Issue link: https://nbm.uberflip.com/i/1491557
5 0 G R A P H I C S P R O • J U N E 2 0 2 3 G R A P H I C S - P R O. C O M S T A R T H E R E THINGS I DO TO MAKE MY SHOP A Take the time to bring comfort, convenience, and control into your environment Lori Champagne has owned two shops in her 28 years in the engraving industry. Her California shop was a retail space with employees and a neon sign in the window proudly proclaiming OPEN for far too many hours of the day and night. She now has a home-based studio in Michigan where she lives on seven acres of woods and wetlands with her husband. No neon, but if she is home, she is open. Lori's presentation at START HERE Academy @ GPX, June 14, is Keeping Peace and Profitability in Your Home-Based Business. B Y L O R I C H A M P A G N E I admit it. I spend more waking hours in my shop than in any other single place. I walk miles in this small space, tra- versing from machine to machine. I sit. I stand. I sit again — sometimes for five sec- onds, sometimes for five hours. I talk, text, and Zoom with people endlessly. I am a bee in my little world, bouncing from flower to flower in organized chaos. So why shouldn't my hive be as comfort- able and convenient as possible? Here are my top recommendations to keep your workspace cozy, convenient, and even sometimes calm: Foam floor tiles — I'm in Michigan. My floor is cement. It gets cold here erratically. As I write this, the tempera- ture this morning was 29, and tomorrow it will be near 80. My feet used to freeze in the winter. en I tried thin foam tiles (1/4"), and they helped to make the floor a little softer and warmer to stand on. After that, I tried the thick foam tiles (7/8"). What a difference! e floor is no longer radiating frigidity. e 24" interlocking foam squares traverse my busiest areas but stop within 1/2" of machines and cabinets. at way, the dust and dirt falls into these gutters and is easily vacuumed up. Individual tiles are easily removed if machines need to be relocated. As a bonus, things that drop don't break. It cost about $500 to tile a third of my shop, but it was money well spent. Fans and heaters — I keep the air circulating in my workshop with a few fans; that way, the area near the heater doesn't roast while the area by the win- dow freezes. I also have a heated wrist rest in front of my keyboard, a mini heater 1 2 Interlocking 7/8" foam flooring prevents dropped items from breaking, helps make standing more comfortable, and keeps the cold from radiating into the room.