The Devils Workshop

Day 24 at 890 Queen

2010-03-02T01:22:00.003-05:00

Dad and Tony spent another loooong day working on the walls.

Day 23 at 890 Queen - Down with the old and up with the new walls

2010-02-24T12:44:00.002-05:00

Tony and Dad arrived at noon to begin installing my picture frame walls! this is an exiting day for me! Cant wait to see them all done!

Day 22 at 890 Queen

2010-02-24T12:03:00.004-05:00

James took down walls at 955 Queen :( Sad day, I loved those walls and I loved my first shop. So many memories, trial, tribulations and successes not forgetting all of the tears (me) and laughter. Silversmith studio at 955 Queen is all that remains for now and by Saturday it will be all gone :(

Some of the students from last nights class wave goodbye to our old studio. This classroom will hold a special place in the hearts of several of our students.

Day 20 and 21 at 890 Queen

2010-02-22T05:33:00.009-05:00

Happenings on Saturday at 890 Queen
(Light construction in the front)

More happenings on Saturday at 955 Queen
(Wedding Band Workshop in front)

Each weekend is crazier than the last but at least things feel like they are getting done and I am confidant that all will get done in time. 890 Queen was a busy little space this weekend with the Enamelling Workshop happening in the back and some light construction happening in the front. 955 Queen was not too quiet either. I had my Wedding Band Workshop on Saturday as usual but there was construction going on in there to boot! We had to move a 4x8 piece of drywall that was put up as a sound barrier between our classroom and the construction to access the washroom, everyone usually waited until one would go and then we would all line up to go then.

On Sunday as I run between three locations, 955 Queen to bring boxes to Melissa, 890 Queen to bring Marc the chop saw and home to feed the baby etc, etc (good thing those points are only 50 feet away from each other) I run into Brian Bailey, who's shop is just 6 doors down from my new shop. Brian says "How is it going" and I say "I am in the middle of a big project, I am relocating my shop and I am exhausted" Brian replies "Good for you, you can do it! You are young! Good luck you will be fine" did I just get a pep talk from Brian Bailey, the mentor of mentors? I literally felt like I was in the middle of an episode of Project Runway Canada! a show that I love BTW. I walked away with a skip in my step and a smile on my face and renewed energy for the rest of the day :) Thanks for the encouragement Brian!

An update on our progress so far - Marc spent a grueling 10 hours working on the front of the shop re surfacing the bay window ledge and prepping the space to be painted. Gord finished the grouting. Chris finished the lighting in studio A. Melissa packed up the jewellery an officially closed the doors of 955 Queen to retail traffic but we are still open for classes of course.

Up coming - James will be at 955 tomorrow to take down a few more walls (walls that I love and will be very sad to see go) Tony will arrive on Tuesday (finger crossed) to finally erect the picture frame walls at 890 Queen, I hope his finger is OK. Tammy is scheduled to come in on Wednesday to paint the ceiling. Work, work, work and then the big move on Saturday.

I have got to stop getting up at 5am! Sleep is needed but at least I now have the opportunity to watch the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony on Rogers on Demand!

I would also just like to say that I finally understad the true meaning of why people say "Oh Brother"

Day 19 at 890 Queen

2010-02-19T22:51:00.001-05:00

Another Late start to the day. We had to take Lee for his 10 month check up and when I finally got back to work it was 4:30. Melissa and I attacked the back room like mad and got it in good working order for tomorrows Enamelling for Beginners workshop. I am very pleased to finally have studio 2 in working order and am now so exited to get the other studio in there and get back to business as normal, well better than normal I hope. I wanted to take a photo of the back room but gords blackberry camera wasn't working so a fuzzy video was the best we could do. I will try to add some pics tomorrow.

Day 18 at 890 Queen

2010-02-19T01:18:00.001-05:00

I bit off more than I could chew today but thank goodness for good friends. The day started with a big plan to get so much done and the first thing on the list was to just take the few remaining boxes from the LWC studio from 955 and walk them across the street to 890. This was a simple plan and a simple task... I thought. When we started to bring the boxes and left overs downstairs we realized that perhaps there were more than just a few things and that a truck was in order. All Gord, Melanie and I managed was to pack the boxes and other things into the truck and then Monte, Marc and Gord unloaded them all into 890 Queen later that day while Sylvia babysat. In between the load and unload of the truck Gord finished the last little bit of tiling to be grouted tomorrow and I finally got that well needed shower after they turned the water back on in our building, it is really hard to go a whole day without water, you don't realize how important it is in day to day life until it is gone, I will never take you for granted again dear water. Class at 6pm went well, our students made some progress on their bezels.

