Holding Patterns

Well we just keep on trucking along here. In spite of crazy articles about the potential for inevitable methane explosions, world economy collapse, and the sheer lack of grilled oysters around these parts it is business as usual. As long as there is some usual business, that is.

I'm sort of contemplating how my business can be portable in case of an extended hurricane evacuation.Katrina happened and I moved my business online and into another city,albeit temporarily. I didnt evacuate with machines or stock, but as soon as we could legally come in to "look and leave," I filled up serious loads of fabric and mcahines. What will happen if we have a gas influenced evacuation? We wouldnt be allowed to come back for a while one would imagine. Should I evacuate with samples?

Would love to hear how other artists are planing for their business and evacuation.




p.s. One thing I've been working on is wedding dresses. I ordered some silk hemp fabric and am looking forward to playing around with it.

Everything that rises must converge or Sisters are doing it for themselves!

I'd like to say this project began with noble intentions but it didnt. Purely out of anger, I started working on this building because I was so pissed off. Perchance, some acquaintances let me know that a friend of mine had told them I was a hoarder and that my home was overflowing with stuff. I really hope that it was said with a "bless her heart" kind of attitude(because yes my home is overflowing with wonderful stuff- some is dog hair but the rest is pretty nice stuff not cat poop or old pizza boxes) yet something about how this was conveyed to me told tells me it wasnt. At any rate, it forced me, along with my anger: Katrina, my 6 year knee injury from an accident that wasnt going to amount to anything near an appropriate settlement for my physical loss,the oil spill, and the sudden passing of one of my dearest friends to get going. It takes a lot to get me moving around and as much as I use stuff to hide my feelings this couldnt be contained.



I'd like to say this was my plan all along for this space but it wasnt. I wanted to buy the latest top notch recycled building materials like we put on the roof. But all the brochures were laying about (with all my "hoarded" stuff) and the materials were frankly too expensive in relation to the budget(about $0). So I went out to the yard!

While starting this renovation, I paid several hundred dollars to get wood hauled away, putting my favorite pieces or sentimental pieces of wood and metal aside. Yes I have sentimental wood- old, 100 ++yr old cypress, shutters from an old apartment that were thrown out by my landlord, a bit of frame from our furniture that was shredded in katrina, blah blah blah. Found objects that I stockpile, so on and so on. My house and yard is so cramped because we lost 1000 sq feet of (uninsured) studio space in that stupid storm and I have just hidden all of that anger with junk all about. So it's time to use it or lose it.

So now, the load is a little less lighter with both junk and anger. I appreciate having a place to say it. Next time it will be a happy post full of beignets, smores and kittens snuggling.

xoxoxo,K