The Studio, continued

The story unfolds:

As the years passed and the winters came and went, our business had its thriving happy moments. There were times when we could barely keep up with the orders rolling in from our Amazon account and our fingers ached from beading as fast as we could possibly bead.    It was good when we had to borrow chairs from the house to have enough seats and squeeze just one more person to our collage journal class.  Things were thriving when the yard was filled with people for our annual wine and cheese fall party or the annual arts and craft sale where we hosted other artists to sell their craft.  For seven years, two friends ran a tidy little business, making jewelry, teaching art classes, and hosting events.  It was good. 

And the studio has had its sad and lonely lows.  We were disappointed when no one showed up for our holiday sale.   And when we found out that a local mom hijacked one of our classes and taught it at her own home, we were mad.  And as the economy made its downward turn, so did our sales.  Who has money for jewelry, when they are trying to pay the bills?  The message became clear, it was time to move on. 

Through many long, sometimes painful, discussions, Kerry and I decided it was time to close the door on Milagro Jewelry.  It was the right thing to do.  We called the accountant and filed the paperwork.  That was the easy part. 

The hard part came next.  Our very full studio, packed to the rafters with treasures, (papers, beads, blank canvases, ribbon, ephemera, stickers, stamps, embellishments of all kinds) had to be divided.  Like a divorce, but on friendly terms, we have spent many long hours sorting and dividing.  Fortunately, never squabbling over who wants this special paper or that treasured ephemera, we often pass it along to the other.

And now it is done, almost.  And I am reinventing myself and my art in the warm studio that Kerry helped me build.

Kerry continues to create art and craft in her new art and sewing room at her home.  She has her own writing project, too.  You can see what she's up to at Type A Mom Type 1 Kid.

I am excited to see what will happen next.