I just started working on what promises to be quite a showstopper of a design project for a photography studio. Let's just say it has something of a colorful past and I mean this literally… as in, so colorful it's virtually the stuff that nightmares are made of. To be fair, I guess cosmic rainbow murals have their place, but sadly I'm not sure that place belongs in a photography studio.
The shot above is a bit like my wishful thinking since the seemingly white wall shown there is not actually white yet and is in fact just a mock-up. That cute wall is still just as out of this world cosmic cool as you see it in the pictures below. But this is the first thing that will change and as luck would have it, I'm pretty sure the priming has already begun. Yippee.
This space is just amazing. That exposed brick wall, the black trim around the windows and doors and good lord that ceiling is mighty fine. And check out those floors… I mean, aside from priming and painting the walls until the cows come home, virtually everything this space needs is cosmetic and quite honestly business can commence once the walls are finished. That makes for a fun and fabulous project for me, since it is purely decoration with a mix of some necessary functionality thrown in, and a very happy gal in that she doesn't have to put her work on hold.
Here is the cosmic rainbow in all it's glory. Can you imagine the man hours that must have gone into that finish? Sadly I can… and it was a lot. Check out the corner of the skylight in this space. It is the stuff that makes the world go round and happens to be large and relatively centrally placed. For a studio that will rely on natural light much of the time, it doesn't get any better than that!
So let's chat about the lucky gal who rented this glorious space. She is a long time friend of mine, we went to school together and we played many years of field hockey together as well. To this day she is the only professional photographer that has ever taken pictures of my kiddos. And naturally when I say kiddos, I actually mean just my first kiddo, Blake. I guess I have been so busy since he was about 2 that I haven't had any professional shots done of him since and none whatsoever of Penn. Yes I am a horrible mom, but at least I own it, there is really no such thing as finding the perfect balance between work and home life. But alas I digress…
Her needs for this space are simple and yet they do pose a bit of a challenge. Everything that lives in an open floor plan space such as this needs to feel cohesive, needs to serve multiple purposes, and needs to be flexible and movable for ease of shooting at any given moment in any given spot. She frequently shoots newborns and boudoir shoots, both require certain things to be considered like changing areas and privacy. Add to that the fact that this space may be used by other local photographers for shooting and workshops that Amber hosts and things get downright tricky. Not to worry though, tricky is my favorite type of design challenge to solve.
Ah yes, more of that glorious rainbow that leprechaun dreams are made of. I truly wonder what this space was used for with this sublime wall treatment. Maybe gymnastics for tots? No clue.
Budget is obviously a consideration (as it should be) and they are willing to put a little DIY elbow grease into the mix if need be so obviously they are speaking my language here. I am putting together a color board and then I will finalize the furnishings and finishes for her. I can't wait to share my plan with you, it's going to be amazing and mind blowingly inexpensive!
To follow along with our progress check out…
