I think the real long-term issue for artists is that now, in the information age, people are becoming accustomed to not paying for things at all. I was, in my first couple of years selling handmade artworks on eBay, constantly asked, why I'd make, sell, and ship original art pieces (gouache, acrylic, pastel, etc) often well below the cost of the materials. Everyone seemed to suspect I was lying, or cheating customers somehow. The real answer was, nobody was buying those pieces if I priced them above a dollar because a lot of people these days in the digital era seem to be irrationally conditioned to expect everything for free or nearly free. Problem is, nothing is really going to be free. Everything has a cost to it, and in these cases I pretty much absorbed the cost of the items I was losing money on, by doing other tedious jobs like transcription tasks for around $5/hr. The cost was my time, and all my genuinely creative projects moving forward at a snail's pace. The cost was that a lot of the things I've tried to work on, that people want me to finish, aren't getting finished any time soon. If every customer is this stingy, and everyone pirates everything, or wants everything available for free, it'll kill the software industry, games industry, movies, music, books, etc - or clutter them all with lots of ads like television. Sort of a 'prisoner's dilemma' situation, on a much larger scale. I saw this coming years ago and made a determination that I would never pirate anything. I'd be one of the ones who paid for digital products. I'm weird that way. There were some artworks back then that I made to order for customers, and sold for as little as a penny. And there were some listings priced at a penny that *still* wouldn't sell. Right now, now that I have 120 ratings on eBay, all positive, people are beginning to get that I'm actually doing this, that it isn't a joke or a trick. That's good, because now I'm actually able to sell some large art pieces at prices where I actually turn a profit on them. Not a big profit, mind you, it's more like $2-$3/hr, but at least I'm not losing money on all of my items. (Though, in between all my fixed price stuff, there are still listings with 99-cent opening bids.) An example of an ad I posted in a few places: My eBay shop The other thread discussing my work. A big thank you, BTW, to everyone who did buy from me, whether the amount they spent was a penny or a dollar or anything else, as those early ratings on eBay were key to establishing a track record there. It's really helped. I am excited about the future and how things are going now. I'm optimistic that soon I'll be able to ramp up development of indie games and videos and do some really fun stuff. So thanks, everybody.

Thanks ya'll:D I can never remember to write down these, and I have a journal by my night stand. I've only written on the first page..."This will be a journal of my dreams"......LOL It's very hard to remember ANYTHING these days :D On our walk my grandson did find a small pine cone that fell from a short leaf pine, and he said "MeMe, I can make something out of this!" He carried a small bag and picked up branches and lichen and interesting leaves. He likes to spot the animal tracks, and we found some huge deer tracks and some raccoon tracks. I don't like to take him so far that he realizes there's a river back there,in case he takes off on his own. It is important to give them one-on-one time like this. They don't even realize they're "learning" when they're having fun. Patti....you still make great art and have awesome ideas!

PS the more piece is special to me, the less I'm inclined to include it in a grouping..Maybe that's a pity since I do love groupings. But I also want some art to be..how I would put it..by itself. I want to concentrate on it solely, rather than being a part of a grouping. You don't need to go always by the subject; you can use color as unifying factor, or technique, or certain mood.. I do hope I'd be able to do at least some groupings when in new house, even simply because it's much smaller..)) Less space, Gallery walls or groupings would make sense. But I think it won't be an easy task.. Seems simple, since I have enough art for several little "galleries". it's seemingly very obvious what should go with what. But it won't be. I'd explore more what you are drawn to..so it won't be "I have to buy this or that" but "I love it". After several "I love it", you'll see the common thread..it might not be visible right away, but it will be there, waiting for you to discover it. Meanwhile, I'd just enjoy one beautiful picture. The others will follow; maybe not right away, but they will. it's not something you suddenly stop loving when you're done with decor. The art, I mean. It takes you deeper and deeper and deeper..like in that song:)

