I moved my studio out of the house a couple of weeks ago and into a real live commercial space. I am enjoying leaving the house to go to work in the mornings and being in town. Langosta isn't very far from Tamarindo, but without a car, it seemed a long ways, and I rarely got into town during the day for more than a few minutes once or twice a week.

Now, I often run into work, taking the very long way so that it's my normal 50 minutes, sometimes stopping by Steve's office to say "Hi", which means I often also see Matt, Brian, Kate, Carrie and BC as well. That's about as many people as I'd see in a week, and that's all before work!

Then off to the studio, which is about two blocks (if there were such things here) east of Steve's office on the same street. I usually get in before the Home store opens, but once it does, I see the owner, Rob, his wife and their assistant Katie. My landlord is usually somewhere around, as are his workers.

If I run in, I take a dip in the pool before I start work. Not a bad deal! Then someone usually stops by, or I head into town for a trip to the grocery store or for lunch with Steve or a friend. A huge change in my daytime social life!

The studio itself is upstairs above a slick new bike shop and across the parking lot from the aforementioned Home store, a laundry and a sandwich shop. Upstairs, above these businesses used to be a gym, but the space is now being turned into apartments. Should be good for the neighborhood and good for my business in terms of increased traffic. Not that I'm running a retail space. I see clients in the new space, but don't want to be a "shop". A working studio with stock to show clients is what I want, and so far, exactly what I've got!

There's a nice grassy area downstairs in front of the sandwich shop and Caly likes to play with the neighborhood dogs. It's a great place to take a little break and let her get some fresh air. She's been spending all her days with me in the studio and I think we both like it!

Labels: jewelry