Treehouse Life

Hello all,

A LOT has occurred since my last post....so much that I doubt I can summarize it all easily here.

March was spent enjoying the company of my good friend from Winnipeg in our cozy house by the sea.  At the end of March, we had to leave our home on the coast as it was becoming to awkward to live so far from the city.  We managed to house sit for friends in Auckland over the course of March-April...they being nice enough to allow us to cram all of our stuff into their garage.  I was able to use the old granny flat at the back of the garage for a studio...this flat had been lived in by all of the couples sons over the course of many years.  It was truly a boy cave and I really enjoyed retreating to my cave to work every day.

Isaac continues to work for Meadowlark finishing jewelery.  He is also getting out to the wood shop when he can to continue his training as a furniture maker. 

Once May rolled around we were searching hard for a new place...which proved difficult as what we required and what was available did not match up.  We managed to stumble upon the most incredible 3 floor studio in the bush..and I am very happy to say it has become our new home!  The house was built by a sculptor and 2 journeymen from Germany.  It is incredibly unique and features all the details we love so much.  We are literally still pinching ourselves to come to terms with the beautiful place we now get to live..thank you God!  There is a lot I could say about the house but I would rather let the pictures do the talking...enjoy!

Kitchen

The Studio...2nd Floor.  Divine light! Note that the doors are 13 feet tall!

My new Studio!

Studio looking up to 3rd Floor

The bedroom.

The view out our bedroom window.

The house is only a small drive outside the city center, so we are able to commute in easily and still have access to a natural, more laid back life.  The place is surrounded by native NZ bush...I am still so grateful that I get to hang out with birds and go to sleep amongst the treetops. I also am blessed to have the most incredible studio space!  A far cry from the boy cave I was using before.  After an incredibly hard year of transition it feels as if we have finally come home.  Fingers crossed.

More changes are in the mix.  I have decided to take on a full time day job to help us continue to stabilize financially and to get out of the house for a change!  Ironically, it is at a leather store...a perfect fit and I am just giddy everytime I get to sell leather to someone...I am so weird!  It has been a huge relief for both of us...Isaac can now focus more on building his own creative business and I can step back from Spiro a bit, allowing myself to go back to a place where i can resurrect my creativity and inspiration.  Churning out orders has dampened my heart and I need to be able to play again.  It is a relief to be able to enjoy Spiro rather than depending on it to pay our bills.  I have many ideas...already I have a new shoe design in the tube and am leaning back toward creating one of a kind beautiful pieces.  Stay tuned...more to come.

I was also able to find a part time job teaching soft leather craft via a really cool art studio in Auckland.  I am crazy excited and will begin teaching a few weekend classes over a few months.   Anyone keen in Auckland to learn more about leather craft should come out to play!  I will let you know more about the classes very soon.

We were also fortunate to be featured in the very lovely 'Extra Curricular' Magazine'!  If you haven't checked it out you should give it a read.  The magazine is based around crafty creative people and looks into their creative process and projects.  Thank you so much Ellie for the special feature and blog post!  We appreciate you:)

I have to say that I feel incredibly happy and content.  It is as if our lives have finally come together and life is making sense. 

I'm sorry I have been so bad at corresponding over the last little while.  In a way, life has been so stressful that I have been unable to share and too tired to function.  I feel more alive now then I have in awhile...it still amazes me how life can turn around and present you with a beautiful home and perfect job.  We are truly blessed and I feel ready to find my feet.

Love Barb and Isaac:)