Good news! Chris will be here again this weekend, hopefully he will have time to help finish the lighting. Tony will be here on Tuesday to erect the partition walls. Marc is going the do some drywall patch up work this weekend and James has begun work on some furniture for the new space.

Enamelling for Beginners will be held at the 890 Queen on Saturday and Sunday! I have to have the back studio in good working order for the class!!! Good thing Catherine brings all of her own supplies so I don't have to worry about scrounging things up.

Day 13 - 17 at 890 Queen

2010-02-17T23:13:00.000-05:00

So it has been pretty difficult to write every day. The floor is almost done, just have to do some touch ups and then the grouting. James is about to begin work on the few extra pieces of furniture that we need for the gallery. Chris was here on Sunday to install 1/4 of the lighting, hopefully he will finish this weekend (fingers crossed) and Contractor Tony is supposed to arrive soon (fingers double crossed) to erect the wall he has prefabricated. I can not believe that there is just over a week until we have to be out of 955 and up and running in 890 Queen!!! Where did the time go and where can I get some more? I took a few shots of our progress so far, hopefully things will look much different in a weeks time.

Day 12 at 890 Queen

2010-02-13T19:52:00.000-05:00

...Two more rows of tiles : /

Day 10 and 11 at 890 Queen - Hexed!

2010-02-11T19:01:00.000-05:00

So I guess I have ordered some of the most difficult tiles for the front of the shop to work with... I didn't know!... but would that have really have made a difference if I did know? I would have likely gotten them just the same :)) I can be like that.

I ordered 3/4" white Hexagon Tiles, they are adorable! and as my landlord says they are "utilitarian" I love, love, love them and wouldn't change a thing but my poor husband is likely thinking otherwise right now. Here I sit in my comfy chair at the window in my apartment looking across the street at my lovely new shop and my dear husband is working away at those annoying little tiles, I don't think he minds too much, he has his music, his dog and my ever enduring love :) The problem with these "hexing" little tiles is that as soon as you put one down wrong the following row will be out of order and then the next and then the next and then you have a huge space and there is nothing you can do about it, frustrating! Oh and did i mention that they tend to fall apart when they get wet you so have to place them perfectly onto the cement the first time or else...

Hopefully (fingers crossed) these tiles will get done before Sunday so that my brother Chris can concentrate on installing my pot lights.

Day 9 at 890 Queen

2010-02-10T09:58:00.003-05:00

Not a very eventful day at 890 Queen. James came by 955 Queen to take down the half wall in the old LWC Studio so we are looking forward to another trip to the dump! We are approaching the half way point and frankly with my lead contractor out of commission until his thumb has healed I am frightened that things wont get done in time! this feels a little like the reality TV show "Restaurant Makeover" or "Opening Soon"

Day 8 at 890 Queen - City Dump

2010-02-08T23:40:00.002-05:00

We took some rubbish to the city dump today. It wasn't too much trouble but what was trouble was trying to call and find out where to take it! Not knowing anything about how to dump large loads of trash I called the city to ask, called a few numbers from the website one number told me to call another number and then that number told me to call another number and finally a lady at that final number told me that the city of Toronto does not allow you to dump your household renovation garbage, then where!!! So we decided to just take the garbage to the dump at 400 Commissioners St. because it seemed like the only thing to do. No problem at all, we weighed in, dumped the garbage, paid 30.00 and weighed out. All done!

Day 5, 6 and 7 at 890 Queen

2010-02-08T09:54:00.004-05:00

Things got a little hairy here over the weekend.

Friday/Saturday - 2 trips to Rona, 28hrs of expert help
Chris, my brother arrived at 3pm on Friday to work on the tiles, he took one look at the floor and realized that we were not going to get the tiles laid this weekend :(. The floor under the window display ledge was in terrible condition and needed to be completely re-built! We decided to make a little step up in that area, about 4" to make this new floor a little easier to deal with. Chris prepped the floor for us and taught Gord how to lay the tiles, apparently this will be easy? Gord has cemented the joining areas of the cement board that Chris put down and will attempt to lay the tiles today (Monday).

