The new studio… is fantastic!
For those of you that have been keeping up with my creative journey you know things have been tough with its many ups and downs as lately but things are starting to really turn around in a much more positive direction. In this new studio vlog video, I show the new space moved into! I’m so excited to have a. new space to work in that is full of new possibilities that previously were not possible with my situation. Things are not perfect but so much better than they have been for over 6 months. I also made some studio upgrades that have really changed the way I work and have increased my productivity drastically. There are some links below to some of those upgrades with a few alternatives worth checking out.
New Studio Space!
Here are the key new studio addictions that really helped increase my overall productivity. Being a multi-media and faceted designer, illustrator and artist my space need to have multiple functions that required very different spaces to achieve the type of work I need to do for specific projects. So how do you achieve that in one space? It’s not always an easy task to figure out but what has been working for me is dividing my space up into different zones. For me, it has 5 zone ins my space, and each one serves a very specific function. The first zone is my main desk/workstation. the next two zones are my workbenches, one is used for drawing and painting the other is a general workbench used for more maker-styled tasks like modeling, toy sculpting, and other maker-styled projects. Zone 4 is my shipping shelf that holds all my basic shipping materials, packing supplies, shipping scale ext. zone 5 aka the abyss is a storage area for tools equipment and other items that I’m not using frequently. everything has a place and is designed in a modular way where it all can be moved around easily to fit the many needs and constantly evolving tasks of a freelance designer and artist. I will be going more in-depth in the future about each space but in this video a made a few upgrades worth considering for your space.
Bookshelves
one of the best upgrades I made was a sturdy bookshelves. It really has been such a great purchase I have spent hundreds of dollars over the years on small and cheap bookshelves. they would constantly fall apart and actually collapse because of how heavy art and reference books. This one is made of metal and a hight quality laminated wood or mdf. I’m really happy with it, it holds all my books and sill has room for more, I may need to pick up some book ends if you don’t have books large enough to fit the openings on the side. With the reduced clutter and easy access to any of my reference books quickly is perfect for staying on task and finding what I need quickly with out having to rearrange or dig for a book I need. moral of this story is by nice not twice my friends. Trust me quality furniture and equipment is worth in the long run.
Drafting stool
Another upgrade I made to this new space was adding a drafting stool. My current desk chair is not tall enough to use at the work benches so getting a stool was important to get if I planed to draw and paint at one of the workbenches. This was a more cost effective option that was a little over my budget but all in all i’m happy with it and it serves its purpose and functions for the tasks I need it for.
The Workbench
For the workbenches, I was able to grab 2 of them at a great price from Harbor Freight they have coupons all the time on items like this but this particular item is a generic item that is branded under multiple companies. You can get the exact product on amazon but it may be more expensive than the Harbor Freight option if you have a coupon. I was able to get 2 of these workbenches for under $200. I would have paid at least $160 for one workbench off amazon but I will say the amazon version for whatever reason seems to have fewer defects. My Harbor Freight workbenches had some clearance issues with one of the drawers I also have a defective light on one of the workbenches. The workbenches are solid but only if you use proper tools and thread locker/ lock tight to assemble them. I plan to turn one of my work benches into a drafting table so having a replaceable work surface is a huge plus for me. Having built-in power is also a great feature. If I need to plug in my light table, iPad, pencil sharpener, or even my phone I have plenty of power to do that. This is definitely not the best option out there but for the price even the amazon price it is worth the purchase and for my current needs perfectly. Mine did not come with any pegboard accessories at all so I needed to purchase mine separately. I have linked those below.
Pegboard Accessories
You can get peg board accessories at any hardware store but always call before you travel to one just in case. These are the two I purchased that fit my personal needs for hanging common tools and drawing /sketching supplies.