Maker Studio Tour: An Astrid Adventure
Believe it, people: Re:Make 2014 will be hitting San Francisco hard in less that two weeks. While ramping up, talking to mover, shakers and makers and getting glimpses into an abundance of creation processes and work methods, we started to notice one common connector over and over again: These makers have some beautiful, crazy colorful and creative work environs that inspire. Rather than keeping all of these good vibes to ourselves, we thought we’d share the eye candy that our Re:Make makers work in on a daily basis. The first stop on our studio tour is at the San Francisco apartment and workshop of Astrid Reinchenbach, the artist behind An Astrid Endeavor.
If you’re not yet familiar with the jewelry from An Astrid Endeavor, get ready to be obsessed. Astrid forgoes metals and jewels in exchange for fabric and boldly colored embroidery floss. Seeing creations as bright and statement making as these, you would expect her studio to follow suit with a rainbow of embroidery floss strewn about — and worry not. It does just that.
We’re in awe of Astrid’s ability to do as much as she does in one day. After working a 10-hour shift as a psychosocial worker at a children’s hospital, Astrid comes home to spend the evening with her daughter. After bedtime stories are read, Astrid makes way to the ocean-side studio on her apartment. While listening to fog horns and crashing waves, Astrid quietly stitches rad necklaces worthy of lots of buzz. If you’re guessing she doesn’t get a ton of sleep, you would be right.
Before starting any new piece, Astrid sketches her idea. She has a thing for bold, tribal-influenced colors and geometric patterns — a combo we all can get behind.
Her studio is a wild, loud mix of colors and textures. But the making process is quiet. In fact, she decided to work with embroidery for that very reason. It fit into her life. It doesn’t require big, heavy machinery like other types of jewelry, making it more realistic to have a home studio. Another bonus? She stitches anywhere with just some thread, fabric, a hoop, a scissors and her two hands. And as we keep saying, it’s a pretty silent endeavor… meaning she can do it while her daughter sleeps.
If any of you makers out there are looking for organization hacks, check out this chalk board drawer unit. Pretty nifty.
Surrounded by books, her daughter’s art and mood boards + a colorful collection of knickknacks, this studio is primed to make those creative juices flow.
What’s your favorite aspect of An Astrid Endeavor’s studio? Let us know in the comments below!