You have to actually do stuff in order to blog about it...
Andrew and I decided we're going to stick it out and renew our lease. We've still got a year left on it, and as embarrassed as I am to admit it, we've been here for a year with a whole mess of unpacked boxes.
We lack closet space so a lot of things are just stacked and well, not organized at all. I decided to tackle my studio the weekend of the fourth figuring I would work on my Lisette Portfolio Top in my newly cleaned room. This is what it looked like at the height of the chaos (I blame the warm weather and BBQs):
I knowI studied visual communications so I needed a lot of tools. A lot of materials. A lot of a lot. At any given notice I had to have the right adhesives for 10 different stocks of paper which I had in 10 different colors in 10 different sizes. I bought two wide format printers during those four years. I bound books that I printed at home and cut to precision by hand! I loved it, but it was expensive and time consuming. So I have all this stuff, and I've carried it with me from apartment to apartment for years.
At what point should I let stuff go? I've left some boxes untouched for the better part of a year because I just knew that all of my fill in the blank were packed away inside. I can't justify getting rid of all these usable materials, and on top of all that, I have mountains of schoolwork. Andrew says "It's art, keep it!" but for how long? Have any of you gone to art school? How long did you hold on to your projects? I made a 60-page pop up book my last semester, I can't just throw that out! I feel like a hoarder, but somehow this is different? In my head it is... For some perspective, these are all our newly emptied boxes:
I knowSo, being completely overwhelmed by the chaotic mess and my inability to let things go, I decided to just stop and paint my nails. The best decision I made all month:
I think the eye is my favorite. Maybe the cheeseburger?Naturally my next step was to continue avoiding cleaning and illustrate the designs:
Don't lose faith in me, friends (I've lost another follower, 2 in 1 year!!), I will always return. No matter how long it takes! Plus, I am determined to finish organizing this weekend which means that top will get sewn. OR ELSE!
I am so glad I'm not the only one with unpacked boxes after moving over a year ago! And I'm totally using the watermelon nail design, it's awesome!
ReplyDeletei still cant understand how you can get such amazing detail BY YOURSELF!
ReplyDeletehaha. I love your blog and realized I am not a follower. That will change today! Good luck with organizing/cleaning. I wish I could tell you how to get the motivation. My 1BR with myself, husband and 1 yr old is very much the same as yours. One day it will be clean...
ReplyDeleteI totally understand: after art school I literally couldn't fit all the stuff in my car to drive home. Half of it I had to try to sell last minute, and then what I didn't sell had to go straight into the dumpster. Se la vie, I had photo reference, but that was all I could keep :/
ReplyDelete@Scrapyard Butterfly: Go for it! I can't take credit for any of the designs, they're all such simple shapes :)
ReplyDelete@Stina: I'll paint your nails at the airport. Teach you all my ~tricks~.
@Linda: One day!
@Rachel J: I just have "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday" on constant loop as I unpack.
the nail polish. AMAZING. how did you get so detailed? did you use a special thinner brush? my hands are so shaky... i'd never be able to do that with regular nail polish brushes! and i'll never stop following :)
ReplyDeletexoxo
sarah rose
zezaftig.blogspot.com
Awww those nails! Amazing!
ReplyDeleteThanks ladies! I only really have one special tool I use which is this brush. It has one bent end which is super helpful and the other end is a dotting tool which I use for polka dots. You could also use straight pins for sewing. The more varied in size the better!
ReplyDeletethe nails are GENIUS! :)
ReplyDeleteHah, thank you! They're gone now :( Replaced with the brightest red I own for "professional" purposes.
ReplyDeleteHey I picked out those nails. Jaims just painted them.
ReplyDeleteThat nail art is nothing short of genius! Absolutely incredible. Now I just need to go home and practice...
ReplyDeletefeliarex | life + style = blog
Andrew helps me make all the tough decisions.
ReplyDeleteYour nail art is AMAZING. The burger looks delicious, haha!
ReplyDeleteHah, thanks :) I made that patty super thick, too!
ReplyDeleteyou must have the steadiest hands ever :) great job on the nails. I know what you mean about the polish cause I have recently began obsessing with polish and I think I buy one every time I go into CVS. :)
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is definitely the kiwi slice!
ReplyDeleteAnd I feel your pain. I just moved and it was made slightly quicker by the fact that my boxes from moving into my old place (then my new place) two years ago were still packed! :\ In an apartment, what's the point in unpacking, really?
Just put up lots of bookcases and get cuter boxes or put wrapping paper on the plain ones, to make it all look intentional! :D
Oh my goodness girl!!! I know this is an old post, but I can totally relate! I did art school also! I actually just recently (a few months ago) threw out on of my first year projects back in 2002! Yes I feel like a hoarder! And I don't have the space for it....but a lot of the materials were so expensive that I just can't bring myself to throw it out....I will need it someday, right? jejejeje cheers!!
ReplyDelete