Some of you might remember when I purchased this pretty oak hutch to act as storage in my studio… I filled it with my decorating and design books with just a small handful of art books mixed in and I remember sharing that I was hoping to build my art resource book library about the time this photo was taken. Well, I made short work of that goal!  I’ve collected dozens of books on the masters, oil painting, impressionism, watercolors, sketching, portraits, figurative work, landscapes, clouds, plein air, still lifes, and books filled with reference images.  The collection has grown to fill most of the first two shelves of the large bookcase in my studio. I pick them up here and there.  Some are new from bookstores (even a few from Shakespeare & Co and the Musee D’Orsay in Paris), many are bought used off of Amazon, and a few

This was looooooooong overdue.  Jeff and I built this closet in my studio in the spring of 2019 and I just threw everything in.  It was a busy season and when things are behind closed doors, I can let them slide for a while.  It was getting out of control, though.  There was an avalanche of frames and photography gear just about every time I opened the doors.  I would growl, get what I needed, and close the doors as quickly as possible.  It’s not how I envisioned using this closet.  This was supposed to give me thoughtful, organized storage for the bulky gear needed for certain aspects of my business.  Instead, it was something I would give the stinkeye when I viewed it from my desk. When a storage solution turns into that, it’s really time to address it and I knew it wouldn’t take much time or effort.