Sunday - Moving Lost Wax Casting Studio
Danny, Monte, Julian and Simon all showed up to help Gord move the Lost Wax Casting (LWC) Studio. Things went pretty well but a little stressful since I wasn't able to be involved because I was needed at home with my little one, I would have like to have been there to make sure that everything got put in the right place and that nothing got taken out of 955 Queen that I might need over the next little while. The entry way to the basement at 890 Queen is a little tight so a few things wont fit down there :( I hope they will be able to get my washer down there when the time comes, I really need it.

I will take pictures of the progress and post them later today.

Day 4 at 890 Queen - The rest of the day

2010-02-05T00:31:00.002-05:00

James did a great job with the tear down!

Day 4 at 890 Queen - Perfect Timing!

2010-02-04T13:14:00.002-05:00

Great start to the day! My Landlord arranged for a rubbish removal company to come in this morning to take away everything that we don't need that was left behind. James arrived at 9:30 this morning to take down the walls and built-ins that we don't need. All will be carted away by the end of the day today!

Downtown Lumber delivered all my tiles and accessories and are ready for Chris to begin the installation of them Friday morning.

Day 3 at 890 Queen

2010-02-04T00:35:00.001-05:00

I tried to take down the front door corridor and window display ledge by myself... after 30 minutes with the sledge hammer and crow bar I decided to call for help. James to the rescue! James will start at 10 am tomorrow and take care of business.

Cleared out my office today, so glad to get that over with. I was really afraid of that job but it turn out to be not too bad at all, and only took about 3 hrs and I managed to throw away of a lot of useless rubbish.

I am beginning to see the light!

Day 2 at 890 Queen

2010-02-02T22:22:00.001-05:00

So the whole IKEA lamp hack thing is not going so well. IKEA North York said that they had some but when Gord got there they didn't have them, system was wrong, big system, big store, a gazillion employees but no KRYSSBO for me, I think that a smaller business would have at least checked and then put the item on hold for me! Small business 1, Big business 0 (but for this particular small business it's also a zero)

I ordered the tiles yesterday from Downtown Lumber and was trying to make arrangements to rent a truck to pick them up on Thursday when it occurred to me... "do you deliver?"... "Yes!" and it will be a free delivery! why don't these thing occur to me faster. I feel like I can count on these guys, I highly recommend them and they really know their product, a very refreshing change.

Dealing with the junk left behind and the rubbish left from my demolition tomorrow can be quite expensive. I called the 1800-GOTJUNK people today, it looks like it will cost about 400.00 to take it away! Way too much! Sure would be a handy service as they will bring it upstairs for me and everything but I think I may end up doing this myself. But it may be much more work than I think. The GOTJUNK guys are coming by next week to give me fee no obligation quote anyway.

I have made arrangements for the baby to hang out with my friend for a few hours tomorrow morning and I will enter 890 Queen with a sledge hammer and tile scraper. Wish me luck!

...If anyone has any leads on the KRYSSBO Pendant Light from IKEA please let me know. I know that I can get them if I drive to the States but there isn't one close enough.

Day 1 at 890 Queen - The Devil for an Angell

2010-02-01T18:54:00.002-05:00

Chris (my new landlord) handed me the keys today at noon! so exited about the new space and it is mine, all mine!

The previous owner left a lot of stuff behind so a bit of junk removal is needed. Hopefully we will find someone fast and cheep to clear it out. A fresh start is needed.

The Walls - Not the best of starts, my contractor cut his finger open on the table saw a couple days ago when he was finishing up a table for his daughter. So that means that the walls that I was hoping to get up today will have to wait until next week or later.

Butterflies & Light Ceiling Installation - the IKEA lamp that I was going to hack has hit a snag, the KRYSSBO pendant lamp that I was going to use for parts has been discontinued as of 2 weeks ago! There are 2 of these lamps left at the North York IKEA and with all hope Gord will be successful in bringing them home to me tonight.

Flooring - After a long search I have found the tiles I need right in my neighbourhood at Downtown Lumber on Ossington. I have placed an order for 160 square feet of 3/4" hexagon tiles in white for the showroom and front entryway. Hopefully all will go smooth with the installation of the tiles this weekend.

We are moving!

2010-01-29T11:27:00.001-05:00

The Devil's Workshop is very happy to announce that we will be moving to a new location right across the street from where we are now, our new address as of March 1st will be 890 Queen Street West! We are taking over over the location where Angell Gallery currently resides, located on the south side of Queen Street right next to the very popular and yummy Swan restaurant (some of the best coffee on the strip!). Jamie Angell Gallery is moving to a bigger space in the up and coming Gallery District on Ossington Street between Queen and Dundas.

