Compost, A Gardener's Best Friend

By guest blogger Connie Harris.

Building and maintaining a compost pile is the easiest and most surefire way to become a better gardener. Compost will improve your soil structure and will provide a balanced source of plant nutrients. Unlike commercial organic or inorganic fertilizers, which need to be applied at the right time and at the right amount, compost can be added to the soil at any time and in any amount. It's impossible to over-apply compost; plants will absorb only want they need, when they need it.

One of the best aspects of composting is that you cannot fail. Organic matter will rot no matter what, fuss with it everyday, or ignore it, for months - it doesn't matter.

Two types of materials make up a compost pile: Carbon, or "browns" and Nitrogen, or "greens". Carbon items are dried leaves, woody plant trimmings, dead garden and house plants, dried grass clippings, shredded paper products, straw and hay. Nitrogen items are raw fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, filters and tea bags, egg shells, fresh grass clippings, nut shells, stale or moldy bread, leafy plant trimmings, and spent flowers.

To build a pile, start with about 1 foot of "browns" add about 3 inches of greens, keep the materials as moist as a wrung-out sponge, repeat layering until the bin is full, ending with a layer of "browns". The closer you can get to 3 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen, the faster you will have finished compost. Aerating the pile by turning and mixing the layers will speed the decomposition. It is recommended that you turn you pile after 1 week, then every 3 weeks for a total of 4 turns. You should have finished compost in about 3 months. The pile usually shrinks to ½, or less of its original size and will be dark, crumbly, and ready for your garden.


About the author:
An avid gardener and master composter, Connie spends most of her spare time nurturing her garden. Currently, Connie serves on the Mecklenburg Waste Management Board. She is also Executive Director of Journey Toward Sustainability, a program with the mission of educating elementary school children in Char/Meck Schools on how they can make a difference by doing small things. Their goal is to begin a conversation with the next generation about what living in a sustainable world means. Connie has a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education and a Master's degree in Educational Media.

Here, Connie spreads a large pile of pine mulch on her front yard, which is now entirely naturalized- not a single blade of grass!

A Carnivore's Journey to Tofu Acceptance

What did it take for someone who grew up eating pulled pork BBQ, side meat, bacon, steak, burgers, fried chicken and regretably, even chitlings, to be a believer in tofu?

Well, I was forced to eat tofu by a bearded clockwork orange trickster. Well, that's an exaggeration, but here's what happened.

Host a Spring Clothing Swap!

All clothing images from www.zwwzy.etsy.com. I compiled this collage in Photoshop.

Last week I attended a spring clothing swap hosted by my friend Melissa of Mason and Virginia. It forced me to do some spring closet cleaning and allowed me to catch up with friends, pick up new (used) duds, and be part of a group donation to the secondhand store. Melissa has the clothing swap process down to a science, so I'll share how she does it, so that you can host one too!

A Conversation with Artist Erin M. Riley

Drunk Girl, 2010, 36" x 27"

For several years, Erin M. Riley has been making people feel uncomfortable in the fine art world using the unlikely medium of hand-dyed wool. Her hand-woven tapestries have made us confront isolation and addiction and think about our family histories. Erin demonstrates how the the callous, unforgiving internet is woven into many of our sensitive social interactions. In fact, she finds the imagery for her tapestries of young people using Google image search and Facebook.

Erin is currently a McColl Center for Visual Art artist-in-residence. She has exhibited throughout the country and her shows have been featured in Juxtapose Magazine and on FecalFace.com. She earned a BFA in Fibers from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and a MFA in Fibers at Tyler School of Art. She lives in Philadelphia, PA but is a bit nomadic, traveling to residencies and living in different cities for months at a time, all in the name of her art. Considering the subject matter of her work, it was ironic that we had the conversation below using Facebook Chat.

Sarah Terry: Is this a good time to do the interview?

Erin Riley: Yes it is. I’m just in my studio.

ST: Do you have set studio hours for the residency?

ER: Yea, I have to be in the studio 11-4 Monday through Friday and sometimes Saturdays.

ST: It would be nice to have that structure. I kind of wish I had mandatory studio hours!

ER: It’s interesting, I am not a morning person and 11 is early for me.
I tend to stay here until 3 or 4 am. Some of the people here are morning people, so I envy them.


See a video of Erin weaving on her blog.

