Here is a pix of my little work space, aka, studio . It’s all cleaned up and ready to sleep for the winter. I won’t even show you the boxes and boxes that are going to my little work room in Texas. I think I nearly divided it in half including taking more than one machine. A girls gotta be prepared you know.

My fabrics are behind the curtains to keep them from light fading. I have north light in this 14 ft. wall of windows which is really nice when working on the design wall on the opposite side of the room. The cabinet has all my ‘wet’ supplies such as dyes, paints, brushes, tubs, etc. There really doesn’t seem to be enough space….ever….but then I force myself to edit and purge. I keep two different kinds of fabrics here: art quilt supplies and traditional supplies. I try to do one charity quilt each month for my guild. I’m behind right now but have those packed to finish in Texas.

This is my trusty Singer 401 all put to bed. I love this machine. It will do almost everything a computerized machine can do without ever worrying about the mother board blowing up. [Yes, I had that happen last year while in Texas.] This year I am taking an extra vintage Singer with me to live in Texas. I packed up my 99K and all the attachments. This is a 3/4 size shiny black gorgeous little machine that truly purrs.

I started using vintage machines many years ago out of economic necessity. They are fun to collect but one of the best things is that I can repair them myself. I can adjust them, tear them apart and put them back together. They are sort of like vintage cars that people like to tinker with. Sometimes I have to call Ron to put a screw in or take one out if my arthritic hands aren’t cooperating that day. He’s a jewel for that. I think he’s happy that I don’t ask him to learn all about them. The most he got involved with restoring my treadle was carrying the irons in the house for me.

So here I sit, with no projects on the design wall, nothing sitting next to the machine to stitch, no piles of fabrics being auditioned for something new and let me tell you it is STRRRESSSSSSSFUUULLLLLL. I will just have to focus my mind on virtual art, ponder pieces that are WIP and let my hands rest and recuperate. Moving house every 6 months gives me time to do a lot of soul searching about what is important to me; to be thankful that I have wonderful friends, family , a roof over my head, plenty to eat and my health allows me to continue with art even if it is on a limited basis.