Wow, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for all of your feedback. I was not expecting all of this. I wanted to respond to some interesting points and ask a few more questions- I'm letting go of the multi-purpose idea. You were all right about that, it's just not feasible and wouldn't benefit anyone. Moving forward, I'm going to focus on making this strictly a craft room/office. Several of you have said that having the craft room at the front of the house is undesirable, but I disagree. Maybe I should have been more clear about the nature of my "crafting." I'm not a freehand painter or sculptor or anything like that. Half of the work I do I actually on a computer. I guess you could say I'm more of a graphic designer, but the finished product is physical (the messy part will actually happen outside in a shed). My point is that mess wil not be a huge issue. In fact, in my current living situation my "studio" is relegated to just a hallway and it actually works out fine. I attached some photos. I think having the room in the front would make it easier for customers to come pick up pieces as @doc5md suggested, (especially if I don't know them) because they wouldn't have to walk through the whole house. Plus I think it'll be a point of interest for guests. With the right organization, this room will look really cool. I'm picturing something like the photo I attached. @rockybird, while I would love to expand the footprint of the house, unfortunately, we're at max capacity for square footage we can afford. Also, these plans were already approved by the town, to change them now would mean months of delay waiting for another approval, but that's besides the point. This house is in North Jersey where there is not a lot of room. We only have .14 of an acre (gotta love NJ!) And we already had to ask for a variance as we expanded the existing footprint by around 40%. So expanding even more is out of the question. But thanks for the suggestion! I did just talk to my contractor (aka Dad) and he said that we can extend the craft room a little (about a foot) without altering the plans (shh don't tell) because that wall between the craft room and dining room is not a load-bearing wall. Granted a foot isn't much, but hey, it's better than nothing. @B Carey I appreciate the real-life family insight! I can see how the toy thing will get annoying (and disorganized) and I appreciate you sharing that. @Mrs Pete thank you for all your layout suggestions, I love the idea of built-in cabinets and am definitely considering that! @Virgil Carter Fine Art I really appreciate all of your professional artist suggestions, I'm definitely not on your level, but you gave me a lot of food for thought. I hadn't even thought of the direction the room was facing and I'm glad you mentioned that. I have to make sure to position my desk so that my computer doesn't catch the glare of the sun all day, since that's where I'll be spending a lot of my time. As for the glare on the art itself, I don't usually paint freehand, I create stencils using my computer and a silhouette cutter so the glare shouldn't really mess me up. I am a teacher full-time though, so my Etsy work is usually done after dark. I have to make sure to get good lighting in there as you suggested. As far as using the laundry room as my craft space, I really don't want to do that. It's not just that it's too small, but having to go up and down the stairs with the wood is what I'm doing now and it's super annoying. I want to be able to go from the shed outside to my craft room (all on the same level). I actually love that the laundry room is on the second floor! It's where 95% of the dirty laundry will be made. All of the bedrooms will be upstairs as will all of our clothes, sheets, towels, etc. Putting it downstairs or in the basement would actually be way more of a hassle. Many of you said the ditch the French doors and I hear you on that.... BUT I'm not ready to part with them yet :( Call me stubborn, but I just love the look. At the very least, I'll have them swing outward instead of inward, because you're right, they eat up a lot of space. I am also entertaining the idea of pocket French doors instead. @doc5md I like the idea of the single pocket door, that sounds interesting. What exactly is the issue with the French doors at your house? Do they get in the way? @sofikbr - I am worried about that dining room. I thought the same thing, it's SO big and it won't be used very much. My husband and I like to entertain, but I feel like if there's only one or two couples coming over, we'll probably stay in the kitchen/living room area. The dining room will really only be used for holidays, but that seems like such a waste. The wall between the dining room and kitchen IS a load-bearing wall so we can get rid of it. Does anyone have any suggestions for making that room more functional?? What about adding built-in bookshelves and making it a little library, too? Add cozy window seats maybe? @sofikbr I also see what you're saying about the bathroom situation, but the kids will just have to deal with it. You're right, they don't need a sitting area, but it just worked out that way. We can afford the extra bedroom space, we can't afford a third full bathroom. And hey, love grows best in little houses, right? I've known families of 6, 7, and 8 that shared one bathroom and if they can figure it out, so can we. Besides, I think the double sink and closed off bath area will help. The first photo is my current "studio" in my parents' basement. The 2nd and 3rd are layout ideas.