Remodeling Basement in Home Renovations Real Estate Flipping Toronto

This summer we’re remodeling the basement and putting a sunroom on the front of the house.

Basement Renovation Starts With Amdry Sub Flooring

After lowering the basement floor and installing proper drains, Kevin elected to use Amdry basement flooring applied directly onto the concrete slab. We would then apply a thick orange coloured cozy shaggy carpet on top of that material – for sure, the kids will love it growing up, and then complain about our taste when they remove the mess in twenty years, but they wont remove the Amdry sub floor underneath… Kevin believes that will last forever.  It does have a space age look and feel, and the material is heavy duty durable and something that looks like it would last a long time in either dry or wet conditions a concrete floor sweats – and these channels in the material let the cement breathe

Amvic insulated wall panels are safe, secure, easy-to-install, and makes cozy spaces where your ears pop when the door closes.

Purchasing the material required more than internet searches – i had to pick up the phone and make some calls!  The basement walls are to be  composed of Amdry insulated wall panels and you can see Kevin Dugard selecting the best examples at the Rona at Islington and 401 in Toronto

It was a time and place – Kevin had an avocado submarine sandwich in the store Subway, and felt sick on the way home.  that this happened to me once too.

AMENDMENT  You can see more of us purchasing the basement flooring and insulated wall panels on Red Flag Deals and a similar notion about basement flooring and insulated wall panels on Toronto Forums where we’re now selling the surplus for Kevin who characteristically overestimated and bought too much after being given a great price for a large order.

A couple articles warned us away from other green trends , and so went with it and made a meme specific content  like Green Trends Bring Red Ink when Flipping Houses which has more pictures

Smojoe blogged about insulated wall panels and basement flooring and helping friends flip houses on his blog.

Leslieville Art Scene Accepts Davide Luciano Photography at Pentimento Art Gallery

Davide Luciano stands in background at Pentimento Art Gallery in Leslieville, beside his portrait in Sheep Nation, photography exhibit.

Sometimes the area around Queen and Leslie and all the way north past Danforth is referred to as Leslieville.  Leslie Street is one of seven large arterial thoroughfares in Toronto. The city is organized in a grid pattern dating back to the plan laid out by Augustus Jones between 1793 and 1797 and streets do not follow a typical north south arrangement due to some extreme landscape in this part of southern Ontario. Toronto has deep ravines and two major rivers, Don and Humber, which have their own unique topographic features.  In summary the heart of the city today is the Yonge St corridor, and that’s along way from Leslieville, but connected by the relatively straight streetcar line along Queen St.

So it happens that Leslieville is on the rise. New condominiums have been built along Carlaw at Dundas St East and these have helped populate the area with a younger and more financially capable breed of urban professionals.  These people are streetcar shoppers, and prefer good local grocery stores and quaint shops over long car trips.  They also seek relaxing experiences and look for friendly pubs, cafes and art galleries.  The street scene here is not crushing like The Beaches or Queen St W and my friends sometimes remark how refreshingly easy it is to find parking.

On Thursday May 3rd evening, I attended a unique exhibit of photography by a young artist named Davide Luciano.

Here are some shots of the Sheep Nation exhibit at Pentimento Gallery.  The accompanying literature reads, “Sheep Nation explores a society that is desperate for uniqueness and originality but ultimately succumbs to following the herd.”  In this presentation, the artist made human subjects into a race of sheep-like people complete with odd looking hoof-like hands and feet, and animal faces, and in some cases, horns.  Its also significant that the females are all wearing matching designer dresses.

Here is picture of Smojoe giving his business card to a tourist from Niagara Falls Ontario that he met while mingling around the beverage table.  Davide also has a six page spread in ZOOM Europe’s preeminent Fine Arts Photography magazine. The show has been blogged about already from as far away as Australia and Italy.

Pentimento Fine Art Gallery is located at 1164 Queen Street East Toronto, and open from Weds to Sunday each week.  John Rait opened the venue in July 2006  to offer local artists more multimedia promotion including, but not limited to, representation on the Pentimento blog.  Rait offers commissions, installations, consultations, and private viewings.  The gallery shows contemporary Canadian artists at all stages of their careers.

