michelle my belle

artist studio - in home or out?

working on our banner for our new website!! yay! soon!

i thought i'd give you a visual of where i usually write to you from.
yepper, except it's 11PM-ish and dark!
where i paint, sew and really make a mess is to the right of this area.

my studio looks out over my house,
so i can tell you that my whole family is currently asleep.
i know many of you dream of having a studio separate from your home.
i myself used to have this same dream.
it's like anything, it has its pros and cons.

what i love about it is:

• i don't have to worry about making noise late into the night.
• i can make big messes and walk away.
• it makes it a little easier to separate work life from home life.
• i get less interruptions

what i don't love about it is:

• i don't feel as part of everything.
• i miss hearing all the "goings on" of my family.
• it's more of a commitment to head to the studio.
• my family doesn't visit me as much.

all that being said, i couldn't really tell you what my preference is.
or which space would be more productive in the end.
for me it's such a toss up.
how about you? do you have a preference?

iron artist competition & artfest bits

at Artfest this year the uber creative (in many ways)  Teesha introduced a new event. IRON chef ARTIST!
she gave each person a packet of ephemera that we could use and 45 minutes to "ART".
i was thrilled and honored to sit next to artist Carla Sonheim. she instantly put my heart at ease with her exuding kindness and calm demeanor.

it was like running a race! a complete rush of adrenaline and quick thinking. although i don't think aerobic. :(

my finished, well...not really finished but where it was when the timer went off, piece.
i kind of want to make a habit of this sort of exercise. maybe a fun thing to do with a group of artist friends? great idea for a charity event? hmmm.

check out lulu's blog and mary stanley's blog to view other iron artist pieces and their Artfest photos.

and then there was vendor night. again, a first for me. and again a bit intimidating.

i had a very small sampling of our line. prints, art blox, magnets, originals and a few money banks.

i didn't have a chance at either of these events to get out and take pictures so my friend Janne gave me all of these that you see. thank you Janne!

Janne, Leigh, Lacy, Tyler and myself
of course the highlight of Artfest is hooking up with old friends and meeting new friends! thank you girls for making this year so much fun and filled with buckets of laughter!

and to you reading this right now... come join us next year! :)

Do you have a blog?

I love perusing many blogs: artists, friends, business, inspirational, scrapbooking... BLOGS, BLOGS, BLOGS! So, do you have a blog and what is it that you share in your blog? If you're an artist you might want to check out Alyson B. Stanfield's latest post on "Why aren't you blogging?"

Artist Reference

If you're an artist or a crafter that is trying to figure out how to promote yourself or you need motivation and direction check out Alyson B. Stanfield www.artbizblog.com. I love getting her weekly newsletters full of advice and encouragement.