7 Custom-Built Studios for Your Vision Board
Posted by Amber Demien on Oct 29th 2024
Artists and makers who have created at their kitchen tables or in the cramped corners of rooms, or even those who have spent thousands of dollars renting a studio, have all dreamed of one day building their own creative space. No need to clean up at the end of the day, no worries about distractions, and no landlord — a custom studio on their property.
For those of us who aren’t able to attain this goal just yet, it’s inspiring to see the beautiful spaces others have created. Even if a custom studio is out of reach for now, maybe even for a long while, we can take these bits of inspiration and implement them in small ways in our current creative practices. In the meantime, we can make plans for how we would develop our own custom studios, because if others can do it, so can we! Here are seven custom-built spaces from the pages of In Her Studio — add them to your vision board while you dream of where your own journey may take you.
1. Jane Peet's Barn Photography Studio
PHOTOGRAPHED BY JANE PEET⎟ IN HER STUDIO WINTER 2021
After falling in love led her from Canada to North Carolina, photographer Jane Peet (Instagram: @jaynemargaretphotography) developed a passion for all things old, which took her to some of the most amazing flea markets in the country. She opened an antique shop, which eventually led to her barn photography studio. As she shared in our Winter 2021 Issue:
“At first, the barn was simply a pretty shell to house my ‘finds.’ We knew when we built the barn that we wanted to create a space where details held the stories of days gone by. We salvaged the lumber to build the walls and the expansive Southern sitting porches. We looked for stories in all the details: We finished the ceiling with tins that came out of an old home in Georgia; our windows were from a foundry in Tennessee; the old train station sign once greeted passengers arriving in Charleston; our rusted canopies were found in Richmond; our wrought-iron balcony came from New Orleans; and our old, creaky heart pine floors once laid under an old general store counter in a small North Carolina town, and now they now lay under the feet of new friendships, new possibilities, and serve as the foundation for relationships, stories, and magic.”
2. Heather Bird Harris's Custom-Built Studio
PHOTOGRAPHED BY JASON KRUPPA⎟ IN HER STUDIO SUMMER 2022
A painter who uses earth and water at their simplest forms, Heather Bird Harris (Instagram: @heatherbirdharris) forages her natural pigments from her home in southern Louisiana. She creates her fine pigments using everything from clay to top soil, discarded bricks, oak galls, decaying tree bark, and more. Heather’s custom-built studio is in her backyard, only 20 feet from her house. As she shared in our Summer 2022 Issue:
“The proximity makes early-morning and post-bedtime commutes very possible, allowing me to squeeze my work into the nooks and crannies of a busy life with two toddlers and a full-time job writing anti-racist history curriculum. My dad designed and built the studio, my husband helped lift the walls, and my mom painted them. I’m deeply grateful to have such a supportive family who literally and figuratively create space for me to be myself, and who saw me as an artist before I ever fully claimed it myself.”
3. Sarah Becvar's Wooden Cabin Studio
PHOTOGRAPHED BY AVA MALANDRINO⎟ IN HER STUDIO SPRING 2022
Sarah Becvar (Instagram: @sarahbecvardesign) is a freehand embroidery artist who applies her beautiful work to a number of handmade items including pouches, bookmarks, lavender-and-wheat eye pillows, aprons, and, her original offering, greetings cards. While at first Sarah worked from a small converted cow shed on her family’s farm, her expanding business required a change in location. As she shared in our Spring 2022 Issue:
“The most logical idea was to build a studio in my garden, where there was a large area to build that also offered views across the fields I had walked as a child — it was the perfect location. In 2020, we built my new studio, a large wooden cabin. Constructed with thick spruce logs, the cabin measures 3½-m x 7½-m and is fully insulated in the floor and roof for extra warmth. South- and west-facing double-glazed windows flood the studio with light.”
4. Katie Rose Johnston's Place for Creativity
PHOTOGRAPHED BY KATIE ROSE JOHNSTON⎟ IN HER STUDIO WINTER 2022
Katie Rose Johnston (Instagram: @m_a_n_i_f_e_s_t_o) is a sculptor who uses clay to express her passions for archaeology, the Scottish landscape, and the natural world. The location of Katie’s studio surrounds her with inspiration. As she shared in our Winter 2022 Issue:
“Hidden away in a garden on the outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland, sits my small studio built by me and my father. The studio was completed just as tiny shoots pushed their way through the thawing earth in spring. On the outside it’s simple in appearance — a small, square building encased in white soffit board and composite sheeting. On the inside it is a magical place for creativity and exploration.”
5. Robyn Thayer's Art Studio
PHOTOGRAPHED BY KATIE TAYLOR CARLISLE⎟ IN HER STUDIO WINTER 2022
Robyn Thayer (Instagram: @robyn_thayer_fine_art) is a mixed-media artist who embraces color and texture in her detail-filled paintings. After renting a studio for years, and knowing that creating art is her lifelong journey, she decided to build a studio on her property. As she shared in our Winter 2022 Issue:
“My studio is compact, with a precious covered porch, generously peaked ceiling, and an amazing oversized closet. The closet is a real gem, with six sliding oak doors positioned along three tracks, spaced far enough apart that the doors slide past each other, working as easels, vertical storage, and display for my paintings. A small loft nestled into the high-pitched ceiling affords me a place to sleep and a meditation seat when I wake.”
6. Jo Horswill's Creative Space
PHOTOGRAPHED BY ERIKA MACCARINELLI⎟ IN HER STUDIO SUMMER 2021
Textile artist Jo Horswill (Instagram: @paper_cloth_studio) enjoys eco-friendly printmaking techniques, and much of her work uses botanical contact printing, which involves transferring the colors and imprints of foliage onto natural textiles. Built on her property, Jo’s studio is comprised of a building and an outdoor area. As she shared in our Summer 2021 Issue:
“My studio sits under three beautiful oak trees on our property. The studio is warm and inviting, filled with my many treasures, like seedpods, crystals, feathers, leaves, and dried flowers. Bringing the outdoors in has been a lifelong passion of mine. I have also filled my space with indoor plants, books, and art. I have a mood board that reflects my latest loves in color and texture. The light in the studio is soft because we are under the canopy of trees, and it pours into the space via skylights and windows. My studio extends outdoors with a courtyard and dye kitchen.”
7. Shannon Knowlton's Shed Studio
PHOTOGRAPHED BY SHANNON KNOWLTON⎟ IN HER STUDIO SPRING 2021
When quilting became too difficult for Shannon Knowlton (Instagram: @cre8tively.me) due to an autoimmune disease, she expressed her creativity through a variety of crafts instead, particularly sewing upon vintage book pages. To house her creative endeavors, she built her “Craft Shack.” As she shared in our Spring 2021 Issue:
“The opportunity for my own studio arose when we were renovating our yard. I sketched a shed on a napkin. Soon, I had my own [studio] — I was ecstatic. Every morning, coffee in hand, I go out to my ‘Craft Shack.’ A few steps to lead to a porch that I love to decorate. There are several windows for tons of natural light, and a long desk allows me to spread out. My studio is brimming with things I love. It is also filled with my creations and the creations of those I admire.”
Discover more inspiring creative spaces in our newly released In Her Studio Winter 2025.
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