Recently we bought a new vacuum cleaner. I ordered it from Amazon, and it arrived two days later, carefully shipped in a thick cardboard box. As my husband headed for the trashbin, I called out, “No, don’t throw that cardboard away. I can use it in the studio.”

Sure enough, cardboard — especially thick, sturdy cardboard — is great to use as a drawing board. I often take cardboard, cut it down to a comfortable size, and tape a sheet of drawing paper or watercolor paper to it so that I can easily hold it while I sketch or paint.

And then on Saturday, I sat down at the sewing machine with a couple yards of fabric and a Simplicity pattern I’d ordered from Amazon. I had fun making myself a new pair of lounge pants — my preferred attire for the art studio. As I cut out the pattern…