Lazy Sunday Studio

It's been a lazy, productive sort of day- if you can put lazy and productive in the same sentence? A day I really needed after the last week! Manic is putting it lightly what with rushing to get everything displayed at Tunbridge Wells Artisans (TWA), which opened its doors to the wondering public on Friday. The Parents and I were there late on Wednesday night hanging pictures and cable-tying fairy lights around mesh walling. Other evenings were spent sorting prints and greetings cards, taking inventory, writing stock lists and packing into various boxes- then unpacking into different boxes. The house and studio were both a complete mess, and it was all just left there for the rest of the week as The Mother and I had our final craft fair of the year yesterday at Uckfield Community College's "Christmas Indulgence". I'm not moaning, it's just an awful lot to fit in around work and commuting- an hour's lunch break goes by in a flash!

So today was spent in a more leisurely fashion. Sunday morning lie in, toast with marmite, steaming coffee and a wander in the sunshine up to the studio. I tuned in to Radio 2 and Michael Ball helped me to organise the studio, put everything back in its place and spend a little while photographing some of my Christmas hoops ready to be put onto Etsy. I am also planning another kit based around these chaps so have been working on that as well.

I do really like these decs hanging in my studio though- perhaps I should just keep them all?!! No, that would be silly, they are all listed in my Etsy shop, go on and buy yours!

Ah my lovely studio. I am almost outgrowing it so it's good that I have alternative spaces to display my work now. Some of my 'scapes have returned back home to roost so my shelves aren't looking so bare and I really love the warmth and peace and serenity it gives me. Just walking there I can feel the weight of the world fly off my shoulders.

Excitingly (and totally nerdily) some fabric came in to my day job this week which I needed. No questions asked- perhaps you can see why? Uncannily, the colours are identical- absolutely identical- to the colours in my Dotty Textiles logo! I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with this material, but it was too good an opportunity to pass up. I mean, even the pattern of the splodges fits in beautifully!

After I had organised and photographed and relaxed and chatted with Michael for a couple of hours (I love that man, he's so endlessly chipper, and has excellent taste in music), I walked the long way home to enjoy the most of the sunshine and the Autumn colours.

So much gold and red and orange, burnt umber, yellow, amber, crimson, call it what you will, it all contrasts beautifully with the blue of the sky, and you have to soak up all you can get at the moment. I heard on the radio that at this time of year, the average adult gets less than an hour of sunshine a day, something I can completely relate to as I work in an office with no windows and don't always go out at lunchtime. It is dark when I leave the house in the morning, and dark when I leave work to come home. This afternoon was a sight for sore eyes.

Of course, this is only temporary relief. It's back to work tomorrow with the alarm due to go off at 6.15am precisely. Next Saturday is the official open day of TWA and I will be there stitching away (so behind on a couple of commissions!!) if any of you would like to come along for a meet and greet. I cannot tell you how beautiful some of the work is by the other talented artisans- there is literally something of everything there, including things you didn't even know you needed.

I am not totally happy with my display so am hoping to also be there during the week at some point with a new display idea, it depends when my storage unit arrives though so we'll see how it goes.