I Have a New Studio!

My new Garden Studio is heeeerrreee!!

(if you are so inclined, zoom into my face to see what sheer, non Insta cool EXCITEMENT looks like).

After years of researching, planning and saving it is here, plugged in and I am set up and back to working normally or rather in a new and improved set up.

Previously I worked out of a spare room and shared that with anything in the house that needed storage. Last year, we finally moved to our own place with a garden whilst the Little Bird was in the metaphorical oven (which meant the new 'spare room' was already allocated). And so, maternity leave around the corner, Wool & Water was packed into boxes and stored all around the new apartment while we finalised acquiring a garden studio.

As with all these things this ended up taking longer than we expected. So post Maternity Leave, each order that came in resulted in me 'shopping' around the various storage spots to gather the materials needed before finding time, while Edie was with her Dad or napping, to get making.

I shall not lie, it proved somewhat stressful. I felt I couldn't actively promote W&W as I was only capable of being reactive to what orders came in organically as opposed to proactively upping my workload without being sure how quickly I could deliver.

But suddenly the day was here and the flatbed lorry with my bespoke 8m2 studio was outside the apartment. Our road officially closed while the biggest crane I ever saw started rigging it up to lift over our 3 storey building and into the garden. 

After months of back and forth, measuring, considering and not a small amount of stressing, within 4 hours of arriving on the street it was in the garden and awaiting an electrician to hook it up ensuring the lights and heating would work.

Then came the unpacking...oh lordy! You know that feeling of packing boxes without time to sort and filter and then a year later, working out how to get them all into a smaller space than you had them in originally...? Well it took a week of arranging and a few tough editing decisions (yes some yarn got gifted elsewhere) BUT other than some shelves and plants it is complete and I have been working in here for a week now and LOVING it!

Just having my own creative space to explore and experiment with all the new ideas that have bounced around my head in-between all that is involved in learning to be a mum feels incredible.

I have definitely found that a big struggle of new mum life is the reclaiming of your pre-mum identity and accepting/learning how that now differs to what it was before breastfeeding, nappies, sleep deprivation and all the amazing, wondrous firsts that come with a brilliant emerging little person.  Often waiting for this studio felt like a parallel experience, like a metaphorical finish line.

So a few tweaks and additions til the ultimate goal of an organised life to go but...essentially all the important bits are in the right place and ready to be productive - see those metaphors just keep coming! 

Now for those of you that have that tune playing in your head - dance party time!