My Studio Area


I teased the other day that I would post about my new shelves once I put them up (with the help of David for the top one!) I bought shelving brackets at Home Depot. The three sets of shelving brackets and all of the screws cost about $12. I had thought of getting wood cut to use as the shelf part (since I couldn't find anything already cut to fit the awkward space) when the idea of using old hardcover book covers as shelves came into my mind. A quick trip to pinterest shows that I'm not the first one to think of it but I was happy to discover that they work!

This is my "studio" area (a.k.a., my corner of the living room of our tiny apartment.) This is what you see as soon as you walk into my home.

From left to right:

Hanging on the wall in the small wooden boxes are a handful of some of the small toys and figures that I've collected over the years. There is also artwork from Tristan (hand "flowers") from when he was very little.

My stamp cabinet full of most (but not all) of my rubber stamps. In the containers at the bottom are my alphabet and number rubber  stamp sets. I want to get two more long, black jewelry boxes (good for storing alphabet sets) for this shelf. On the top of the cabinet are some of my old tax receipts. On the bottom shelves are books about journaling and garden/flower books to cut up (you can't see them in this photo but there are two more shelves below where these books are stashed.)

In the space between the stamp cabinet and the bookshelf are the three new shelves. On the top shelf is my deco (decorative plastic) tape. I downsized and just put a whole bunch of new tape into my class bags. (My students will be VERY happy!) The next shelf holds some tins with rubber stamps, more tape and ink pads. The bottom shelf holds my Anaïs Nin diary books (except volume one which is on a shelf next to my bed. I forgot to put it back on the shelf.) I want to collect her journals in hardcover (I have two already) and I may get rid of the paperbacks when I have all of them. They're not in the best condition but I have fond memories of picking them up at the Bodhi Tree in Los Angeles many, many moons ago (especially since that bookstore is now gone.) 

Below the shelves (out of sight in the photo) from bottom to top is an old sewing machine case full of collage ephemera, a box full of Juliana Coles' artwork (I rotate her artwork and have some out, some away) and instructional books from her classes, a bag full of folded handmade/decorative papers (for classes and for me) and a stuffed animal. Any time I buy handmade/decorative paper, I fold the paper into quarters. I'll cut off a section to use now and then fold up the rest and put it away for later. It works great for me (you can see the basket of paper in the photos. The stuffed bear is sitting on top of it.)

The bookcase holds some of my book collection. I tend to put my favorite books in this case as much as possible (but it still doesn't hold all of them.) The top shelf holds some of my James Jean, Corita Kent, Mary Blair, Frida Kahlo and books on Surrealism. The next shelf holds a lot of unusual and independently published books, my Lynda Barry collection, Dave McKean travel sketchbooks, etc... The third shelf holds my Barron Storey books, etc... I love my books!

I love looking at other people's studios and seeing where they create. I hope to share more with you when I can!

Some of my Favorite Artists' Studios:
Barron Storey
Frida Kahlo
Corita Kent
Mary Blair
Vincent Van Gogh
Andre Breton
Juliana Coles

Comments

E. Cline said…
Wow! Your stamp collection is amazing!! And I love your shelves. Great idea!
kecia deveney said…
love that corner! full of creativity. i think i could spend a few hours there just looking at everything in your small corner of the world! thanks for sharing,
xoxo,
kecia
Kathryn Dyche said…
Looks like a cool space to hang out in.
BLockHEad said…
Oh my! Want to swap tables?
dorit elisha said…
Kelly, You are one organized lady! I am sure it makes everything so easy..and probably you manage to finish more projects because you know where everything is!
Dog-Ma said…
Love your work but you are waaayyyy to organized... Just kidding, it's a great space, thank you for sharing.
I am in AWE that you manage to create in such a small space, but it's clear that it is HIGHLY ORGANIZED, which is what I struggle with...that, and the fact that I work in more than 2 different crafts!
Thanks for sharing your studio table today - hope to take one of your in-person classes one day soon =)
Marjie Kemper said…
Must be the coolest corner of the apartment!
Anonymous said…
Love that rubber stamp storage. What a great space. xox
RubberMoon said…
I love your space. I just knew it would be cool. I think it is awesome that this is what you see when you walk in the door!
Tracey FK said…
Nothing like a small space to force you into being organised... This looks so full of fun and things to search through that I think I would need all day to check it all out properly
cHim-prints said…
What a great idea for shelves. (Gotta save $ to buy more stamps, right?) you have an amazing space. Happy creating!
Heather B. said…
I'm experiencing stamp shelves envy :) My stamps are all tucked away in plastic storage drawer units or in plastic bins --- someday I hope to have a way to have them displayed more open as are yours. I've been spending much of the year creating index sheets by citatory, number labels, and trying to stop myself from obtaining more (not much luck there). I love that you are collecting Anais' works. Thanks for sharing your space. I'll be posting mine in a bit.
Jenny said…
hi kelly! thanks for sharing your space and table with us :) looks like a fun and inspiring place you've made. it's so helpful to see when an art space is "incorporated" into a living space/home. a lot of us don't have a separate studio space, so it's refreshing and encouraging to see artists like you who have made they're creative corners in the home. my art spaceis in our dining room and it seems every few weeks i feel the need to "tweak a few things" lol. i call it the Goldilocks Syndrome-ever trying to get it "just right!"those re-configuring days start out frustrating-but usually end up being productive, even finding supplies and/or things i forgot i had! i am curious about the long black jewelry boxes you mentioned to store alphabet stamps in? do you get them at a particular store or online? thanks again for sharing AND for all your inspiration. jenny =)
Anonymous said…
What a cool post, lady! Loved the other artist studio links. The Bodhi Tree was awesome... I remember the first time I ever went to L.A., I had insisted on making a stop. What a shame that so many truly regional landmarks are disappearing. I had read somewhere that there were some folks aiming to reopen it. Which volumes of Anaïs Nin's hardcover journals do you have? Anyway.... grey post. :)
Anonymous said…
Wow! Nice studio! Currently working on mine and getting it organized too.
Kelly Kilmer said…
Thanks everyone!!!

Jenny, the jewelry cases I mention are display trays. I got mine from the Bead Source stores in Los Angeles:
http://shop.beadsourceinc.com/Cases-and-Displays_c11.htm?page=all
They vary from 1 to 2".
Jenny said…
thanks Kelly-i've seen those before and never thought to use them for alpha stamps-grrrreat idea!! thanks ;) i hit the ground running today and spent 8 hours re-configuring and tweaking my art space! something in the ait i guess-thanks again for the inspiration, jenny
It seems no matter how much or how little space we have, we find a way to make it our own. Lovely storage areas and really cool shelves.
Anonymous said…
LOVE it! Since you live in a tiny apartment and this is your storage, I assume you create on the eating surface? Thanks for sharing! :)
Anonymous said…
Your studio looks wonderful to me. I'd be right at home there.
Bill said…
What an awesome space to see! Very organized and full of treasures. :-)
It's great that you manage to fit so much so neatly into such a small space. And I love the idea of using old book covers as shelves. Thanks for sharing!
Ann Isik said…
Great idea about the hard cover books or shelves. That's one I'll remember. Only thing is, as soon as I'd set up the shelves I'd absolutely need to read the book I was using for a shelf! I'd have to paint the names out. Nice to meet you. Ann
Jackie PN said…
OH My stamps!! Wows! Great lil spaces are where great art is made! Thanks so much for sharing! ")

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