My new market space!

I love love love having a space at the Arts Market at 1114 Queen St. E, in Toronto.

I liken it to having a garden...it's always there, a living organic place that displays the beautiful "plants" I create, and whenever the timing pleases me I get to go visit my "plot" to tend and nourish it.  These visits are thrilling for me, as it's always a surprise to see what someone has "harvested"from my garden.    

Let's face it~ making art is fulfilling...but having someone love a piece enough to adopt if for their own is extra fulfilling!

Soooo, I was recently offered a new space when an artist moved out.  It immediately felt right to me...cozier.  I have had so much fun re-designing and stocking it.

Here is a pic of the very first day I moved into the market in November:

That shelf was picked right out of my kitchen.  I assured my boyfriend I would only be borrowing it temporarily. ;)

Here is the space now....gotta love evolution!

found the perfect frame for my sign!

And the perfect hook for my bags!

linen napkins

lovely cloth napkins

An important reminder :)

From my valentine's day "love" line. :)

Please stay tuned to see what my garden grows next...

I love my serger. LOVE.

So my lovely cousin Megan had in her possession an old tablecloth of her grandmothers, and after this past Christmas dinner, she presented it to me.  It had been stowed away in a cupboard for years, and though valued, it was rarely given a chance to be really appreciated.  As it wasn't a good fit for her table, she handed it over to me in the hopes that I could make something more useful out of it!  

I really appreciated this job for two reasons.  The first being that it felt great to be able to collaborate with Megan on how to "Uplift" this personal item that was precious to her.  

And secondly, it gave me the opportunity to learn how to use my serger in a new way.  Once we settled on the idea of turning the tablecloth into napkins, out came the instruction manual that taught me how to set my machine up for a rolled hem.  Let me tell ya, I enjoyed the heck out of sewing these napkins because of the sheer simplicity of the task!  

In the end, I was able to give her 10 napkins and one beautiful table runner:

Now I am on a roll, converting vintage pillowcases and suitable fabric finds into useful and oh so pretty and eco-friendly cloth napkins!  My favourite part are the vibrantly colourful threads I am using for the edging.  

Up-lifted pillow cases!

Finally found the perfect use for the fabric I've had forever.

Sold singly at the Arts Market or...

....in sets of four

My friend Margarethe gifted me with a bundle of yellow linen she had purchased when she thought she would make herself a tablecloth.  She never did, and so now it's turning into some sweet lookin' linen napkins instead!

As much pleasure as I gain from hunting for fabric treasures to up-cycle, the truest satisfaction comes from helping another UP-lift their own material into something perfectly customized and useful.  Feel free to send an email if you yourself have such a need, and I'll turn on the serger!

Handlebar Booths!

Long time, no blog!

And I'm happy to say it's not because there is nothing to report but rather that I've been busy!

My February has been occupied by upholstering booths for my lovely friends' bar, Handlebar, in Kensington Market.  When the Wokker closed down on Queen St E, Rachel and Bruce adopted their leftovers, among them ugly red booths.  These sad seats had no foam to speak of~ just powder where it used to be.  Yuck!

But when you have vision and like gaining a of sense of satisfaction through the transformational process then, instead of seeing these booths as garbage, you see them for what they could become...

But first, they had to be stripped.  That orange stuff is the "foam".

In total, there were 8 backs and seats for me to recover.  I took all the measurements I needed, and once the fabric was purchased and the foam acquired, I could begin...!

The springs were in good condition so I went straight to applying the foam to the seats.  I figured that I wanted the seat edge to be rounded, so I used a technique I learned from my teacher.  I made sure the foam was one inch bigger all around except for at the back of the seat.  Then I stapled the foam to the front edge of the top piece of wood, by pressing the stapler nose into the middle of the foam and stapling it down.  This act makes the foam fold together creating a rounded edge.

Next, I added 1/2" foam to the front by gluing it to the wood and the edge of the 1" foam.  

I had chosen a nice thick poly to go on next.  Vinyl is stiff and the foam is firm, so I really wanted to add cushiness to the seat in some fashion and thick poly was my choice.

And next the vinyl...

I do not have any pics of this part of the process, but I do have these...

And then finally....

I really think they turned out wonderfully and I had SO much fun with this project!

Make sure you go visit them in person and fall in love with this bar:

www.Handlebar.ca

159 Augusta Avenue

Toronto

647-748-3233

Thank you Rachel and Bruce...xo