At Home with Melanie Karlins of Invited by Melanie
I am so excited to share this interview with you today. We got to chat all about home and the seasons with our friend Melanie Karlins of Grey Moggie Press and Invited by Melanie. Melanie and I became close when our studios were in the same warehouse in NE DC. We’ve collaborated on events, products, and shared so many ideas back and forth over the years. I’ve always been envious of her homemaking skills- she has a beautiful home and I wish I could just plop myself down in her kitchen on the reg, but right now this virtual visit will have to suffice. Get to know her, her creative practices, and tips for changing with the season in our eternal homebody mode below.
Who are you, what do you do, and why?
Hello! I'm so excited to be popping in here today! I'm Melanie, a letterpress printer, creativity coach, and possibly number one fan of Handmade Habitat's Gather candle. Fall officially starts for me when Amina starts pouring those again each year!
I've been thinking about why I do what I do and really, I think I have no choice. There's this great essay (and book) by Elle Luna called the Crossroads of Should and Must. For a lot of us who are called to a creative life, there's no rhyme or reason, we just can't help but do it.
I turned my letterpress hobby into a job when my daughter was an infant because I wanted to be at home with her as much as possible, I didn't want to give up printing, and I still needed to make money somehow. I didn't set out to be an entrepreneur or have a creative career (in fact, I went to law school), but that was the way I was able to keep doing all the things I loved, all the things I couldn't imagine missing. I feel so much gratitude to my creativity for making that season possible.
I feel the same way about my coaching practice. I started out teaching intention setting workshops in my studio in 2019, hoping to get a feel for teaching again (I used to teach letterpress at Pyramid Atlantic), and realized I just love helping other women figure out where and how a creative practice can fit into their lives. I can't imagine not doing that kind of work anymore, and to be able to connect with others in that way over the last year has been incredible.
As someone who has transitioned into two different homes over the course of the year, has your relationship with home changed? How / why / have you adapted to new spaces?
Home was the theme of 2020 for some of us, wasn't it? We did, indeed, move twice in 2020. Without knowing what the year had in store for all of us, we decided in February that it was time to sell our little rowhouse in Northeast DC and try out another neighborhood. We landed across the city in Petworth, renting a sweet little house with a porch and a backyard patio, just as the city shut down for quarantine. And then we moved again in November when we bought a house in Brightwood.
I learned so much about myself in the way that I settled us into each house. The first things I unpacked both times were books and art supplies. Both times, I painted one room pink. Both times, I looked for the nooks - reading nooks, writing nooks, nooks for coffee, nooks where the light comes in. I noticed when the cats found a good nook. We set up a rocking chair for people watching on the front porch, a hammock on the back patio.
I started taking a long time for breakfast, a luxury that had once felt out of reach in the days of rushing out the door for school drop off. Now we were all home in the mornings and could take our time. I started sharing photos of my breakfast on instagram with the hashtag #rainbowbreakfast and a note with the day of the week. It was so easy to forget what day it was in the early stage of quarantine and I didn't realize people were paying attention. On days when I didn't post, I got messages like "what day is it?" "I was looking for your breakfast." "I hope you're ok." I baked bread (not sourdough). We adopted spaghetti and meatballs as our comfort meal.
I lit candles and got fresh flowers as often as possible. I dried the flowers and hung them all over the house. I turned the candle jars into flower vases and pencil cups.
We walked a lot. We explored nature. In both new (to us) homes, we were fortunate to be close to Rock Creek Park and could hop in to be surrounded by trees, spot a deer, and listen to the babbling creek. In our old neighborhood, we used to walk to the library or the coffee shop or our favorite restaurant. Now I walk to my favorite grassy hill to watch the sunset. It's been such a lovely way to get to know a new home, to explore the nature that surrounds it.
While we are all stuck in this eternal homebody mode, how do you find space to shift energetically as the seasons change around us, but life feels very much the same?
I love seasons! I used to think I hated the shifting seasons, but I think I just didn't know what to do with my big feelings every time something ended. It can remind us how small we are and how little control we have. Now I love sinking into feelings of wonder about how everything changes and then changes again and again.
I think the best way to note the changes, even if it feels like so much stays the same, is to appreciate the hell out of each season's offerings and the understanding that they're fleeting.
Right now we can see the sunset over the park from our living room window, and I make sure to take note of it every night because soon the trees will be filled with leaves, blocking the view of the horizon. And I'll appreciate the beauty of those green leaves, too, until they make way for red and orange leaves in the fall, and for the sunset again next winter. Soon we'll have strawberries and rhubarb and I'll make my favorite fruit crumble over and over. Until it's time for peaches. And then apples. I'll make lemon cake, and then pumpkin bread, and then molasses cookies until it's time for blueberry muffins again. I love sandals and dresses, wool socks and sweaters and winter boots. Just today I opened the bin with the warmer weather clothes. I loved the nostalgia of remembering who I was when I last wore them in August. I loved the smell of beach-level sunscreen that lingered on all of them and the reminder that beach time is coming again.
You are a creative coach, which to me feels like one of the most difficult things to do in this world at the moment. I'm speaking from a place of constant weariness and exhaustion, while doing what feels like very little since the holiday season has ended for me. How do you stay motivated during this time to create, to keep going, to try new things?
Creating will always involve seasons of rest and part of my work as a coach is to help my clients understand when it's time for a break. That might mean trying another medium for a while or taking a nap one afternoon or a deep rest for a few days. On the other hand, I think the right creative work energizes us, inspires us to keep going, and lights us up. Often we feel weary because of our self criticism, or when we compare our work to others'. Unhooking from those pieces can free us from exhaustion and help us feel inspired again.
My creative focus right now is on my writing. I'm writing every day as part of the 100 Day Project and my goal is to write a book this year. When writing feels hard or exhausting to me, I'll explore why that is. If it's because I'm writing on a difficult topic or theme, then I'll add lots of self care or comfort like a candle, cozy socks, or a cup of tea to my writing sessions. If it's because I am feeling uninspired, then I might try playing with watercolors or going for a walk. Both of those activities use my brain in a way that lets me feel open to new ideas. If it's because my self critic voice is too loud, then I'll turn to self love or mindfulness practices like affirmations or meditation. Often, that does the trick to quiet my own mean voice and I can get back to work.
Give us a moment of joy.
A moment of joy. It's so hard to pick one! Yesterday, on a walk just before sunset, we saw four beautiful deer. It was magic.
Thanks so much to Melanie for sharing! If you’d like to chat with her to find support on your own creative endeavors, find info here.
