Housekeeping

I hate to say it, but I am a clutterer. You know that saying attributed to Albert Einstein “If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, then what are we to think of an empty desk?” I’ve been living by that saying.

Now, I have to admit, I think the creative personality might come along with some tendencies towards keeping things and letting the flow of ideas overtake the idea of cleaning up after each task, but at some point it’s just impossible to get anything done if you have to start every day with cleaning up yesterday’s mess.

So, I’m pretty excited to say, I have begun a big clean today. I say begun, because I still have my file cabinet and papers to sort through, but I have accomplished at least half of the task by sorting out my art closet and creating my very own shipping station! Now, these probably look like the most boring photos anyone could ever take, but I am proud, so humor me.

My new shipping station! I know, this looks like just an empty surface, but regularly empty surfaces are hard to come by in my world (except if I use my fiance’s desk), so I am excited to have made room for this one. You can’t see it here, but my shipping supplies are in the bottom of this set of drawers. No more unpacking an entire bin of junk every time I send something out! I do dream of having an entire studio one day with many tables and desks for different purposes, but for now, this is pretty cool!

My newly organized art closet! Woohoo—I can actually find something in here with out dumping things off the shelf! I am thankful for my pack-rat tendency to keep empty boxes because I used them to organize different types of items. See, being a clutterer can be useful!

Now, some virtual housekeeping. I’ve been wanting to mention some new blogs I’ve been reading/discovering over the past few months. I want to say a big thank you to all of these bloggers because they have been helping me on my way to making art a career by mentioning my work on their blogs.

Thanks to Holly at Decor8 for including me in one of her “Take Five Tuesdays” (a weekly series of Etsy finds) back in December. Holly does a bang up job of bringing all sorts of beautiful design to our attention, and also frequently talks about living your dreams and being creative.

Thanks to Amanda at This Always Opens to the Story Within for mentioning my drawing “Laundry” in one of her “Etsy Finds Fridays” in January. Amanda is a great creative inspiration. She blogs, she makes art, and she puts a lot of kindness and creativity out into the world.

Thanks to Beatrice at Etsy Stalker for using my “Winter Poem” card for her “Words so Innocent and Powerless” Exhibit at the end of January. Beatrice creates wonderful exhibits showcasing everything Etsy in a unique, inspired, and organized way. With so many artists on Etsy, it’s great to have someone do the sifting for you and present well-thought out collections!

And most recently, thanks to Shannon at Helicopter Studios for noticing my drawing “Trio” and including it in her March 6 “Shopping List Saturday.” Shannon is another artist/crafter and blogger who is putting her creativity where her mouth is!

I hope this gives you some new inspiration out in the blogosphere! Happy reading!