Renovating a new studio space!!

We did it! We signed a lease on a raw, unbuilt commercial space in October and here we are, end of March, with a beautifully finished studio. The Bellingham Studio was always meant to be here, and although we’ve had our share of struggles finding a permanent home, we finally did it.

I want to write this as a moment of reflection on the process of building a workspace, but also as a moment of gratitude. I had so much help and so much support from the Bellingham community of creatives and photographers and I know that this isn’t just a creative space, it’s a manifestation of all the energy and excitement that so many of you shared with me about needing and wanting a photo studio in Bellingham. I just feel honored that I could help facilitate a hub for you all.

So here’s where we started…

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That’s what the space looked like the day I first toured it! The entire 7th floor of this building was gutted, leaving a total blank slate to decide where I wanted to configure each component of the studio.

We were able to customize and build a space exactly the way we wanted it to be. There was intention behind every single design decision and angle of wall, window, and light fixture! The Bellingham Towers team was so accommodating and seemed equally thrilled to have this space exist in their building so I was really fortunate. All in all, a truly wonderful experience with the build out.

Some progress shots…

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The toughest challenge was reconfiguring my prop collection from a 300 sq ft prop room into a 20 sq ft prop closet. “STORAGE SOLUTIONS” became the phrase I found myself having nightmares about, and $1000 deep at Lowe’s plus numerous late nights with drills and hammers, we finally configured a great closet system. I’m so proud of the closet (for the first time I actually WANT people to look in there!) and am equally proud of the way this entire space so perfectly came together.

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With massive design help from The Bellingham Towers in-house designer Kate, tons of packing and moving help from my team Hannah and Mar, and closet set-up help from my supportive partner Spencer - this place is just perfect and so ready to host Bellingham’s powerhouse creative community. Oh and tons of literal anti-help and chaos from my dog Earl, but he’s a real one for putting up with this project.

Now come visit! Check out the space - it’s as much your creative home as it is mine.

Creating during COVID.