ST: Have you seen the tapestries at the Bechtler in Charlotte? Do you know if those artists (Calder, Picasso, Miro etc.) would have woven them?

ER: I’ve been cooped up here so i haven’t been to the museum yet, but no way. I’m sure they sent them out to a tapestry studio. It seems to be a rather common thing nowadays for artists to send their work out to be woven into tapestries. There was an exhibition of pretty well known contemporary artists, including Kara Walker, in NYC recently that was the same concept. William Kentridge also did that and they were incredible, huge, like 10 feet wide and 3 or 4 women weaving at a time.

ST: Wow. Does that kind of work pay well, or does it pay nothing (translating someone else’s work?)

ER: I don’t think it does, it’s just like any sort of manual labor. The artist makes the thousands and the weaver makes a wage.

ST: Weaving seems like hard work. I was reading how your back is always hurting and your fingers bleeeeeed.


ER: Yea! Haha. I’m in rough shape. Here my left wrist is killing me more than it ever has. It’s slight but I definitely worry about the long-term effects. I’ve been taking my vitamins, doing some exercises and drinking lots of water. We will see what happens. There are weavers out there who have been doing it for years.

ST:Do you mind if we talk about your Facebook series for a second?

ER: Sure.

Post #4, the last post in an August series about organizing your creative space. Catch up by reading Post #1, Post #2 and Post #3.

A Few Parting Words...

I've lived in homes filled with piles of things my whole life. From my parents I got my creativity, kindness, and my CLUTTER. So for 25 years I have felt at home in my messy spaces. But this is a new day. I have learned how to clean up my act and made the decsion that I am going to keep it that way. It's not going to be easy, but if I can do it now, truly anyone can.

If you have been following this series, you now have an organized work area ready for the busy fall season. Now comes the challenge- maintaining your clean space. If you follow through on the practices and rituals you have developed and hold yourself accountable, you will reap the benefits.

Since "Get Organized Month" at Stitch Machine is coming to a close, I'll leave you with a few other areas to work on now that your creative space has been taken care of:

Relaxation Space
Make sure you have a tidy, relaxing place seperate from your creative space, even if you have to make a room divider. In the early years of Stitch Machine I tried to make my creative space and my relaxation space the same. That didn't work.

Car
I once read that "a car is a mode of transportation, not a storage space on wheels". So true.

Kitchen
The dishes are the biggest problem here. They just keep getting dirty! Make sure the dishwasher is always ready for more dirty dishes so you can avoid pileup in the sink. This means that when a load is done, you'll have to put the clean dishes away immediately. If you don't have a dishwasher, do your best to wash dishes right after dinner to avoid the pile. Easier said than done, I know.

Closet
Go through all of your clothes and remove anything that doesn't fit, can't be repaired, or you haven't worn in the past year. Organize a clothing swap with friends. Donate the unclaimed clothes.

Body
Exercise and eat healthy foods. Learning to cook will help you to eat fresher and cheaper!

Mind
You have to get your mind organized before you can start to live the life you want to live. Most of us wouldn't bat an eye at taking care of our bodies when we get sick, but when our minds get sick, it is a different story. If you have buried stress that is holding you back, take action. Stress can wreak havoc on your space, health, relationships, and your life. That thing you have been putting off- finding a psycologist, going to an AA meeting, seeing a doctor, getting in touch with your faith, whatever- have courage, and do it! You have to take care of you. <3

Post #3 of an August series about organizing your creative space.
Catch up by readingPost #1 and Post #2.


The Psychology of The Mess

If you have been following my Get Organized posts this month, you might still be sorting your stuff. It’s a big job, I know! So while you are finishing up, I wanted to share 5 thoughts that might help clutter bugs like myself get in the organized mindset, and also give some insight to why we create clutter.

1. First, a VISUALIZATION TIP while you are de-cluttering.
As I was sorting, It helped me to get a rewarding image in my head of what I could do if I was organized, and keep replaying that as I sorted. For me I was imagining myself effortlessly gliding the vacuum across a wide open floor with the sun shinning in. I also imagined myself working in my tidy studio and being really efficient. It’s amazing how rewarding it feels when your visualization becomes reality.