With this move we will enjoy the sunshine! Higher ceilings! A spectacular store front! And both or our classrooms on the same floor! Our customers and students will enjoy the same personal customer service in our bright, vibrant, new space.

Over the month of February form the date that we take over the new space until opening on March 1st I will document the process. Juggling to staying open at our current location and as we set up and move one studio at a time beginning with the Lost Wax Casting studio mid February and finishing with the Silversmith Studio at the end of February... should be interesting.

Crafty Little Devils - Kalyna Pidwerbesky

2009-12-06T09:59:00.007-05:00

It was a pleasure to meet Kalyna last night! Not only is Kalyna a maker of many beautiful things but she is an excellent baker of Short Bread Toffee Crunch Bars! Kalyna is a Toronto-based fibre Artisan who creates richly coloured textiles and wearable art using handwork techniques. Kalyna studied at OCAD and Sheridan Collage and has just begun her professional carrier as a Fibre Artisan and we wish her the best of Luck!

See more of Kalyna's work here www.artofkaruna.com

Crafty Little Devils - Melanie Davis

2009-12-01T12:32:00.002-05:00

Melanie Davis of Valkyria creates silver jewellery and coloured drawings that harken back in to circa 1900 in their style and attention to detail. Depicting allegorical and mythological figures (such as mermaids) and creatures of the natural world (various insects and animals), she breathes new life into these themes, bringing old-school figural work into the 21st century.

Learn more about Melanie and see here work here

Crafty Little Devils - Annie Tung

2009-12-01T11:57:00.006-05:00

After Graduating from OCAD Annie joined the prestigious group of Artists-in-Residence at the Harbourfront Centre here in Toronto. Annie is interested in creating contemporary, timeless, unique jewellery. Annie shares the element of surprise with here patrons in her familiar and unsuspecting shapes that are only revealed at the wearer's pleasure. When not at her bench creating her fascinating objects Annie love drinking coffee and riding her bike around town (a kindred spirit!) Contact Annie and see more of her work here

Crafty Little Devils - Rickson

2009-12-01T11:46:00.003-05:00

Welcome home Ricki!

After spending a year abroad to complete her Masters at the Birmingham School of Jewellery she has returned home with new vivere and ambitiously organized the Crafty Little Devils craft sale. Ricki has gathered 12 very talented Artists to showcase their wears for your shopping pleasure. We look forward to seeing her work this weekend!

Go to Ricki's Etsy Store to buy or see more images of her work

Craft Sale this weekend!

2009-11-29T23:16:00.000-05:00

Join us at The Devil's Workshop this weekend for our first annual Crafty Little Devils Craft and Bake Sale!

We are so exited about this sale, it is a rare opportunity for us to showcase the work of Talented Artists other than just Jewellers, we will have bead-workers, Textile Artists and more! Join us opening night on Saturday, December 5th to kick off the show right with a raffle for a FREE CLASS, bake sale and refreshments.

We look forward to seeing you soon

Crafty Little Devils
Saturday, December 5th 8-10pm
Sunday, December 6th 12-8pm
Located at 955 Queen Street West
(South/West corner of Trinity-Bellwood's Park)

Acid Etched Warhol Banana

2009-09-30T00:51:00.000-04:00

A customer asked for a banana pendant as a gift for the 1 year anniversary of his friends website called Steel Banana I etched the Warhol screen print onto the silver using tar as a resist and put it in a mordant of nitric acid for a while. This one was actually my second attempt as the first one sat in the acid a bit too long and became but of a ghost of the banana that it once was. I hope Warhol doesn't mind that I hung the piece upside down as it was the only way I could do it without it looking too phallic.

Deadline Drama

2009-09-11T01:50:00.000-04:00

Here I sit at nearly 2am after a long, long, long day of work (too wired to sleep). I believe everything began at around 9pm Wednesday after class when I went ahead and casted the two commissions from the kiln against my better judgement (listen to the little voice in your head Sarah!) Nothing turned out! I had to re-carve the rings that night after a late dinner, re-invest and set up to cast. Finally a successful casting came out at 1pm the following day after my (whoops I forgot) privately booked class with P. Bla, bla, bla more work, meetings and feedings, class again, late dinner and then back to the shop to finish up the rings. All done! My fingertips ache, my back muscles are sore and the worst part is that I believe that I enjoy the deadline drama! what is the matter with me?