it has fed and sustained me as an artist because I have been able to retreat and reemerge time and time again renewed and blessed.

Some playful things I like to do in my studio

Every once in a while, I will invite my three good friends over and feed them in my workspace. Once, I turned my desk into a table and set it beautifully and fed them a candlelit dinner. Another time, I invited them for happy hour and ordered pizza, and we all worked on a painting. Just telling you this makes me want to invite them again.

I store my old sketchbooks under the cupboard. Sometimes, I like to randomly pull them out, grab a cup of tea, and look through them for ideas that I never used. They inspire me.

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As an artist, sometimes there are things we need that are functional but not particularly beautiful. One day I was walking by the washer and dryer, and I thought: How can I make them more creative? I simply took out my Sharpie marker and started drawing all over it. It was like this little artist date with myself. There was no reason to do it, but there was every reason to do it.

I just let my mind wander and my hands followed. It was just another step in making my studio my own wonderland.

I keep all my gift wrap, and a few beautiful things that I like to give as gifts, in my studio. I love giving gifts.

It is the place where I wrap all my Christmas presents and the special gifts I give throughout the year.

This one might be funny!

I keep all my little hand spa things, like my nail polish, beautiful hand creams and my hand massager, in the studio so I can treat myself really nice there. Sometimes, I have a little hand spa there for myself.

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www.HookingRugs.com Instagram: DeanneFitzpatrickHookingRugs Facebook: DeanneFitzpatrickStudio

Through the LENS

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www.Gallery8Photography.ca Instagram: Gallery8Photography

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MEAGAN CORMIER is the owner of Gallery 8 Photography. She is a graduate of Nova Scotia Community College in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Meagan specializes in an elegant and unique style that captures the essence of each subject she photographs.

Another true passion of hers is animals and photographing them. She helps at the local shelter, taking photos of the cats and dogs in hopes of finding them loving homes! Seven years ago, she adopted her three-legged dog, Raine, who she absolutely adores!

You can find Meagan either at her cozy studio inside a large historic building in downtown Amherst or at the beach with her husband, family and friends.

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Photography by Lenny Albert Krieg and Matt Ammon

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Eowana Bradley Jordan

, of Manassas, Virginia, is a retired teacher/school librarian and is the only child of a Greek immigrant father from Asia Minor and American mother who wrote poetry, a novel, and painted.

She inherited her mother’s artistic talents and her father’s love of the unique and exotic. Born in Falls City, Nebraska, she majored in education and minored in fine art at Oklahoma State University, and later received an MLS from Catholic University. But it was living in Europe where she fell in love ... with art.

La Vie En Rose Atelier

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is my magical place where I draw, paint, write, create and nap with my little rescue dog, Phoebe, and listen to the music I love: Édith Piaf, Maurice Chevalier, The Ink Spots, The Platters, Il Volo, Patsy Cline, Willie Nelson, Rod McKuen, Postmodern Jukebox (“All About That Bass”) and Greek music. My taste in music reflects the diversity of my background, of my bloodline. Country to opera. French love songs to Greek love songs.

To me, music is better than wine and much better than chocolate.

My pied-a-terre was built upon a small space, originally a deck with a hot tub, surrounded by huge azaleas and wandering vines. However, with the efforts of many talented people — builders, contractors, plumbers, masons, painters, electricians and an architect — a two-story structure

with two bathrooms, an eat-in kitchen, workspace, a fireplace, two staircases, five sinks, a bedroom with a queen-size four-poster bed, and secret door connecting with the main house, evolved to create a hideaway for displaying and creating art.

The secret door bookcase, on the second floor of my studio, opens to reveal a stairway filled with a skylight, round window and art — even the flag of Venice; the stairway is what I call the Bridge of Sighs, much like the original one in Venice that connects the Doge’s Palace with the prison. It, too, has a window that looks out on the canals of Venice.

The masons were, as were all the laborers, artists. They flew through the air tossing up large piles of bricks, at one time designing the beautiful chimney and placing the chimney cap on top for me. The masons who did the inside stone fireplace were artists as well. They asked me, “Do you want the chimney to go all the way up?” I said, “Yes, all the way to the top, two stories!” The roofers bravely installed the deeply sloped faux copper metal roof to make it a perfect topper for my jewel box of a studio.

In working with the architect, my studio evolved from a floor plan I found online while searching for ideas. Much of the plan had been inside my head since the time I lived at Alvictus, the unique home President Eisenhower’s deputy chief of protocol, Victor Purse, built on the Occoquan River. Alvictus had been used as a safe house and is found on the internet with many photos, even one of my mother, Katherine Peters, taken when she purchased it. The slate floor and enormous two-story living room in Alvictus was the inspiration for my studio. The metal railing idea was also taken from my 10-year life at Alvictus.