The word ‘pentimento’ refers to any alterations in a painting. Upon completing some research into the etymology of the word, I rediscovered that it means “an alteration in a painting, evidenced by traces of previous work, showing that the artist has changed his or her mind as to the composition during the process of painting.” And there are many famous examples and perhaps most representative is The Lute Player by Caravaggio which has inspired a great deal of discussion about that Master’s creative process and vision.

The true etymology of the word Pentimento is Italian for repentance, from the verb pentirsi means ‘to repent’.  Art historians are always looking for pentimenti as glimpses into the artist’s process and they are considered especially important when investigating whether a particular painting is the prime version by the original artist, or a second version by the artist himself, or his workshop, or a later copyist.

The word ‘pentimento’ has also been adopted by a subculture that studies the decaying hand-painted signs on old buildings – fading sign murals and product art. esp when two representations of the same advertisement are present on the same section of bricks. In the photo left you can see a bad example because you can barely see the ad below on the fading white paint exterior of a Vancouver gold buyer brick building in historic neighbourhood of the old city. The capitol of British Columbia is Victoria and that island town has a lot of old buildings and its possible to see the ghosts of some of British Columbia’s biggest selling brands painted on their sides.

John Rait himself told me that he named the gallery after the second volume of Lillian Hellman’s autobiography Pentimento.  She once wrote, “Old paint on a canvas, as it ages, sometimes becomes transparent. When that happens it is possible, in some pictures, to see the original lines: a tree will show through a woman’s dress, a child makes way for a dog, a large boat is no longer on an open sea. That is called pentimento because the painter “repented,” changed his mind. Perhaps it would be as well to say that the old conception, replaced by a later choice, is a way of seeing and then seeing again. That is all I mean about the people in this book. The paint has aged and I wanted to see what was there for me once, what is there for me now.” – Lillian Hellman

MONTE CLARK GALLERY was visited by Monte Clark

The Desire for More Solar Power and 100% Sustainability

A Visit to the Dentist

I finally made my yearly visit to my Toronto Dentist last week and surprisingly had a great conversation before all the dental work took place and was no longer able to talk.  I was intrigued with the amount of equipment and electronics in this place of business.  The continuous improvements in the world of electronics is incredible.  However, it made me think of the amount of power supply needed for such an office.  Sustainability is such a trend though these days.   It seems obvious as to why because of societies  such huge advancements, also comes the concern of long term maintenance of responsibility environmentally, economically and socially.   My dentist had everyday life to think about and the stress involved but also shared these concerns.   We casually discussed the idea of the use of more solar panels for energy supply in such a building so that the carbon footprint would be decreased.  Not an easy project to take on, but not impossible either.   Believe it or not this conversation all began with the discussion of my art work and the small studio projects that I have been taking on.   My art projects are small, but every little green step can be seen as a move forward toward an increase in sustainability.

Salvaged Materials Lead to Creative Ideas

I purchased some small 8″x8″ wood panels that were on sale  to work on and wondered what I was going to do with them.  I really enjoyed the texture of the wood rather than the canvas.  I would run my fingers over the brown wooden surface and feel the shame of painting over such a natural forest product.   However, I took this guilt and decided to see where I could go with it.  My inner voice told me that the wood panels were not meant to be merely painted on with acrylic paint.   They were meant for much more, with more meaning and fun.  I rustled up all my salvaged materials taken from broken and discarded computers, eye glasses, printers, and other things.   The visual arrangement play with the huge assortment of objects on the panels began.   Some of the objects needed to be manipulated but two images of owls appeared.  One was no ordinary owl.  It was a WISE CYBER OWL sitting on it’s perch with arrow keypads for ears.   Two other 8″ x 8″ wood panels suggested whimsical old style images of bicycles with the backspace keypad.   A few more changes need to be made to the creations before they can be considered FINISHED and for display and sale.  

