I have been thinking about this blog for two weeks. How do you blog about Studio cleanup? I started with the question, “What do I want to accomplish this year?” That led to a whole list of things besides art work that need to be done. If I could only go through every drawer and closet in the house and clear out enough stuff to make room for the new things I want to create. And, if I could just get around to finishing projects I have started I could get them out of storage and make more room too. The hard part is getting started.
I have had the idea and the fabric for two patchwork bedspreads for over ten years now. I should get them made before I have to repaint the bedrooms !
I think the hang up has been that I don’t know how to finish off a quilt. I have decided to charge ahead and cut the fabric and sew the pieces and worry about that when I am finished piecing the quilt. I hope I can find an experienced quilter to hire to put the batting and backing on and quilt it on a big machine.
Then there are all the boxes of family photos collecting dust bunnies under the bed. They need organizing and I want to digitize all of them by scanning them into the computer or taking close up photos of them and downloading them into iphoto so I can clean some of them up and print them out to make family story books for the grandchildren. I especially love the photos of my grandparents when they were dating. My grandmother was a beautiful “Gibson Girl” and my grandfather’s hobby was photography so we have lots of photos. He printed some out on blueprint paper or something as many of them are not sepia tone but shades of cobalt blue.
When I bought my Mac a few years ago, I signed up for the one on one training at the Apple Store and learned all about iphoto for editing the photos. I also learned how to edit music. The stereo’s turntable in the living room doesn’t work anymore and I can’t listen to records. I had purchased a turn table from a catalog that assured me it would play my old LPs into the computer where I could edit them into CDs. Nothing is ever that simple. The guys at the Apple genius bar and the trainers were able to make it work and after several training sessions, I learned how to do the editing. Thankfully, I took serious notes on how to do it. I was known as the lady with the notebook as I would make them slow down so I could write down every step. I started to edit some favorite Christmas records but never finished. So, another New Years project this winter is to finish the CDs I started to make and begin to work on some more favorites. Now where did I put that notebook of instructions????
There are the recent family photos that I want to edit and print so I can get them out of my camera and computer, the family videos too, both the new ones that are digital in my computer waiting to be made into DVDs and the old VCR ones I wish I could edit…. and that leads me to another gadget. I bought a DVD/VCR player/recorder that is supposed to “tape” from the TV, play DVDs, play VCR tapes and be able to convert VCR tapes to DVDs. When I try to set it up all I accomplish is to get the TV/Cable setting so messed up it takes us all day to find our way back to being able to watch the TV. I wish there was a genius bar for this machine.
Getting back to my art studio…….. I have this exhibition necklace I have been working on for several years. I can see it in my head…… but that is anoher long story I will share in the next blog. This one is already too long.
Alice