2. AN EPIPHANY
While I was sorting through my things, I had an epiphany (OK- the idea was planted by my boyfriend & reinforced by reading but it grew and bloomed in my own mind and soon was firmly rooted into my psyche.) Anyway, I realized that not only did I need to physically clean up, but I needed to fundamentally change the way I thought about my stuff and my work habits. No longer could I leave projects out to remind me to do them (that is how I got to the photos you saw of my studio). I had to start putting projects away at the end of the day and making a list of what needed to be done the next day.

Now I have a 5 minute ritual at the end of the day where I put things back in their places, put my projects that I didn’t finish in my “Need to Be Finished” box, and throw trash away. I still allow myself to spread my mess out all day, but the difference is I actually clean it up at the end of the day. Seems simple, but I really have to make it a daily ritual so that I will do it. It has made all the difference. I hope I can stick to it.

3. OBJECTS don't equal MEMORIES
I have also had to remind myself that I don’t need to keep objects to remind me of events or people (a few are ok). The real memory is in my head, and truthfully- if I loose my memory the object probably won’t mean anything to me anyway. Sounds harsh, but it’s true. So get rid of it if you can!

4. REARRANGE YOUR SCHEDULE for a neater life
In order to get control of my mess I also had to rearrange my schedule. I had to have better self discipline about making an offical “closing time” each day. So now my closing time is 8 PM (for now) and after that I'm not allowed to work on Stitch Machine at all (I finish up earlier if I have to work at the grocery store that night). But of course Fridays I am out selling at my local market until 11:30 PM sometimes, so it all comes out in the wash.

When you work at home it is very hard to differentiate between work time and personal time, and I tended to always be working, never having any personal time to recharge, which would lead to me burning out. Sticking to a closing time now helps me to know when I need to start cleaning up, and also gives me a little time after work to do house chores and personal things I enjoy. Before I recently rearranged my schedule that stuff never really got done. It is a much more sustainable way to work, and helps to keep the mess at a minimum.

5. YES, being organized can make EVEN AN ARTIST feel good.
A few years ago, one of my organized friends proudly said that his favorite store was Space Savers. I scoffed and made fun as I sat content, but largely unproductive, amid my tangled web of creative projects. I secretly though "What a square!"

But after a few more years of maturity under my belt, now I finally get it. Being organized makes you feel good. It makes you feel peaceful. It frees your mind up to think about "bigger picture" things. It makes you feel powerful. You are in control of your space, and that breeds the feeling that you are in control of your life (even if you are not). It gives you some peace of mind and propels you in a positive direction to think that you are in control and you can do anything you set your mind to.



Do any of you organized squares out there (kidding!) have some inspirational quotes or mental tricks to help those of us in clutter rehab re-train our minds? If you are a master organizer, please share. We really need your help!

Post #2. Part of a series of posts about organizing your creative space. See #1 here.

First Things, First

OK. You’ve come to grips with the fact that things need to change, and now you’re ready to get started. Where to start? It seems hopeless! The first step may be the toughest, but it’s also the most important. You are going to have to put your hands on EVERY art/craft supply you own over the next couple of days. And I mean ALL of it.

Supplies that help:
-Clear sandwich bags
-labels
-sharpie/pens
-trash bags
-boxes (Big ones and shallow ones. You can get them for free at the grocery store, just ask customer service and you can pick them up the next day. Pineapple boxes are great!)
-shelves, bookcases, cabinets

If you don’t have some of this stuff, you don't need to buy it before you can get cleaned up. Find a substitution. The sooner you get started, the sooner you will have an organized space. You can buy storage shelves (or whatever) later if you need to.

I am really good at rationalizing my mess and making excuses to delay getting organized. The morning I was about to start this process myself two weeks ago, I reasoned, “But I can’t get started yet, I need to get some baskets and another shelf for storage.” With tough love my boyfriend sternly said to me “I think you know what you NEED to do.” I didn’t want to hear it. Still, I needed to just dive in. Other things can wait. You need to get your studio and home organized. It will improve almost every aspect of your life.








CLEAR THE TRASH
Grab a Recycling bin and/or trash bag and go ahead and clear out any obvious things that can go away- paper, fabric and thread that is too small to do anything with, packaging, plastic bags from purchases.




