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Hands Occupied

Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

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Moving in to the Hands Occupied Studio

January 22, 2019 5 Comments

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.

Folks, 2019 is off to a rip-roaring start! I’ve been hustling my little buns off, as my mother would say, as I move into my first-ever studio space. Active Instagram followers have been following along over the last few weeks (see the behind-the-scenes highlights here) as I got my keys, packed up my craft stuff, and moved it all into the space. As of this writing, there’s still a ways to go, but I can officially work from the space! Let’s take a tour of my little creative corner of the universe, and talk about my vision to build a sense of community in the space as well. (Once a Librarian, always a Librarian, what can I say? <3 )

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.

A sense of community

The Hands Occupied Studio is located at 3323 W Diversey Ave. in Chicago. Near the Logan Square Blue Line train station & the Kimball/Milwaukee/Diversey intersection (and all of the bus routes therein), Chicagoans and Chicago visitors have easy access to the space. While Hands Occupied Studio is where I’ll get my work done, I also invite you to come visit the space (read on for upcoming events!). To start, I want to expand upon the monthly craft meet-ups we did last year at the Logan Theatre.

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.

First up, the Hands Occupied Studio is located in a building with a bunch of other studio spaces, so we have some fantastic neighbors, including other handmade businesses. On Friday, February 1 from 6-10 p.m., my studio neighbors are having an open studio event, so I figured that was as good a time as any to have our official Hands Occupied Studio Warming! Stop by to say hi, check out the Studio, help make a community weaving project as our first official, creative act in the space, and enjoy some refreshments. (My husband has forbidden strongly encouraged me not to go crazy with themed foods and over-the-top decorations as I’m wont to do, but… we’ll see!)

Starting Wednesday, February 6, we’re going to have a weekly craft night in the Studio from 6-9 p.m. As always, all crafts are welcome, but the nice change – that I know meet-up regulars will be excited about – is the fact that this will be BYO everything! Drinks (adult or otherwise), snacks, and crafts are welcome! If your craft is a little messy, feel free to drop me a line and we’ll figure out how to accommodate it. P.S. The Studio and bathrooms are all ADA-accessible!

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.

Beyond the next few weeks, I hope to start hosting regular workshops in the space too! I still definitely need to finish setting up the space and get in to the swing of things (i.e. catch up on what I’m behind on from the big move), but stay tuned for more on this! :)

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.
Since I always get asked, that phone is a business card holder I made from a dial-less, vintage phone from the USSR. I got the phone from an Etsy seller based in Ukraine several years ago. 
Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.
Maybe some day this cart will become a crafty Little Free Library-inspired situation… 

The day-to-day

In terms of the mundane side of running Hands Occupied, my day to day routine has already been significantly improved with the Studio. The freelance work I cobble together to make Hands Occupied work as a full time job continues to involve more and more photo and video creation. A big gift the Studio gives me personally is the ability to take photos and video in natural light for more hours of the day! I live in a basement apartment (which I love) that’s under 1,000 square feet. And I’ve been working full time from this space, not to mention living here, for almost 2.5 years. A change of scene for the working part of my day has been more than welcome!

Beyond the public-facing stuff, this studio project has been a really great way to get me out of my own head and (mostly) give my hands a rest. As mentioned in some posts at the end of last year, on Instagram here and there, on the Very Serious Crafts Podcast, and in my newsletter, I have a relatively new arthritis diagnosis. I’m waiting on some more appointments and opinions and all of that fun stuff, but the Hands Occupied Studio has been a great place to channel my anxiety about my body functioning differently than it has in the past. At the end of the day, I need to spend less time with my hands occupied with crafts. I’m hoping that building a community around the Hands Occupied Studio will be a beautiful way to facilitate creativity, connect with more fiber friends, marry my dormant Librarian skills with my craft career, and find a way to turn something discouraging into a big positive. Will you join me on this journey?

Take a first look inside the new, first-ever Hands Occupied Studio in Chicago.