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You only live once.

But if you do it right, once is enough.

— M AE WEST

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When you live in a contemporary, one-ofa-kind house, you never get it out of your head.

And living in a home as unique and special as Alvictus, I have never gotten its magic out of my heart.

My Greek dad was born in 1893 in Smyrna, Turkey, in a village called Gilboxi, which meant “rose garden.” My mom was born in 1918 in Rosiclare, Illinois. Then in 2019, I built my studio and named it La Vie En Rose Atelier.

Our builder found soaring windows for the corner and front end of my studio that let in more light. There are two skylights in the main room of the studio and one skylight in the Bridge of Sighs. While in Aix-en-Provence, France, I visited Cezanne’s studio and loved the colour of the paint on the walls. The guide told me Cezanne had mixed it himself.

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When I got home, I had the colour in my mind and went to Benjamin Moore and found it: Sparrow! Oui! It’s perfect for art. The walls seem to disappear, and the art becomes the star of the show.

A year later, I returned to Aix with a paint chip in hand. The colour was a match. Success!

The guide even gave me the original formula for Cezanne’s paint! Ooh la la!

The paintings I’ve hung, from my mother’s to mine to old ones I found from estate auctions, now fill up the walls of my studio. The studio’s ceilings are painted with gold, copper and silver paint from the Modern Metallics collection. They glimmer in the moonlight and bring the mix of metals into my studio to create a sparkle of mystery.

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The studio kitchen was built

with antique light fixtures and a black lava apron sink carved with a flower front. The counters and backsplash are red dragon granite, and the cabinets are black and have small metal hands for the knobs.

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Several antique hanging pierced brass light fixtures, as well as a few chandeliers, hanging pendant lights and wall sconces, light up the night. Large metal stars are affixed to the twostory ceiling. There are three-dimensional hanging glass star lights hung in front of one of the large round windows on the second floor to bring the City of Light to my little world.

Édith PiaF ’s FaMous s onG , for

which my studio is named, is often played, and when you step into my studio, I hope you feel you might be somewhere in Paris. Ooh la la.

My little rescued white terrier/poodle mix, Phoebe, keeps me company, and merci to my dear husband, Lenny, for hanging all the art, no matter “how high” I asked.

I still am amazed at how it all came together and how I gathered up all the treasures and figured it out. It was thousands of hours on the computer searching and lots of memories that brought my dream to a reality. My studio is my true creation. As Charlotte said, “my magnum opus.”

Now I begin chapter 2 … my art!

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Facebook: Eowana Jordan

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The secret door bookcase, on the second floor of my studio, opens to reveal a stairway filled with a skylight, round window and art, even the flag of Venice; the stairway is what I call The Bridge of Sighs, much like the original one in Venice that connects the Doge’s Palace with the prison. It, too, has a window that looks out on the canals of Venice.

ART OF BUSINESS

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Patricia Olga

PEUSCHOLD

After all, there is only the wind. … I am PATRICIA OLGA PEUSCHOLD, an Argentine Polish immigrant artist inspired by nature, travel, yoga, vintage and antique findings, reading, cooking, relationships and love.

My passion for vintage and antique jewelry inspired me to create soulful jewelry as a spiritual art expression. I believe that evoking this energy into my work and following higher aspirations spreads love into the world; as a result, PPtaller was founded on the summer solstice in 2016.

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n March of 2020, I opened a shop in my home, creating a new way of shopping for the future. Bringing “shop small + local” to life was creating a new concept and reality to shopping.

Valuing artistry, passion and uniqueness shaped this concept into reality. My customers enjoy a cup of tea, privacy and one-on-one attention when they shop at PPtaller.

The shop is filled with curated curiosities from my travels and collections. There is a curio cabinet filled with vintage coral and beautiful objets d’art, in addition to a vintage vitrine with a collection of vintage taxidermy birds, skulls, paintings, curiosities, vintage jewelry and charivari. The shop is a must-visit for any antique magpie, jewelry collector and lover of natural history and curiosities.

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y intent is for my customers to connect with a treasure by continuing to give meaning in their own time and create markers of the passage of their lives. They act as loving keepsakes, mementos and timeless reminders of significant moments in our life.

PPtaller is composed of treasures from all over the world, with a focus on necklaces. I offer the best I can find — genuine antique finds, vintage keepsakes, heartfelt mementos and newer treasures. All of the objects that I acquire have a timeless beauty and soul that I connect with. All of the objects are chosen from the heart and represent the passage of time. I am known for creating handcrafted one-of-a-kind rosary chain necklaces made from gemstones, wood, metal and glass beads and combining them with oneof-a-kind pendants, mementos, amulets, charms or medallions. Meditation is a part of my practice when creating rosary chains.