The View of the City from a Distance

I have  created a few various cityscapes including a larger version of Toronto currently hung and for sale in Cafe Uno in the Distillery District.   However, the panoramic wooden panels size 36″ x 12″ just seem perfect for small computer pieces and other objects I have discovered among the discarded.  I love process of using acrylics and the blending of the sky.    I have a bit of a series with these and have 3 more additions of these 36″ x 12″ Cyber Cityscapes.   I do not attempt at realism but play with the possibilities of a simple perfect futuristic quality.  What can I say I am bit of a dreamer.     The line at the bottom is beautiful glass mirror strip salvaged from an old printer that was found in the trash.  I like to believe it adds a reflective quality to the piece.  I am a reflective person and find it a great learning tool if I use it correctly.  I guess I was hoping this futuristic type of city would take a reflective stance as well for possible growth and sustainability.  Remaining diverse and productive over time.

Toronto Artist Tries to Think of New Ways to Pay the Rent

Sustainable Living Artist Style

As sustainable living ideas and concerns increase people are thinking second before throw anything out.  As an Artist I am constantly sorting through things with the hopes that I can find discarded material a new life.  Living and working in an old warehouse building offers the opportunity and space to keep various materials and use them in creations.  Having a collection of material leads to adding another step to the creative process of  an  inventory management  so that things don’t get out of control and you have an excess of clutter of materials that can take on the appearance of  garbage.   I’ve had an excess of unusable computers given to me from an insurance company.    These computers were all intact and ready for my dissection.

Closet Space Devoted to Donations

I had to clear a lot out of my closet space for the computer and devoted a lot of time with tools to finding the beauty within.  I still have electronic donations given to me and have to turn them down from time to time for fear that I don’t have enough time to give them the attention that they need.  I try to use as many items inside as possible , but it takes a lot of imagination.

Electronic Reed Switches and Lunch Containers

The biggest challenge is finding time for all the ideas that come to mind.   Including the  reed switches, gadgets, keypads and other components can leave a feeling of transformational empowerment.   This is one of the reasons why I work with recycled items.  I can take the feeling of being broken and transform it into a rebirth.    I’ve even found a few abandoned small batman  lunch containers at post garage sale street sites and used them to keep some of my materials in.

Ikea Table Top Transformed

The reinvention of the old into the new is a theme that is becoming more common as concerns for our planet grow.   This piece was created with a discarded table top, plaster relief and computer components and electric devices inside.  There is a switch on the side that allows you turn a small light on inside to reveal the what is hidden beneath the relief sculpture of the torso.

Online Photo Contests for Artists Portfolios and Bank Accounts

Professional Photography in the Warehouse

Solarsoft has supported online photo contests a few times.   Just check out the Lenzr blog to see.   This time they are looking for a photography license agreement with the owners of the best photos for the Warehouse Stockpiles  photo contest.   They want to use some awesome warehouse stockpiles photos for their  production planning online page.   This is a good chance for the serious minded photography lovers.  This is a chance  to gain some recognition and exposure.  Even piles of merchandise can be captured  in an interesting way.  Capture boxes stacked in warehouses, trucks or department stores.   This contest you can add to your portfolio.  The judges want to use the winning photos professionally for cash.   $250 for each photo license agreement will be awarded.  The company is looking for photos to put on their new web pages.   Artists should be given more money for all their hard work.  So upload your photos for free on the website.

Cash or Candy with a Homemade Halloween Costume

Everyone loves this festival time of year.  It gives people the chance to live out their fantasies with the costume apparel.   In North America you will see  ghosts, dragons, sexy police, Harry Potter, cats and more walking the streets begging for candy at people’s doors.  This trick or treat season could be a real payoff with 250 dollars of cash or candy.  Those with a sweet tooth will pick the candy.  Homemade HALLOWEEN Costumes is a festive photo contest for all photography lovers.  Dress up your freinds, family and pets too.    The judges will determine the winner of the $250 in cash or candy thanks to the social media contests who like to be imaginative and fun.