MAKE PILES
Now focus on one little corner or one box of junk and start sorting. You will need to put each object in one of these places:
1. Trash/Recycling Bag
2. Goodwill Bag- Not trash, but you can part with it.
3. Things to Keep



As you find things you want to keep, start making piles of similar things. I put things together that I use together, and I had a rule that I could only have one storage place per type of item. For example- I had a printmaking pile. And I had a scissors pile. I do use scissors during printmaking, but since I was storing scissors together, I couldn’t put any of them in the printmaking pile. Make sense? Grouped piles will start to naturally form as you go through your stuff, so don’t get stressed out about labeling a pile right away. See what you instinctively put together- groupings may form that you didn’t realize were there. Stick to your piles as you are sorting.



LABEL PILES AND MAKE A STORAGE SPACE
Once you get to the point where you have, for example, a pile of all the tape you own, go ahead and give it it’s own Ziploc bag or small box. You may find it necessary to go through each pile once it's grouped to organize and purge once again. If you put it in a box, label it. Go ahead and make a storage place for it. That way, if you find more tape while you are sorting, you already have a place to put it. This will build your confidence and momentum.



Systematically move though your space a little at a time. It is possible to have a lot of stuff and still be organized, but you have to make a system. My theory with the boxes is that in the future when I need something, I can pull the box down off the shelf and rummage through the box- instead of rummaging through the entire shelf. It will seem neater, and I am still allowed to rummage! Win-win!





OTHER HELPFUL TIPS

MY CATEGORIES
Here are some of the boxes that I labeled for my own studio:
-sewing
-branding materials
-hair clip hardware
-fabric for this season
-other fabric
-glue
-tape
-spray paint
-shipping stuff
-hand tools (scissors, Xacto knives, etc.)
-Pile of all stray paper that I could use later for projects or scratch paper
-assorted envelopes
-greeting cards
-tools
-buttons: store in sectioned storage containers for easy viewing
-More…

ACTION BOXES
I also made boxes for objects that required some kind of action before they could be stored away or sent out of my studio. So I had Things to Finish (Soon!), Ideas that will soon be reality, Stuff to Blog, Inbox (paperwork that needs immediate attention) and Inspirations. I also made a big box of “personal craft projects” and moved this out of my work area and into my bedroom. Pretty much everything else could just be stored.

STAY POSITIVE!
It will probably take you a few days to get through everything, or maybe longer. But it is crucial to keep a positive attitude and be persistent. Allow yourself to take breaks occasionally and reflect on how well you are doing! And don’t let yourself off the hook or settle for a semi-neat space. If you need to, think of this process as your punishment for letting it get to this state. You got yourself into this mess (literally), and YOU ARE GOING TO GET YOURSELF OUT. But don’t be too hard on yourself, and remeber, as Cherry Jeffs points out in his concise article How to Keep the Artists Studio Clutter Free Forever, “this kind of studio purge should never have to be done again.”

Now get to sorting! You can do it!

Get Organized #1

August is officially GET ORGANIZED month at Stitch Machine. I am making a commitment to improve my space. Join me on my journey, and I hope you will improve yours too! Now is the perfect time to purge, donate, and organize, because the busiest season of the year, Fall, will soon be upon us. So let's get it together. Your mind will be clear and you will be able to work more efficiently. You'll be able to put your hands on what you need, when you need it. You'll have a place for everything.

I got a head start by spending two weeks sorting everything in my studio/home, and I will share how in a series of posts this month. If I can get THAT organized, you should have no problem. I still have some work to do in other areas, but so far it feels amazing. And I've already noticed an increase in my productivity as a result.

As a fun way to kick things off, I asked some of my close friends to talk about my studio/apartment. It kind of turned into a "yo mama" contest, but the underlying truth is there. They are the only ones who really see my studio regularly. Professionally, revealing this may be a bad idea, but I take my cue from Alexander Calder and Jennifer Perkins who have shown the world their messy workspaces and still managed to flourish. So here goes nothin':

The Horrible Truth about my Studio
Brought to you by my friends.
*Caution: Rated PG-13 for language and content.

"Yeah her apartment is messy, but she always knows where everything is- because everything is out... where she can see it... everywhere."

"Sometimes the studio just starts taking over."

"Her place used to look like M.C. Escher and Jackson Pollock had a threesome with Lady Gaga, who then promptly gave birth all over her living room."

"I used to have a twin brother until I took him to visit Sarah's apartment."

