Today's delightfully cheery handmade space belongs to Cindy, the creator of the lovely stationery line, Blue Rose Design, and most recently, she's developing a new line of goods that combine paper and fabric which will hopefully soon be available for purchase. In the meantime, you can keep up with her on her blog, Quaint Handmade, or check out her flickr photostream. Now, on to her beautiful studio!
What do you create in this space?
I grew up making all kinds of crafts,
but stopped for some reason when I started my professional career. Several
years ago I became involved in more creative areas at work and revived
my interest in painting. I like to use watercolors as they’re so beautiful
when done well – not an easy task. I can also work quickly and they’re
portable. I tend to like things that are small and enjoy paper quilting,
too. My love of flowers often results in tiny (quaint) bouquets.
A few years ago I purchased a sewing
machine to use for the handmade greeting cards I was making at the time.
Before I knew it, I was taking quilting classes and really became interested
in sewing. I love fabric, which is like a different type of palette,
and usually make things that are functional in some way. I’ve worked
in technology and find that sewing is absolutely the hardest thing I’ve
ever done. The necessary planning (patience) is worth it though as it’s
so rewarding when you can use something you’ve made with your own
hands. I’ve always loved school/office supplies and hope to bring
paper + fabric together in some special way.
Can you describe what we see in the
pics a bit?
This room serves as a guest room and
a studio for me. We love vintage so it’s eco-friendly, too. My husband
used to play businessman at the small desk when he was a kid. The typewriter
is mine from the 1970s. There’s also a vintage fan and a Tivoli radio,
which connects to my iPod. I couldn’t live without it as something
is always playing. 
Paper supplies are stored in the hutch and fabric
in a rolling cart.
We also have a few inspiration boards,
including one I made for my husband. When they get too full, I’ll
remove everything from the boards and start again. I love Japanese craft
books, which makes sewing even harder since I can only figure out the
directions from the pictures. Work from other artists is a must and
includes treasures from Shim + Sons, Posie Gets Cozy, Little Birds and
Greenbean Baby Art.
How do you feel when you enter your
"handmade space?
It’s a small room, so it naturally
has a cozy feeling. It faces west so the afternoon sun is quite bright
giving a nice light. The room is painted pale pink and is very cheery,
although I’m tempted to paint it a pale blue to make it more soothing.
The room has some special treasures, including my Father in Law’s
childhood mahogany sleigh bed. It serves as another workspace to use
to lay out fabric choices and a nice place to take a break as it’s
covered with pillows.
I like to keep things neat, which is
a blessing and a curse. When I would color as a child, I not only stayed
in the lines, I outlined them in black crayon – ugh! I’ve been fighting
that tendency ever since and have to really try to be more painterly
in all of my work. In terms of the room, I like to put everything back
in its place at the end of the day as though I’m leaving the office.
But, note to self, take some photos of the room when it’s a mess and
leave it like that for 24 hours!
Oh, how I would love to walk into this room every morning to get some work done! I love love love it, it's feminine and inspiring. Thank you for sharing, Cindy!