Enjoy Property Maintenance

Many people like to enjoy their property and spend lots of energy and money to keep it lush are alive.   The loving care placed into landscaping and lawn care for many homes is great.  Green  healthy looking grass gives us the desire to take off our shoes and enjoy life.  You see this in movies often. If you  already have photos of green grass and colourful flowers in beautiful landscaped lawns enter them for free on the Lenzr website. The Landscaping and Lawn Care photo contest judges want to see your great photos and are willing to make it worth your time and effort.  Thanks to a green thinking  property maintenance company there is a valuable contest prize.   If you are chosen by the judges you can enjoy your prize of your choice  next spring.  It would make a great gift too, being $250 worth of garden tools.

Try a Professional Bread-maker with Organic Ingredients

Bread is served in many types of restaurants such as Italian, Indian, and Greek.   Most people love the fresh flavour straight out of the oven.    The traditional food  comes in many different forms including raisens, whole wheats and olive.  The judges of this  photo contest involving one of the oldest foods is looking for great photos where bread is somehow involved.  I’m sure their will be many imaginative shots entered.    An organic ingredients company is helping out Lenzr and they are offering a professional Breadman breadmaker machine to winner. Use your camera when your loved ones are enjoying their toast.  Or take some shots of sandwiches in the lunch room at work.   Use your creativity to find someone interesting,  eating bread, making it, or sharing it. Write a fun description too to go with your photo.  Your imagination is the best tool.    This substance has a rich history and many memories.  Show Lenzr what it means to you.

House for Renovation?

If you like turning the rundown and old into the new this photo challenge may be for you.  The House For Renovation photo contest with Lenzr is great if you are a photographer going through a home reno.  You may have a couple homes on your street in need of a little repair.  Capture it’s true beauty digitally and perhaps you will win an Apple iPad2.    Look for those rundown houses and capture their fragile states.   This photo contest offers all photographers of different levels a chance to win an Apple iPad 2.    The judges will determine the best photo and give the iPad2 thanks to Toronto mortgage broker who take goals seriously, financial and photography related.  The photo contest winner will be announced on New Years day.  The best House for renovation picture will get an Apple iPad2 for the year 2012.

Distillery District, Cafe Uno Art on Display

Cafe Uno and Restaurant in the Distillery District

I like to frequent Cafe Uno because they are one of the casual places with good prices and food in the Distillery.  I noticed one day they were hanging a local artists paintings.  A friend explained to friendly management that I was an artist/painter too.  I shied away about talking or bringing my art work in to show.   However, I was fortunate they checked out my website and told me they would hang my art work when the current Artist took his down.  I was excited.  I had a chance to exhibit in one of my favourite areas, the Distillery District.  It’s not a lot of hanging space because of the walls.  Well, not exactly the walls because they have rules about drilling holes into heritage buildings, so I had some beams and windows to hang my art work on.  I decided on displaying five of my pieces.   My painting style is all over the place but I have been adding computer parts into my paintings and decided to go with my recycled techno series.

Putting a Price on Your Paintings

When I step into my studio space in my spare time, I try to clear my mind of any thoughts of selling my art work.  Fortunately, I actually have a full time job to pay the bills.  I don`t create my art work with the purpose to sell.  However, if I can make money from one of my artistic creations I am on cloud nine.  Exhibiting my art work in public is a great opportunity to gain exposure and gain more confidence.  I know if I want to sell my art rather than accumulate only on the walls of my home, I need to expand my opportunities.

The difficulty can be found in placing a realistic and reasonable price on paintings.  A challenging task for many but necessary.   I factor in the cost of supplies, time and effort I put into my art work. I also consider how difficult it would be to replicate.  Some art might not have taken a long time to paint necessarily but the pieces that were included and found would be difficult to replace.

I have undervalued my art work in the past, and had my art work sell quickly.  However with the temporary excitement came also the regrets. Some of my art pieces might not look like there is a lot of time invested but taking apart the computers was very time consuming and physically demanding. Some of my objects that have been added to my painting collages are very unique. I have also over valued my art work and had interested buyers who were not willing to meet me at my selected high price.  I learned from this mistake as well.  Now, I take into consideration my emotional attachment to the piece as well.

