Organizing supplies on a dime

I thought I'd show a few more shots from the studio, on how I've organized some of my art supplies!  The shelves themselves were all FREE as well: scrap wood from the curb and from leftover projects from friends, and the black bookcases were originally brown and green, and were given to me by a friend who moved out and couldn't take them with her.

Paintbrushes above the sink are in re-purposed cans; I've spray painted all the cans one of 2 colors:
-White= NO sharp edges of any kind, safe for kids hands or to be left out.
-Red= NOT safe for kiddos, these have either one bit of tin that isn't smooth, or are the 'pop-top' soup type cans, where they aren't perfectly smooth.  It's kind of an icky way to remember, but they are red, cause they are sharp....and a cut makes blood.  Gross, but easy to remember!

Glass jars!  Love!  Makes it so easy to see everything.  They are kept high though, so little hands don't reach them/

The top shelf has loads of decorative boxes and tins, to hold other lovely things that arent' necessarily pretty.  Office supplies, Hot glue guns, etc..  They will eventually get a tag on them so I can see what they hold without having to open each one. :)  For now, most of them are actually empty.

the little turquoise and minty blue baskets are from $1 stores, and are great for transferring to the tables.  I love having a basket for sharpeners, erasers, different types of markers, etc. etc.

The black trays on top of the shelves serve 2 purposes: first, they keep things contained, like water spills from the cups or paint from the palettes, and to bridge the gap on top of the shelves between the wall.  The baseboards in this quirky home are really funky and fat, so there are about 4" between the wall and the top that we don't want to lose supplies in!  The trays were originally $1 at Target, and I got them at the thrift store on 1/2 price day, so I only paid 25cents each for them.  They are stackable (necessary when you have bulk supplies!) and hold lots of spillage; great for the kid's tables for paint and water cups.

The pop-up red fabric bins on the lower shelves are from Wal-Mart, they were 3 in a pack for $4.50 but recently went on clearance, so they may be cheaper!  They hold rubber stamps, painting rags, collage papers, inks, glues, and all sorts of other wonders!


Yesterday in day one of the preschool classes, we had a quick lesson on color mixing, and introducing the primary and secondary colors.  I used 6 jars, starting with just red, yellow and blue water, and we poured them together into the other 3 jars to make our secondary colors.  At the end of class, as a time-filler, we reviewed our colors, and I let the kids 'make music' with them with a spoon, tapping each jar to count the colors or say the color name.  At the end, the pretty-rainbow-waters were so lovely I couldn't bear to pour them down the drain, so now they are eye-candy in the kitchen window, at least until they evaporate!  I used Crayola Color Dotz (bathtub dye!).

Thanks for taking another little glimpse into the studio with me!

Happy Happy Pretty Shiny things

A friend visited the studio last week and snapped these lovely photos... You can become a fan of her photography on her facebook fan page: Jessica Rambo Photography  or, for more photos from the studio,  follow her BLOG!

BALLOONS for the open house!

 

happy little paint spinner

my daughter was a LITTLE bit excited. :)

AMAZING one of a kind aprons by Revel Designs!

The 'hot lava' rug....

paintbrush chandelier!

Quotes of the Month (February)

I thought it would be fun to make some quick signs each month for the studio wall, with inspirational artist quotes.  These are just paint pen on top of layers of spray paint and acrylics on canvas.

e.e. cummings.  WISE. :)

and

Andy Warhol.  An interesting pairing, but wise words from both, none-the-less.

Do you have a great artist quote I should use in the future?  Share it!

upcycled decor (part 1)

I had fun in the studio recently, with a bit of freestyle creativity, mainly using upcycled objects.  If you aren't in the know, upcycled stems (obviously) from the word 'recycled', but, instead of just reusing the object or turning into another one similar to it, you are actually giving it a NEW use, a new life, and raising the value of it.  You take something that would normally be trashed or recycled through conventional means, and give it a new creative life, and a value!  It's one of my favorite things to do, and really shows some of the heart behind Artful Mayhem Studio, creating beauty without rules or guidelines.

The Chandelier
I've saved my crusty abused paintbrushes over a long period of time to someday give them a place of honor---- now, with a found metal object they've become a chandelier! I just tied each one on with clear fishing line, and kept adding more until I had the right balance.

Colorful Tchotckes (you know, 'chotch-kees')
These trophies were found in a pile in someone's yard, ready for the bulk trash truck.  A bit of spray paint, and voila!  Fun sculptures!

They live on a shelf above the sink (shelf was $1 at the thrift, I just painted it black!)