"Sarah is so disorganized, that she used to have to use a map to find her kitchen."

"If I had a dollar for every time I told Sarah, 'If it had been a snake, it would have bitten you,' I would have enough money to buy Sarah an organizer."

"Her shit was straight distressed, yo!"

"Sarah is so disorganized, that when you walked into her apartment you thought you were at an exhibit entitled 'Life in Chaos' "

"Sarah used to live like some 20-something artist with an up-and-coming art business and a part-time job at [a grocery store]."


THE HARD EVIDENCE
Here are some photos to prove it.

My painting corner.


This photo was taken over a week after I last painted.



My crafting table. This was a pretty good day for the floor, but the table top always looked like this.





Valuable tools were left on the floor by the door where I last used them.



Still needed to unpack from my last craft fair.



And just for laughs, I'll show you a portion of what my bedroom looked like. Notice how it's all messy art stuff and nothing you would think should be in a bedroom? Certainly not a sanctuary.


OK, that was fun. Tomorrow we'll start talking about why my space constantly looked like this, and how I fixed it all.

*Disclaimer: I am an excellent bookkeeper and all of my business files are in their own file cabinet away from everything- that's one thing I am very careful about.

My article is featured in the current FNO Newsletter

Festival Network Online is and extensive online source for music festivals, art and craft shows, home and garden shows, and specialty events. This organization is located in the mountains of Western North Carolina and has a small staff of nine. My blog post "What to do When You're NOT Accepted to a Craft Fair" appeared in the May 2010 FNO newsletter.



See my full article in the newsletter:
http://festivalnet.com/other/news_letters/Artists/05_10/not_accepted_cont.html

See what they're saying about my article on the FNO Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/festivalnet

See back issues and sign up to receive future issues for free:
http://festivalnet.com/other/news_letters/index.html

Q & A with artist John W. Fesken

John Fesken constructs a tiny world using found figurines and objects that he paints, burns, manipulates and houses in wooden boxes. He meticulously builds their erie surroundings and even includes a few wishes and dreams. His characters also come to life in the form of paintings on window pane frames and forgotten photographs that he scratches, paints, and burns to give the subjects a second life. He has been traveling to art shows, bazaars, and rock concerts in the South this year meeting people and showing his work face to face. I caught up with him during the Art and Soul of South End street festival in Charlotte, NC about a week ago and picked his brain as he sketched away:

Where did you grow up?
Jersey City

How did you come to live in Georgia?
I was working as a p.a. doing film editing but was really unhappy with it. My wife Cecily got a job in Savannah, and after one visit we moved South to live a quieter life. I decided to take the leap and do art full time.

When did you start creating art?
This is something that I have always done, since I could hold a pencil, and something I will always do. I would do art even if I knew no one would ever see it, because it is who I am. I’ve done other things, like music, but art is the one thing that is all me.


What do you create/paint about?
Every one of these guys [points to his work] has a storyline going on. All of these guys have anxieties, fears, and hopes. Lately I’ve been painting about “the pink moon” and “waiting for the pink moon.” Waiting, watching, wondering, wishing- all of these W’s.

What is the one thing you wish people understood about your work?
That it’s not scary or just about dead people. I think there is actually a theme of hope in my work. It doesn’t bother me if people judge me and think I’m weird or strange, but I wish they wouldn’t be so quick to judge the work. I think a lot of people could identify with it if they took the time.

It bothers me when people ask “How do you do this?" [with the intent of copying it]. People mention that they have window panes at home and could "probably do that". I want to say: "Get that away from my ears!" I’m killing myself for this, literally- there’s no telling how many brain cells I’ve killed from paint and glue. If you paint a window pane, it won’t be exactly the same. It will be your own work.



Do you have any advice for others that might be trying to sell their own art work?
You’re never going to see me try to sell art to someone. If it speaks to them, I hope they will buy it. It’s something I struggle with- that I put it out there for people to purchase.

What is the purpose of art?
It’s selfish. It’s something I need to do. Because they have anxieties [points to figures], I’m calm. It’s how I keep my sanity.











Catch John W. Fesken this weekend at the Savannah Market Bazaar and on May 16 and 17, 2009 at Artsplosure in Raleigh, NC. If you can't make it, find him on the web:
jwmadman.deviantart.com
jwmadman.etsy.com
myspace.com/johnwfesken