My necklaces are featured in several shops in Minneapolis: Twelve Vultures, The Fitting Room, Tao Organic Cafe + Herbery, Dock 6 Pottery and J. Atelier. In addition, for the past few years, my necklaces have been featured during Fashion Week Minnesota at the Evolve Fashion Show.

I am honored to offer one-of-a-kind handcrafted unique necklaces grounded in love, creativity and passion. Thank you for supporting my dream.

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Karen Roberts-Laughridge

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in

Karen Ro�rts-Laughridge li�s in

Smyrna, Georgia, with her husband, Greg, and two Maltese pups, 148

Sailor and Salty. She has �en

a professional photographer for 25

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years and proclaims it is her life’s passion. “ The ability to � able to create gi�s me indescribable joy,”

says Karen. For their 20th �dding

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anni�rsary, her husband built

her a she-shed studio ha�n. It’s

a gorgeous space full of light and made with lo�.

the mid-90s, I was attending college at Kennesaw State University. My major was psychology, and I was a 19-year-old senior quickly approaching graduation. My father was a doctor (a primary care practitioner), and I wanted to be one, too. Then something happened. One day, I was racing to my next class, and suddenly, the ground felt like it had shifted from beneath me. It was like I had fallen while standing up; it was the scariest feeling I had ever felt.

Much later, after numerous tests and scans, I was finally diagnosed with Epstein-Barr virus (mono) and was sick for about six months. That was pretty tough, and it left me with permanent chronic vertigo. It was terrifying at first, but with a dedicated neurologist and specific medication, we are able to keep it under control.

When I went back to school, I decided to try something fun and artistic. I had really enjoyed photography in high school. So, I took a photography class. It was honestly a bit boring learning about basic camera functions and technical things. One day, my teacher (who never gave a compliment) looked at me and said, “You need to be sure to take Photography 2.” Unsure of her intention, I asked why, and she mysteriously answered, “Just trust me,” and winked. Okay, so that wasn’t exactly a compliment, but I sure am glad I trusted Professor Barbara Swindell. Not only did she become one of my closest friends, but she knew that once I started photographing people, I would fall in love with photography. It was the connection that sparked my interest.

The ability to utilize fashion, props and locations to turn an idea into reality was absolutely thrilling. Dream it up and then create it — the work was fascinating and satisfying! One day, I was standing in the darkroom printing photos at the school and it hit me that this — capturing moments and developing memories — was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

My major changed to studio art, and I never looked back. I had always been indecisive about a career path.

This was a strange feeling because there was just no doubt in me at that point. I was certain that this was what I was born to do.

College isn’t for everyone, but it helped me discover who I was. Dealing with the condition of vertigo for life was tough, but it directly hurled me into photography; without it, I would have never found my true calling. It’s funny how life’s struggles often lead to the best discoveries. The older I get, the more I see how there really is a reason for almost everything.

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opened my studio in 1998 in my parents’ sunroom, and we used the closet there to build a darkroom. I spent hours and hours in that tiny room, printing entire wedding albums and such, and I have been doing photography full time ever since.

In 2006, I made the switch from film to digital. That opened a massive door in photography, presenting a vast array of possibilities. Instead of shooting a film roll of 24 images, with digital, I averaged 350 images during a one-hour session. I didn’t have to worry about wasting film, and I had much more opportunity to capture a special moment.

My job is amazingly wonderful and fulfilling. I absolutely love photographing people of all ages.

The newborn babies are incredibly precious. Often, they sleep through the whole session. Yet those slumbering baby photos are just as heartwarming as the ones when they pop one eye open, wondering where they are now and what is happening.

The little ones are adorable, twirling around in their dresses in the she-shed studio light. Styling, fashion and set design are right up my alley. We plan outfits ahead of time, and most of them wear the clothes I provide in my studio. It is basically like playing dress-up every day!

When taking shots of high school senior girls, encountering their fun and fresh energy invigorates me. They have the whole world ahead of them, and that hope sparkles in their eyes. They feel beautiful at their photoshoots, and I love showing them that beauty once their pictures are ready to view.

I have always loved fashion and interior decorating. During the pandemic, I worked through the shutdowns, touching up pictures and refining my art. Like every other setback in my life, photography

pulled me through yet again.

Business during COVID has been slow, with occasional bursts of activity. During this downtime, I finally ventured into doing something I had always dreamed about: starting a fashion and home blog. I thought I was perhaps too old at 46, but it’s now my side hustle, which I’m really enjoying. I’ll admit: It is a ton of work and time, but it is something that builds with persistence.

My life has not been without disappointment or heartache, but God’s grace and the fulfillment I’ve found through photography have helped me weather the storms. I remember the day after my dad passed.

