Is it time for a break yet?

So, it’s not quite time to shut down yet, but I admit that I’ve run out of steam for the year. I guess, not surprisingly after the year I’ve had, which has included, death in the family, personal health issues, dental issues, cat health issues, parental moving issues, work issues, and the final straw, losing water (and consequently heating) due to a severely leaking pipe, and various issues associated with trying to get it fixed.

Poorly Kitty in question—Twiglet, aka Piglet, Wiglet, and the brown unmentionable

It’s not all bleak, thankfully, Twig is doing alright now, even though she has some ongoing issues, the parental is safely in the new place, I’ve got new plans for work, and we (yay!) have water and heating again.

BUT, I think it’s safe to say that I would like to turn the page on this year, and I am hopeful that next year will be better. I saw something recently about how the holiday season can be very difficult for people (which I can totally understand), and that you should hope that the holidays are gentle. So my wish for you, if you can’t have a happy holiday, is that you definitely have a gentle one.

Twiglet, Pan (my other cat), and I wish you all the best.

Signing off until the new year, when hopefully I will be upping my blog game!!

-Robin

St. Andrew's Society, and discount

Starting a business is always challenging, particularly when you return from away and are trying to get things up and running from a stand still. Four years ago, I returned to Toronto from the UK with the intention of establishing my artist practice in jewellery, and kiltmaking. I had a plan (because I can only split my attention so many ways at once!): I’d concentrate on getting one side set up, and then work on the other. Serendipity ended up dictating that jewellery got the lionshare of my attention first!

Fast forward to 2020, and the new year, which included plans to start trying to develop the kiltmaking aspect of my business more. Well, we all know what happened then…..and, like alot of people, I fell into abit of a covid black hole. Fast forward again, and here we are moving toward the end of 2022. Amongst the activities I’ve done this year, is to joing the St. Andrew’s Society of Toronto. Apart from conncecting with people of Scottish descent, they have a charitable aspect that I admire, and hope to become more involved with in the future.

In the meantime, I’m happy to announce that I am partnering with the St. Andrew’s Society of Toronto to offer it’s members a 10% discount off my products and services. Keep your ears up for exciting news about this in the next few weeks!

And….if you love all things Scottish, I recommend visiting the society’s website, as they have a pretty exciting calendar of social events! Hope to see you at some of them:).

-Robin

I got a grant!

As you may know, I used to be a research scientist. Part of my old career was writing grants for money to do research. Since I like to use all my skills (and it’s always nice to get the money and recognition that writing a successful grant brings!), I’ve turned my hand to start writing applications for grants, for exhibitions….for anything I think will bring me more exposure, and that I feel I will benefit from, really.

And…I’m pleased to say that I’ve received my first arts grant from the Ontario Arts Council! It’s a grant that supports (retrospectively) my participation in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair (which I participated in person for the first time this year!).

So, what does this mean for me? Well, first of all, I’m grateful to receive support from the OAC. For an emerging artist (which I am), it’s a big deal to me. It’s some money to help me defray the cost of exhibiting (these shows can be pretty pricey, and when you’re new, you don’t necessarily sell much until people get to “know” you), which is great. And, hopefully, it will lead to other things! But we’ll see.

It also means that if you peruse the website, you should notice that I’ve added a new logo to the footer of the pages, indicating that I’ve received support from the OAC. This is important, to help publicise that the OAC is an active supporter of artists, and bring attention to it’s work from the general public. If you don’t know what they’re about, I encourage you to visit their website and explore this a bit!

In the meantime, I’m back to the salt mines!

Creativity is hard to do......

It’s been a hard pandemic. And I know that it’s been more difficult for a lot of people than others. I’m very fotunate, I admit it; my parents are retired, most of my friends and the rest of my family and friends are reasonably affluent. I don’t fully have words to tell you how grateful for that I am. That’s not my case, but I’ve been insulated by the fact that I have very supportive friends, who shelter me on very reasonable terms, as I try to build my new career.

BUT……no one is immune to the mental effects of isolation and limited activity. And I’ve come to the conclusion that it is really the enemy of creativity. It’s the height of ……something….that when I had probably the most opportunity to spend time being creative, I was scraping the bottom of the barrel to try and motivate myself to take advantage of it. I don’t mind admitting that that was an epic fail. I did a lot of sketching, and started a lot of things, but follow through has been difficult.

I know I’m not alone in this, so for all my fellow peeps in the same boat—I see you! Here’s to the eternal hope that things will be better in the future, even when, to me, it seems entirely uncertain.

My optimism that spring is actually coming (taken last summer in Garrison Common near Fort York).

Small business, big picture

I rather quietly like the holidays. I’m not necessarily one for crowds, and to be honest, I’ve always favoured shopping in local, small and artisanal shops for gifts, rather than big box stores. Yes, it often is more expensive , but I really value the thought that goes behind presents, not the volume. I know not everyone feels the same, and that’s totally valid, nor can you necessarily get everything local, but this is my ask for the season (as a small business person and artist), please consider shopping locally, and choosing to support both local businesses and artists.

Last week, Roncevalles (which is where the studio I am a member of is located) ran a mini campaign to try and bring some visibility to the neighbourhood and the reality of the current situation.

Overnight, participating stores and businesses down Roncevalles were papered with these kraft paper “For Lease” signs. Come mid-day, they were taken down and replaced with positive slogans like “Your support is never for lease” “Give Roncy a new lease on life” and “Our love in not for lease”

We’ve been touched at the studio by the people that have gotten in touch with words of support, equiries about custom work and workshops, and interest in knowing more about the studio. Although we really value and need financial support through active shoppers, we also value word-of-mouth (or, word-of-internet!) exposure too, as that helps bring more visibility and awareness of who and what we are . You can join the newsletter, suggest the site to your friends, or forward a newsletter, lave a review, share an instagram or facebook post, verbally tell people you know about a favourite site (preferably mine :). All of these actions cost nothing but a bit of thought and time, but are immensely helpful!

Anyway, I think that is it for me this week, I’m off to do a bit of online browsing to try and finish my Christmas shopping!! Stay safe, please follow the guidelines, and I’ll see you next week!

-Robin.

Old jewellery, new jewellery

I’ve been hard at work doing a number of custom pieces, which I can’t really share at the moment, as they’re not completed yet, but I did complete a couple of pieces recently that I wanted to share with you. It’s fun when a client brings me their old jewellery that they want to reimagine into new pieces.

Re-imaging jewellery you have is a good way to retain materials, but give them a new lease on life! I feel so happy to be involved in helping to remodel so many meaningful pieces!

I removed the central stone from the ring, and made it into a new bezel set floating pendant in 14k white gold. It looks stunning! The rest of the stones will go to be used in other pieces, and the gold was recycled in another piece as well!

Here, I removed the side stones (so the central stone can be used somewhere else!), and remade them into these sweet, delicate earrings, also in 14k white gold. The gold from the ring was reclaimed.

So, do you have any jewellery lurking around that you want to give a new lease on life ? Get in contact and let’s start a dialogue about remodeling your jewellery—all quotes are no-obligation and free!

Happy Sunday!

-Robin.