Big studio changes coming

After 5 wonderful years as an Artist in Residence at the Greenbelt Community Center, I've decided not to apply for another year of residency. At the end of June I'll be moving out of my studio. It was a hard decision to make. In the end it came down to some soul searching about how best to manage my time and create a little more balance in my life. (Let's check back in a year and see how THAT works out!). As it stands now, I divide my time between my home studio--where all of the quilting and sewing for wearable stuff talkes place--and my Greenbelt studio, which is where I do almost all of my dyeing, printing, and piecing. Add to that a full time job and a marriage and you'll start to get the picture. I'm trying to be in too many places at once. My residency comes with a commitment to spend at least 30 hours per month in the studio. Some months I come close, but more often not.

So, I'm moving into new quarters located conveniently about 8 feet below my kitchen and dining room. We're currently in the process of building a bright, clean, well lit, and soon-to-be well equipped studio in our basement.

The renovation project began on April 8th and we're hoping to be done by the end of next week--about 4 weeks start to finish. Insulation, drywall, recessed lights, track lighting for the design wall, new windows, and laminate floors: It's going to be great. There's also a full bath and walk-in closet, and the utility room, though a bit more sparten than the main room, will soon be sporting a beautiful new commercial stainless steel mop sink with a drain board. Funny how excited you can get about a sink!

The new studio will open a number of possibilities including more short work sessions on week nights, better organization from having everything in one place, and the potential for some small group and one-on-one teaching.