Painting And Photography Mixing Together for More Exposure

While I was installing my paintings on the walls I was pleasantly surprised by the patrons of the cafe and their reactions.  As soon as I put the art work on display they were taking photos. It brought on a mixed set of emotions.  I was grateful for the opportunity to display my art work. However, many artists forget to consider what they might be giving to the viewers with their public displays and the aesthetic appeal to the establishments . We tend to only think of what we might or might not gain by such an action. As I noticed people taking photos of my paintings I was aware of the reciprocal gift giving. I realized that I want to add more of my personal business storytelling to my art displays.  If I want to sell paintings it’s helpful to develop my personal brand more and connect with my viewers.  I want to open up with background stories on each painting.  They may be personal but sharing can help connect with viewers turning them into potential buyers.
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Behind the Scenes of Warehouse 13 in Toronto

Secret Warehouse 13 In South Dakota

Last Tuesday was a busy day in the streets of the Distillery District in Toronto.    There were film crews everywhere and it was like being transformed into a different time in history.   I couldn’t help but notice the clock in the square had a different face, and a time that was obviously not correct.    This was the set of a new television show called Warehouse 13.    The show was in the filming of season 3 already.   Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered July 7 2009 on the SyFy network.  It had the third largest debut to date, garnering 3.5 million viewers.  It’s about a coupld of US Secret Service Agents who are assigned to the government secret warehouse 13 in South Dakota which houses supernatural artifacts.  Warehouse 13 received it’s first ever Emmy nomination in 2010.   As I walked the streets of the Distillery and explored the t.v. set and some of it’s props  I realized that this SyFy show has transferred my state of being into another era of time.  I want to find out more about this mysterious relics and strange artifacts.

Acting in the Distillery District in Toronto

Fortunately I found the location manager working with the film crew and he kindly gave us a bit of a tour during his busy work schedule.   My friend and I went to the background holding area where they were doing period costumes and makeup for the actor’s and actresses.   Wow, I did feel like I was in a time warp now.   We began to chat with one of the extra actors.  It seemed rather strange to see him wearing his period attire and holding a cell phone.  This did seem like I was in a science fiction story now.

I found out he was from Russia and an artist.  This background extra work allowed him to continue with his art and make some money doing film.  I am sure the film experience offered him some inspiration and resourceful tools from time to time as well.  This isn’t that uncommon, many artists hold down several jobs to pay the bills.  Standing beside him you can see the amazing time differential.  The costume designers and makeup artists did an excellent job.  It was hard to believe that I was chatting with one of my contemporaries and not a historical figure that I met in a time machine exploration. 

SyFy Network Television Series

Well, after my brief period back in time I realized that I had to get back to the modern day world and get some work done.   Life is lived at a much faster pace these days.   I took my  last look at the horse and buggy and the people dressed in late 1800 period attire.   I think it`s great to be able to be taken back into time if only for a short period of time.   I went to Balzac`s and got my organic hot chocolate and was also grateful to be living in a world of technology.   This SyFy network television series executive produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins intrigued me.  The transformational quality of  artifacts and relics that allow us to bridge the past to the present.    I would have to view this American fantasy show sometime and see if it could transfer my reality briefly again.
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The Young Centre for the Performing Arts

Toronto’s Distillery District Arts Community

Last week in the Distillery we had  the return of winter even though we had the arrival of  the spring like weather conditions.   Officially as of March 20, 2011 spring had arrived. However, the weather conditions were not in agreement.  Unfortunately, it was a little quiet for business owners in the Distillery last  Thursday so I walked down Mill Street and took a turn towards the Young Centre for the Performing Arts. The snow flurries were definitely blowing in my direction. I pushed on against the western directed wind flurries determined to find a story. My friend quickly ran up ahead to bolster himself from the unexpected cold wind on his ears.

