Studio Snapshot

Tacked onto the back of the gallery is a sweet little room, it's just a couple of meters square but with the most beautiful view over our courtyard garden. I have nabbed it as a studio space for myself...  yeah.... total score, hells yeah!
Now I'm not telling you anything new when I say I can't resist a project, and this little room was seriously calling for a make-over. After a lick of white on the ceiling I spent a long time researching the perfect shade of grey for the walls. I had no idea how tricky it would be! I wanted a soft grey without brown or purple undertones and eventually settled on a Dulux shade at quarter strength. I was concerned the slight greeny tinge would be a problem but it's PERFECT!

It's soft and soothing and creates the most perfect light... the room over-looks our garden and the light is most amazing in the late afternoon when the evening sun sprinkles through the foliage. It was one of those evenings tonight when I took these pics, although it's not ready for a full studio tour I couldn't resist sharing the room so far.

 

Remember I told you I was inspired to paint? Well here's the result. Have I mentioned (much) that I'm LOVING neons this season?! Well, surprise, check out these neons baby!
All of the other rooms in the gallery have fireplaces and I knew this one would be no exception. Ever inquisitive I just couldn't help but wrench off the Masonite covering the chimney breast and OH MY GOSH! Look what I found! NO WAY!

It looked pretty damn disgusting, and let me tell you it was! This photo comes care of instagram ,several dried out dead rats, one rats nest and three buckets of general filth later. But it was worth it when I discovered not only were all the parts there, but it check out this awesome made in Ballarat emblem.

If you have ever wondered how to restore rusted cast iron then let me tell ya! First up you have to remove all the dead rats. Then whip out your wire brush and scrub off all the loose bits of flaky rusty-ness. Then coat all the iron in the magic anti-rust stuff, seriously. It's magic! This stuff creates a chemical reaction with the rust and turns it back into a non-corrosive metally goodness. Rockin!

Next you can give it a lick of heat resistant paint designed for stoves, I used a potbelly black. Although it has some cracks and has warped a little, there's no reason why this little baby won't be able to keep me toasty next winter. Just remember to get your chimney checked to make sure you don't burn the place down. Coz that shizzle's important dudes.

Signal Box project

Earlier this year I was selected to be part of  a public arts initative, the project involved painting artwork on one of the cities signal boxes and mentoring a group of young people to do the same.
With the theme of 'Beautiful Ballarat' I developed artwork through the format of an intricate papercut featuring some of Ballarats landmake heritage buildings titled 'Beautiful in the Rain'.

Today I began applying the design to my assigned box just down the road from Red Brick Gallery. With the help of my wonderful assistant Mark we completed the artwork quickly thanks to some nifty prep work in the form of a large stencil and a balsa wood stamp. I LOVED the stamp and will show you later in the week how easy it was to put together. I'm foreseeing a textile printing application next perhaps?

A welcome distraction to the job came in the form of the many people that stopped to chat about what we were doing, friends and regulars at the gallery as well as people from the neighbourhood we hadn't yet met.

Here is a photo of Dawn, she and her husband built the house the signal box is outside in the 60's. Hasn't she got great style!? Se was so pleased to see what we were up to, and I'm reminded once again what I great neighbourhood we live in where everyone takes the time to have a chat. 'Country' city living is seriously under rated.

If you would like to paint a signal box in your neighbourhood visit the Urban Smarts website to sign up. It's free to participate and all materials are supplied.

I hope your weekend was wonderful, good luck with Monday!
X Steph