OT/General Studio space anyone?

I have that same problem. Well not to that extent though. I sculpt on my bed. I know weird, but it's comfy and there's lots of room. (My desk is way too cluddered to do anything on it lol)

If I ever try casting, luckily my dolls are teensy tiny and won't take up much space. I most likely wouldn't even use a pressure pot. I think if I really want to get a good amount of dolls, I may just send them to a company to get them casted. Maybe someday I'll learn more about mold making and such to be able to create my own resin dolls, but at this point in my life, its just not that possible.

 

I live with my boyfriend, 2 dogs, 2 cats, and my fish. I create all my art work in a small 2 bedroom/2 bathroom house. I do most of my creative work at my computer desk located in the living room. While working, the cats are restricted in another room and the dogs are either restricted or given a command to stay on their mats. (The dogs are well manners/trained for the most part so having them stay away is not an issue... the cats however have a mind of their own if they are running around.) Most of my materials are non-toxic or are not very toxic. I do most of my sculpting in carving wax and sulfur-free oil clay. If I have to do any sanding of potentially unsafe materials, I go outside to do that (while wearing a face mask). I keep all materials in storage containers for organization and safety. I clean up well when I am done.

I used to to do my mold making and resin casting in the largest bathroom with has a good window for ventilation. I work next to the window with the fan blowing the fumes outside. I do close the bathroom off when I am casting resin (which probably isn't recommended in such a small space, but this keeps the fumes from my pets). I also wear a face mask with filter to protect my lungs. My problem is not being able to open all the windows to vent the house out when it is hot and humid outside while the air conditioning runs. So I used the only room I can close off and has a large window. The resin fumes are worst before it cures...

Now that I am using a pressure pot, I am doing my mold making near the patio door in the living room, which is also near my desk. The cats are restricted and the dogs stay out of the area. Even the fish knows to stay away... okay just kidding there...haha I am probably not going to do my resin casting in the living room though. The floor plan is too open and I fear the fumes will spread throughout the house. I may go back to the bathroom for that or even use the outdoors if the weather is decent. I don't worry so much about the silicone rubber then I do the urethane resin. All sanding of resin will also be done outside ONLY! With face mask. Even spraying MSC will be done outside with face mask. Away from places my dogs like to hang out.

I do wish I had a room dedicated to my crafting so that I can keep humans and pets safe. Even a studio would be nice, but I much rather have a dedicated room. When inspiration hits, heading out and driving is the last thing I want to do.

 

Currently, I don't need any special space for my dollmaking, since it's all done on my PC, which is pretty great for me since we don't have anywhere I could really do things in this house - at least, not and keep them out of reach of my 3 year old.

We'll be moving soon into our own place, and part of the requirement when we were house-hunting was that it have an extra bedroom, a finished attic with dedicated stairs, or ideally, a shed outdoors. What we got is absolutely incredibly perfect - a huge brick shed with large windows, electricity, and nearby pipes so I can have a sink installed later for cleanup. It's attached to the house, so I don't have to go outside to get into it, and it will be pretty easy to add some proper flooring, insulation, and nicer walls (right now it's just painted brick and concrete floor) to make it into a real room that will be nice year-round. Plus the windows look out on the back yard, so I'll be able to be out there working on stuff and watch the kids playing in the back yard, and close by if they need me. The shed needs some work on the back door - it doesn't currently open, and I want to make it into a proper door plus window for ventilation, but with just a bit of a spit and polish, it'll be fantastic, and I can make whatever messes I need to and the kids won't be able to get into it. And the back yard is huge, so I can pull a table close to the shed, run an extension cord, and do whatever I need to in the open air if need be. I kind of can't wait to get in there and start fixing it up, making it spider-proof and decorating and putting in a sound system so I can listen to music while I work.

AND there's a proper finished attic with dedicated stairs, so if, at some point, I need more room than the shed can provide for something like office space (since I would like to sell my dolls eventually and I don't know how much space packing materials and whatnot will take up), I'll have that too.

 

HP, your new setup sounds wonderful. I'd love something like that myself-- maybe someday! Right now I live in a very small apartment with an outdoor deck. I sculpt and paint at the kitchen counter, and do the fume- or dust-generating things out on the deck, with a fan running.

 

Right now, I live in a small apartment, so my kitchen is my 'studio'. It has a sink, it has a table and like the rest of the house, there's vinyl on the floor, so I can keep everything clean. Especially the sink is a dream come true; just the fact that I don't have to walk to the bathroom anymore to use the tap - even though I only save about a minute - is bliss.

 

I sorta sculpt most everything while sitting on my couch... which really kinda pisses my husband off, but I am using LaDoll and premier so it's not really so bad. I work with a gentleman friend of mine producing garden sculpture, gargoyles, and architectural salvage pieces as well and we have worked to turn his basement into a working casting studio. Because of all my work on production, on the website we have together, and generally in streamlining our process, I can use any of the materials that we have to create the dolls that I am intending to make.

We will be moving above ground soon though. He has a good bit of property (Well only an acre) and so will be looking at building a structure that has the rough space of a three and a half to four car garage (We were looking at 24' by about 40'). It will be two and a half stories as we want the main studio to have at least 12 foot ceilings so it will be large enough to build some of our larger commissioned pieces in whole, instead of in pieces which we must then assemble on site. I'm really looking forward to it because then we will be able to get a Kiln (YAY for porcelain) as well as something larger than just the small pressure pot we have now for degassing and casting. Fingers crossed that that happens sooner than later!