Sometimes it's really about just starting before you're ready.
Over the next 100 days, David and I are building 25 photo sets inside our attic.
And yes, I mean our actual attic.
Technically it used to be our bedroom. The previous owners converted it into a finished room before we moved in, so when we bought the house we just kept using it that way. But recently we started looking at the space differently. Instead of a bedroom, it felt like an opportunity.
What if we turned it into a place to make art?
That idea became the Attic Series. Twenty five sets. One hundred days. Built inside a space that is very much not a studio.
The entire goal of this project is simple. We want to prove that you do not need the perfect space to make meaningful work. You can create incredible things with what you already have.
The Real Work of Set 1
The funny thing about Set 1 is that the real win was just getting started.
Before we could build anything, we had to completely transform the room. Our entire bedroom had to be moved downstairs. Then we pulled up all the carpet and started figuring out how to make the space actually shootable for the first time ever.
It was a lot more work than we expected.
By the time we finally finished prepping the room, most of the time we had planned for building the first set was already gone.
So in the spirit of the project, we had to work within the parameters we had.
Working With What We Had
Instead of building something elaborate, we grabbed a pair of flats from our storage unit and modified them.
There was one problem though. The ceilings in the attic are only about 82 inches high. Our flats were taller than that, so they literally would not fit in the room.
The solution was simple.
We pulled out a circular saw and shaved a few inches off the bottoms.
The leftover pieces became part of the structure, and we used the flats to build a simple box style set. It was not the most complex design we have ever made, but it did exactly what it needed to do.
It got the project started.
We painted the walls using leftover paint we already had in the studio. The color was Sherwin Williams "Eye Catching", which is a bold, vibrant blue.
To contrast it, we paired the set with a bright red dress.
There was just one problem.
The dress did not fit our model.
Turning the Problem Into the Concept
Instead of treating that like a mistake, we leaned into it.
The entire shoot became about things not fitting. About working with what you have instead of waiting until everything is perfect.
During the shoot we literally pulled out a pair of scissors and had our model start cutting the dress. She trimmed it, reshaped it, and slowly turned something she hated wearing into something far more interesting.
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And honestly, that moment ended up capturing the entire spirit of this project.
You take what you have.
You modify it.
You experiment.
You create something new.
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The Beginning of the Attic Series
Set 1 was not the biggest or most complex set we will build during this project. But it might be one of the most important.
Because the hardest part of any creative project is simply starting.
This set marks the beginning.
Over the next 100 days we will build 24 more sets inside this attic. Each one will push the space a little further than the last.
Some will be simple.
Some will get a little wild.
But all of them will be built with the same philosophy.
Use what you have.
Start before you are ready.
And make the art anyway.
The Attic Series is a personal project for us. If you want to support the project, help us build cooler sets, and get deeper behind the scenes insights as we go, you can join us on Patreon.