Graffitied Memo Board
This was a perfectly fine little brown memo board... but I'm not a fan of brown wood, so it got some spray-painted layers for a funky touch.  Perfect attitude for the studio!

BEFORE

AFTER

Unconventional 'front door' signage.
This piece of foam core started life as a church sign for events.  When that event was over it was doomed for the trash, until I rescued it.  I LOVE painting on these sturdy signs, and have used them for my booth for events as well.  A front and back side for the door of the studio keeps people in the know about the day, and is made with spray paint, stick on vinyl that I cut to size, paint, and some stickers (also spray painted cause they were animal print before).

CLOSED!

OPEN!  (but please use the side door, lol)

Indoor welcome signage!
Paint and sharpies on more scrap foam core boards.  My daughter painted most of the bottom ones, I just wiped some wet stencils on top for more layers, then added the words.

The Art Wall
Of course the 'stuff inside of frames' thing gets done a LOT, but this is my take on it.  All of these are found frames, either curbside or at the thrift for $4 or less.  Some were donated by my amazing friend Cindy, and were so vintage and pretty I hesitated to spraypaint them!  But we did it any way.  These will feature art from various students, and be used to show off upcoming projects and workshops.

This is the 'waiting' area.  Almost all art is from my daughter when she was 3-5 years old.

Doorpane memo board
This 6-foot wooden pane came out of one of our back 'French' doors.  There are 2 doors, and while only one of them actually opens, there was only one of these panes.  Weird.  So out it came, and got wrapped with miles of some fishing line, and now hangs on the wall of my office for me to fill with random pretty things!

Scrap wood shelves.
I actually got the brackets for these shelves off the curb too, and the wood is leftovers from projects of mine and my friend Dana.  I don't really care that the main board is warped, as it still works!  Free shelves plus free paint.  Of course the jars are just upcycled too, I asked friends to save me their empties for a few weeks.  They now hold loads of lovely paintbrushes and other supplies.  The ones with the tins above the kitchen sink are just small boards (1x6's) that I got off the curb, we just used small pieces of the wood to make the 'brackets', since they won't hold much weight.

And the little ones above the sink:

 

Part 2 will come next week, I have quite a few more things to share with you! Make sure to subscribe or follow the blog so you'll get the early update!

I hope you enjoyed seeing all the little projects! Which one is your favorite?

Artful Mayhem Studio

Just a quick little photo from the Artful Mayhem Studio open house last Saturday; obviously  my absence here is just a reflection of how busy things have been the past few weeks, both wrapping up the madness that occurred with our house project, as well as getting everything for the studio ready!

While I thoroughly researched all that I'd need to launch this new 'brick and mortar' business, there was more time involved than expected in each step... From city codes and inspections to sign permits, setting up credit and deposits for utilities, to the launching of a new website and html codes and newsletters, liability waivers and insurance, and legal disclaimers in policies and procedures, each step seemed to take a bit more effort and time than I had hoped.  But I have done it.

Although I've taught in the past, and had most of my curriculum and supplies in order, it's a whole 'nother level when it's launched big-time to the public. 

With losing a week of set-up time at the studio due to the home reno disaster, I was under a time crunch last week to get it all ready. I just focused on doing one thing at a time, prioritizing each project and crossing it off the list to launch another.  There were some long days involved, but my help was just remembering 'I can only do what I can do'.  That kept me from getting stressed.  I just didn't want to get too preoccupied, or run past other's needs just focused on my own.  I also asked for HELP when I needed it!  It's funny how certain friends have really stepped up to pitch in and support me; and how others have been mysteriously absent.  Whether it was showing up at the studio with hands ready to help, or spreading the word about the studio, baking cupcakes for the open house, or supporting me by just signing up their kids for classes, I have taken it all in.  I think I'm trying to ignore the silence I've gotten from others that I had counted on, that I trusted and had expected support from.  Instead I'm relishing the love I have received, celebrating that instead of being upset from the lack-of it from others.

I hope that's not too much of a 'downer' note to leave you on.  I honestly have too much to do to try to figure out a way to pep it up!  One thing I'm looking forward to is posting pics of some of the fun projects we did in the studio using recycled materials.  Right now though, I need to get some unfinished business done up there, like actually planting the flowers in the pots (they are just set on top of them for now, lol!) and finishing my signage for both doors, as well as ordering t-shirts and flyers.  Oh, and preparing for my big show this weekend, Underground!  It's pretty much guaranteed to be brilliant.

Until then...keep dreaming!