Sometime around mid january, Marie and I decided it was time to close the big atelier and move on to new things. We had been struggling to find a sixth and seventh renter and the front garden had been a mess for over a year. Everytime I came to work and saw how ugly the garden was and how much mud had been tracked into the loft, I wanted to scream and cry. Plus the neighborhood had never been ideal for us girls.
I started immediately to look for a new space by myself as I didn’t really see any other option for a speedy transition. This was the first place I looked at. It wasn’t ideal, as the toilet is in the room next door, and I didn’t even get a look at it on the first visit. Later when I saw how big it was, and that it was already painted red, I loved it!
I had some serious work done. The floor was an ugly rope carpet. I had that ripped out and my signature checkerboard linoeum put in and a little sink installed in the corner.
One of the first days of moving, already getting crowded. it’s a very small room 8 1/2 mettres square!
My friend and client Nicolas (who is an artist and architect had the great idea to stack my IKEA shelves to save space.
This is a peek at the bathroom, where I have room to stock some of my tattoo supplies.
At this point you can still see into the courtyard. I wanted to cover those windows so that when I tattoo, I would have 100% privacy.
So now in the new photo you can see the milky white stickers that I added to the window. I love these kinds of windows! It really is the traditional window for french ateliers, they just cry out artists’s studio. I’m really happy about that feature. The courtyard is also very clean and gives a good first impression, which is so important to me. The old space with the scary state of the garden was a nightmare for me!
So with the windows blocked out just in time for my first client, I started to work in the mess!
I didn’t have my red work table in this placement at first, but as soon as I tried it out I realised I had a lot more room to move about, even with the massage table set up. I’m really happy about the little sink just next to me. Hand washing happens maybe 50 times a day!
The lovely Ann getting a tattoo for for her new little boy…
Still a lot to do, like hanging pictures, shelves, the dice collection (where should it go? the big question), installing the heater, organising my books. And in the meantime I have lots of drawing for clients, tattoos and new Yujean projects. I will take my time for the rest of it and share some photos as I go.
The brand new and improved “A La Belle Pique” is open for business! Contact me if you would like an appointment. Thanks!