Filed Under: Hands Occupied Studio, Workshops & Events Tagged With: arthritis, chicago, events, hands occupied studio, studio

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author, designer & creator specializing in yarn crafts like knitting, crochet, latch hook & macramé. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Valerie

    January 22, 2019 at 5:20 pm

    Congratulations! I love that you will have so much natural light–especially after working from your basement apartment.. (We have our winter drapes on the windows and it makes it so dark in our house.)

    Reply
    • Heidi

      January 23, 2019 at 9:40 pm

      Absolutely! I think I might have over-corrected, but you know what? It’s January, seasonal affective disorder is real, and between the lovely light and the exercise of moving, I’m so galvanized to keep going! :)

      Reply
  2. Heidi

    January 27, 2019 at 9:16 pm

    I’m so excited for the natural light too! It’s already proving quite nice. <3 :)

    Reply
  3. Julia

    January 28, 2019 at 9:03 am

    I am so excited for you! Are you considering hosting any weekend events in your new studio space? I’m in the Chicago area but weeknights are hard for me to get in to the city. Best of luck with the new endeavor!

    Reply
    • Heidi

      January 29, 2019 at 9:28 pm

      Thanks so much! And yeah! I’m hoping to do workshops and other events. I’m also open to ideas! :D

      Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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Weekend knitting design aftermath. Remember kids, Weekend knitting design aftermath. Remember kids, it’s always good to stop, swatch and block it. 🧶
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#stopswatchandblockit #handsoccupied
Learn how to do the magic loop method for knitting Learn how to do the magic loop method for knitting in the round in 90 seconds. / Using the magic loop allows knitters to work in the round with a single, long circular needle at a range of circumferences. 
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For a longer, full-width & more detailed overview of magic loop knitting, check out my u2be & b1og, the 🔗🔗 are where you’d think. 🧶
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#handsoccupied #magicloop #knitting #howtoknit #learntoknit #knitter #knittinginspiration #knittinginstagram #knittingintheround
Since it won’t be clean for long, swipe to see w Since it won’t be clean for long, swipe to see what my home studio looks like these days. Nothing will ever quite be like the old Hands Occupied Studio, but I’m pretty pleased with how I shoehorned everything in this space. Function over form + a layer of yarn cuteness-meets-chaos is how I’d describe my creative space needs. 😆 When I was still renting the studio, those needs included “doesn’t rain suspicious brown water from a crack in the ceiling for a year,” so this is an improvement! 😆
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For a time lapse of the studio organizing and tszuj-ing process, scroll down a couple posts on my feed. (There’s also a video or two featuring the old studio if you’re curious.) Happy June, friends! 
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#handsoccupied #handsoccupiedstudio #knitdesigner #craftdesign #yarncrafts #latchhook #makerlife #heidigustad #chicagocrafter
Who doesn’t love magic loop knitting? Who doesn’t know what it is? How about when circular needles were invented?
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In todays new bl0g post + video tutorial, you’ll learn about the magic loop method for knitting in the round, how to do it and why to use it, and when it came to be. The 🔗 is in my b1o. 🧶 
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#handsoccupied #magicloop #knitting #howtoknit #knittinginspiration #knittingintheround
Finally organizing & putting the finishing touches Finally organizing & putting the finishing touches on my home studio. After losing my studio space last fall, it’s feels really great to *occupy* this new space all the way. 😉
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I started by removing general clutter & returning straggler supplies from various WIPs, videos & design deadlines to their homes. Next, I hung a third peg board in the space - this one is mostly for display and less for organizing tools or projects. For the first time ever, I’m displaying projects from my book, plus a couple other faves. (The best thing about designing more yarn crafts besides knit & crochet is that I have some really fun -and delightfully pettable 😆- samples around.) I finished by adding a square dowel to my small supply storage tower to keep it from tipping over, plus re-arranging and de-cluttering the closet. 
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This cleaner space already has me feeling so much more creative and less overwhelmed. Now to find a safe spot in the basement for the tower of project samples in Rubbermaid tubs I liberated from my WIPs closet. Also why are there five?! 
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Here’s to keeping it clean for a few weeks! 🧶 
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#handsocupied #handsoccupiedstudio #craftroom #craftroomorganization #craftroomstorage #yarncraft #knitter #crocheter #latchhook #latchhookbook
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