It’s May…and for us in Washington State, we are entering our seventh week of sheltering in place and social distancing to keep the coronavirus at bay and to stay healthy. I’m thankful that its springtime here in the Western Hemisphere which gives an air of hope and possibility to everyday living. Everyone is adjusting to the change in seasons and struggling to find new routines since the old routines don’t work anymore. I figure that this was as good a time as any to change things up a bit at home, given the fact that I spend 90% of my time there (the remainder of the time spent taking walks in the neighborhood or traveling to the local grocery store). If not now…then when?

The largest room in our 1902 Victorian is the dining room…its a spacious room, open to the living room with a wonderful bay window. There’s a large dining table and a great pendant light I made from a vintage wire wastepaper basket. But we don’t eat in here…we eat at the table in our kitchen…its more comfortable and intimate. I finally had the courage to ask out loud if we could change…and make it into a library/reading area…and was met with a resounding YES!

Though I advocate that your home should always be a place of calm, peace and sanctuary, it is even more important during these times that are trying our patience to its limits.

I went to work, with assistance from the Southern Man, to move furniture around, swap out chairs and tables…some pieces bought down from the second floor, scrounging in the basement for ideas, rearranging the massive stack of old suitcases that comprises important storage in a house with only two small closets.

I wanted the feel and the look of an old scientific library…big, comfy chairs for reading and naps, sturdy tables for piles of books and space for coffee cups and wine glasses, plenty of light for mood and ambiance.

Since its spring here, I went with a theme of a “botanical bibliotheque” for the dining room table that is now the library reference display. I anticipate changing this display with the seasons so that there’s always something interesting to examine.

Having this table in place also provides a great backdrop for photographic studies - the light is good and any number of possibilities exist for capturing interesting vignettes that I can use in my mixed media collages.

We’ve been spending every morning here, reading the local newspapers, enjoying that first cup of coffee, taking stock of the day ahead.

Previously I had taken over the dining room table as a open area for working on collages since it was easier than cleaning up my office or studio…with the dining room table option now eliminated, it has forced me to clean up my art spaces, get better organized and start some serious purging. That’s no small task to tackle…since moving into this house 18 years ago, the contents of my studio has expanded to fill the space (a sort of artistic Peter Principle at work!) but its time to reign in that compulsion. Since it sounds like we’ll be sheltering in place, or some version of it, for some time to come, I have plenty of opportunity and time on my hands. And I have a place to sit and relax when all that purging becomes too much.

An Update on my Calendar…as you can see if you hop over to my calendar page, there’s been a bit of changes. My Spring Studio Sale with 7 other local artists has been cancelled. The Artist Garage Sale has been moved to September. My Portland workshops have been moved to late June…and I’m hoping they will still be held. My summer shows, Wedgwood Art Festival and Fresh Paint are still on the calendar but I have to be honest, I’m not optimistic that any such large scale events will be happening for the remainder of the year.

My Etsy shop is the best place to purchase my art - especially my cards and prints. I plan on beefing up my shop in the months ahead so there will be plenty of options for gift-giving - either to others or even to yourself…because we all deserve it!