greenolive

moving from A to B

After six months in our studio, we've realised the grass is greener at the front of the building so we are moving again.

In the photo above you can just see the studio in the middle of the building (big white bulkhead & stacks of succulents) and we'll move into the space at the front (decorative verandah & red bricks). It is the empty office and showroom for a local airconditioning company but will soon be transformed into the vintage prints studio/shop.

On the pros & cons list its a no-brainer decision: street frontage with windows on two sides, a lot less industrial looking than the current studio, better interior layout, not as hot and dusty, less direct sunlight and glare, two dedicated car parks for the shop, signage, and a smidge cheaper in terms of rent. Plus, we still get to keep our lovely neighbours - mookah.

We sign the lease this week and then we can get to work with a makeover and fitout. Having the current studio and shop for six months, I now have a better idea of what works in terms of layout, display and the divide between the working space and shop. I've done a floorplan, a furniture list, and worked out zones for different activities. There'll be a main shop space, an office/business space, a large workroom/storage space, a kitchen and a bathroom.

We started painting today, having picked three shades of grey. The image below was my inspiration – all my vintage and wooden shop furniture will look great against the grey backdrop. Plus it will really make the the paper products – most printed on white paper – pop. At least that's the plan.

* I wish I remember where I got this image...

** 9 July 2012: thanks to Sarah I can now attribute this image to the design attractor blog - but I'm sure I had seen it from somewhere else...anyway, now we have linked with love.

I'm taking lots of BREFORE, DURING, AFTER photos as a record of how much the space will change and just in case some fabulous design blog wants to do a feature on vintage prints and the new studio. A girl can dream!

 

Jack the bowerbird

Jack our puppy – he's 7 months, so I suppose he's still a puppy – has become a real bowerbird. He collects all manner of things from around the house and puts them in his bed or on his mat. Shoes, discarded socks, sticks, twigs, bits of plastic, paper, leaves, pegs – they all become part of his collection. If I'm ever looking for my shoes I know exactly where to find them!

This morning he'd feathered his nest with his handknitted blanket, one of my shoes, two of my socks and the head of a dustpan brush. This photo was taken as his little eyes were about to close for a little nap.

He's so cute I just want to give him a cuddle. 

the complexity of a flower

I'm not sure what this flower is, at first I thought it was passionfruit but it isn't, but whatever it is I think it must be one of the most complex flower designs I've ever seen.

Its very sculptural, with all its different parts and layers. Its also very colourful with its yellow and purple. I find it quite amazing that all this complexity of form and colour can be found on this small flower. My favourite part if the centre ring with its sun-like rays in three different colours.

beachcomber rings

I reckon if I was a jewellry designer I'd be hard pressed to design anything better than these: Organic Shell Rings by Sand& Water.

I found these two broken and weathered shells when I went for a walk a day or two ago. They were buried in the wet sand, with the circular "ring" bit sticking out. Something about them caught my eye, so I bent down, fished them out and found they were a perfect, shell ring – complete with a "stone" at the top. I marvelled at how they had been weathered in just the right way, in all the right places to create such a form.

To find one was lucky. But to find a second one, just a step or two further along the sand, was amazing. And, guess what, they fitted my fingers! I put them on and wore them for the rest of my walk. 

It was only when taking these photos that I discovered an added surprise. The larger ring has a tiny shell embedded in a hole in the "stone" at the top. How perfect is that?

Wouldn't it be amazing if a jewellry designer could replicate these?

studio snippets

Mum hasn't been able to see the studio/shop yet – she's in Brisbane & I'm outside Melbourne – so I thought a few happy snaps might help her imagine what it looks like. 

I keep changing things around, but this is how it looked, or rather small areas of it looked, a week or so ago. The holiday rush is over, so chances are I'll have time to move things around again!

I made some signage for the front window from old vintage text pages, laser printed type and some cut, paste and sewing. I promise to take a picture of it in the next few days.