Organizing my basement studio

Today I'm taking you to my basement studio, where the mess has started to overwhelm me.

This mess is left over from all the books, clothes, and ephemera my friend Sally gave me after I cleaned her garage.  I slowly managed to put everything away that went in the hallway, but there were still the items I dumped in the studio that I had to deal with.   Now that the hall is clean and straightened, which took me about two weeks of off-and-on rearranging I am sorry to say, I thought it was important to get this room in order before my Thanksgiving guests arrive later this week.  My AEDM art friend Maron, who I somehow lose track of the rest of the year, suggested we show our work areas, so here is mine.  And although I love to play along with Julia at WOYWW, this post is far too long to do that this time.

I couldn't believe the messes I had created.  Some of it was because I hadn't put things away, and some of it was because I had too much of something I didn't need.

Although I worked on the other side of the room first, this was the side I was probably most satisfied with.

I tried to remember where I stood to take the first photo, but didn't remember, so you get a double dose of my cleaned area and a bit of the hall.  The fan does double duty in the summer.  It was originally meant for circulating the air, but I now use it when I am baking polymer clay in the toaster oven.

It was time to find a home for all that printer paper I was originally going to use to make gelli prints or Christmas masterboards.  My mini ironing board does double duty because it does what it's intended for AND is the padding for my fabric stamping. 

I simply couldn't believe how many of these plastic containers I'd saved.  The only thing I wanted them for was low immersion dyeing.  I knew I would NEVER need that many, so

I drug everything to the table I turned into a staging area,

and began to sort and pitch.

I admit things were starting to feel a bit better,

although I feel I can still get rid of a few more plastic containers.

These are going in the recycle bin.  Probably not as many as should, but it's a start.

Then it was time to clean up the silk flowers.  It was amazing how much room I had once I got rid of the stems and many most of the leaves.

Next, I taped the boxes that I had simply thrown in a heap, so I could turn them into assemblages.  I hope to do that sometime before the end of November, but time is running out on all the projects I want to complete.  I'll be covering them in joint compound.

This is the scene of my hall where I keep my fabric scraps and old bed sheets.  That large black bag is trash.  Trash that isn't recyclable.  Trash that was swept from the floor.  Trash emptied from my trashcans.  Trash that even I can't justify keeping or saving. 

Both chairs had been filled with items, mostly jeans and blouses my friend Sally was getting rid of, ready to be used in my fabric quiltlets.  I had brought a large bag of cotton and denim clothes home after I cleaned out her garage.  Thankfully I found room for all this fabric I hope to tear into soon.  Of course, I was delighted people could now sit in both the rocking chairs.  Unfortunately, I still haven't found wall space for these large paintings, all by Van Gogh.  And yes, I still have to mop the hall floor.

The art with the stamps and magnifying glass is a puzzle I put together years ago.  I framed all the pictures you see on the wall, carts, and chair.

More Van Gogh paintings on canvas I framed back in the late 1980s, are leaning against the gray shelving unit.  The "Christmas Gifts" is an altered book (AB) I created about 8 years ago.  The envelopes are receipts I still need to file because I keep EVERY record of any and everything I purchase that is associated with art supplies.  The "sewing machine" is worthless, so thankfully it was a gift and not a purchase.

If you live in the Los Angeles area in the US, you might recognize the old Santa Monica Pier before it fell into the ocean in the mid-1980s.  The only structure that was left was the carousel at the near end (left in poster) of the pier.  All of the photos were taken by me.  They are photos of the pier, the carousel, and the pillars underneath.  I did all the matting and cutting, which was before I had ever heard of oval, circle, or edge cutters.

I decided while it was clean, I would take a photo of my entry to the craft room,

the desk area,

and a few of the shelves over the desk.

Of course, I found this saying in a magazine and love it, even after all these years.

I might add for those new to my blog, the microwave is for low immersion dyeing, although you could heat your coffee in it if it gets cold.  I, on the other hand, will not, because I will use the microwave oven designated for food only in my kitchen.

Today is Day 23 of Art Every Day Month, or AEDM.  I spent the day organizing, cleaning, purging, and rearranging.  Not the fun art I would prefer, but necessary because I'm a neat freak and can only take the clutter for so long before I have to deal with it.

Thanks to all for your wonderful comments over the month of November.  I'm really enjoying this time seeing what all the incredible artists are making and all the inspiration they are sharing.  And of course, I appreciate my readers and followers, too.  I can't say thank you enough.