I had a shoot that morning. I was going to cancel. But that little voice inside told me, “Do this, Karen. It will make you realize how you can continue on. You have a purpose.” I think that’s big.

We all have things that floor us to the point where we feel unsure if we can regroup and stand up. But discovering purpose for our lives … well, that’s powerful, and it will endure through the storms. One day at a time, one photoshoot at a time, my heart heals. Art truly does heal the heart. Creating beauty is pretty fabulous; it is the best therapy.

My personal life positively fuels my profession. I have a wonderful, talented husband, Greg, who enthusiastically supports me in my work. As a gift for our 20th wedding anniversary, he built me my fantastic she-shed studio. He has such a gift for design and constructs the most beautiful spaces. I also have two grown step-babies who have been an integral part of my life.

Getting to nurture them and see them grow is a gift unlike any other. As I was never able to have my own children, I am so thankful for the time I had with them when they were little.

“And at the end of the day, your feet should be dirty, your hair messy and your eyes sparkling.” — Shanti

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www.KarenRoberts.com Instagram: KarenRobertsPhotographer, IslandChildFlowers, SailorAndSalty Facebook: KarenRobertsPhotographer

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also have two little fluffers (Maltese) that have become quite Instagram-famous.

My little guys, Sailor and Salty, are my heart. They model for several companies and lately have promoted some really cool movies like Channing Tatum’s 2022 film Dog. Four-year-old Salty is a total mess — he gets into anything and everything, steals undergarments and devours celery. Six-year-old Sailor, on the other hand, is the sweetest little guy, wanting to please everyone. We enjoy spoiling them both rotten. I dress them up in their little outfits and sunglasses and take pics “for the ‘gram.” Having them is like having two live teddy bears. They love to help in the studio but get a tad jealous when it’s not their photoshoot!

For studio options, I have a downstairs studio plus an upstairs natural-light studio in our house. The she-shed studio is a small haven with a transparent roof. We bought antique windows, which my husband framed into the shed. This 12×12-foot space is magical. I love how rain can be pouring outside, yet the light is still beautiful in there. I change my scene in the shed about six times throughout the year: seasonal sets, of course, and a few neutral boho sets in between.

The wood on the walls and floor was provided through a collaboration with Best Laminate Flooring. We recently added the mermaid above the door, a fitting ode to my business logo. The space is so dreamy — featuring abundant light and warmth, even in the winter.

My photography journey has been amazing. I am right where I want to be, doing exactly what I was meant to do. I hope to continue to do photography as long as I live. I feel blessed to have found this career path. I remember considering set design, fashion design and psychology while choosing which college studies to pursue. This job encompasses all those things, and it is wonderful to set my own schedule.

The little studio shed built out of love has become a light in my life, and I am delighted to share it with my clients.

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There’s no such thing as too much sparkle.

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PET TALES

RED and Deanna Tipton

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RED is a hardworking hen in the heart of Cottondale, Alabama.

She is fifth in the Fiber Chicken line of succession, and she’s proudly following in her predecessors’ clawprints. Red is the shining star of the fiber cabin at Tannehill State Park. When she isn’t “pecking” out her favorite colors for fiber projects, she is flaunting her purple tail feathers for park guests. She definitely proves that chickens can do more than just lay an egg!!

Red the Fiber Chicken

81/2-year-old Easter Egger Cottondale, AL

Current position: Muse/house hen

I am happy in my current position, but I will be considering offers if the AC breaks or the lasagna runs out.

Currently, I have two coworkers, TCL (the crazy lady/ the chicken lady) and Baby the African Grey. Oliver the cat was my coworker, but he is gone now. I miss him — but don’t tell TCL. Jack was the first Fiber Chicken. She created the position. She loved all kinds of fiber. She was a legend. After her, the position was temporarily filled by many sick

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Duties include but not limited to: Moral and cuddle support, inspiration, best friend, egg layer, and chicken ambassador.

or injured chickens (even a goose and a turkey). I got the position when the doctor said I had an upper respiratory infection. I went into the big house for medicine. When I refused to go back outside to the chicken yard, the job became permanent, and I was promoted.

With my new position, I have new responsibilities.

TCL demonstrates fiber arts in an old cabin at a historic state park called Tannehill Ironworks in Alabama. We go every weekend from March through November. She spins, weaves and crochets.

People come in all day asking lots of questions. I let everyone pet me. There have been people that were terrified of birds, and I fixed them. I let them pet me, and now they love birds. That is my favorite part of my job. I especially like tiny humans. They are the best huggers. I like to get in their laps when they sit down on the ground with me.

My job also requires traveling. TCL, Baby and I travel in the little rolling house to other states for fiber festivals. I let hundreds of people pet me after they spray their hands. Got to stay safe! They take my picture, hug me, and tell me how wonderful I am. I love this job!

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