I chuckled to myself while thinking he was not prepared for this venture.  He definitely should have worn a hat.  Fortunately, I could endure more of the flurries. I took my time walking the streets of the Distillery District appreciating our harsh Canadian winter weather and reveled in it’s unbelievable beauty.

Atrium Cafe/Bar at the Young Centre

Despite the cold weather  I experienced a warm friendly environment when I entered the Young Centre for the Performing Arts doors. It was  worth the efforts of bundling up and going outdoor to find. There were other adventurous people inside enjoying the warm fare of the new cafe situated in the building. I noticed the gorgeous and well lit Sandra Faire and Ivan Fecan Atrium has a full time cafe/bar that offers delicious food and beverages. I enjoy finding new spaces that hold lots of character and charm. I could feel the creative vibe as I entered the atrium. This is a location I will definitely store in my memory bank for future meeting places. I visualized meeting a friend or colleague here. The appeal of the space also invites a visit with a sketch book, camera, journal or laptop to enjoy a drink while sitting with character and charm.  A good place to get the creative juices flowing.

George Brown College and Soulpepper Theatre Make a Home

The Young Centre staff also gave me plenty of information on the programming and theatres.  I had only ventured into the atrium and did not have tickets to see any performances. I envisioned a lot more exciting artistic inspiration in this venue. The Young Centre for the Performing Arts is the home of George Brown College and Soulpepper Theatre Company. It is obvious that Toronto’s art community is alive in this historical heritage building.  Soulpepper has a year around classical repertory as well as George Brown College’s Theatre School and other leading artists and arts organizations across all performance disciplines. In the fall of 2008, the Young Centre launched an exciting programming involving four major streams of activity. Festivals, presentations, incubation and outreach are a part of this slate of programming. There are twelve Resident Artists who lead the programming in music, theatre, dance and spoken word with all the collaborative possibilities in between. The space offers flexible venues with it’s different stage configurations. They consist of the proscenium, thrust and arena staging. A performance artist dream.   I admire this major investment in the future of this Toronto community and hope others do as well.

paper SERIES presented by the Cahoots Theatre Company

I was impressed with the amount of performances taken place at the Young Centre. It seems like there is always an artistic  performance to  experience here. The theatre loving staff pointed out to me that The Cahoots Theatre Company in association with The Young Centre for the Performing Arts is currently presenting paper Series by David Yee March 18 until April 9, 2011. It is directed by Nina Lee Aquino. The paper Series is a collection of six short plays that explore how society uses paper to create, amuse, define, and communicate. It sounds very exciting and profound. It is comprised of stories involving: fortune cookies, an origami crane, counterfeiters, orphans with paper cut-out dolls, and a Dear John letter. All very intriguing subjects worth venturing out in the unexpected spring Canadian weather to witness and enjoy. I might have to find a way to buy tickets.

Exploring Happiness for Bangladesh

Happiness Images With Children

I am fortunate to have friends teaching and living all over this planet due to my Montessori teaching experience. One of my amazing teacher friends works at an international school.  She came up with a great idea for an art project to raise funds for the street children in Bangladesh. I was intrigued when she told me of the idea and grateful for being involved.  She had her classroom and others participate as well. The classroom children were given the art exercise to visually describe what happiness meant to them. They took their paint and applied it to paper to illustrate what happiness look like.

Fortunately I get to work with these paintings as one of the participating artist volunteering my talents and time to the project.  I was surprised to receive 100 paintings on paper in the mail. I was delighted to experience each one and note the differences and similarities. As I looked through them I reflected back on my childhood days and admired the simplicity and beauty of each one.  In some paintings I could tell it was the process itself of painting that brought them happiness, not the end result. This thought brought me a moment of happiness as well.  I love when the theories I believe in are proven true.

Well, I began by taking my scissors out and cutting images. There were plenty of families, pets, trees, flowers, rainbows, butterflies and pizza. This is one of the beginning phases of the project. The step I am going to take is to plan the background and placement of the image objects. I have my work in store for me.  Here are photographic glimpses into the process. I am curious to how this large painting is going to turn out.  I have until June.   Stay tuned for more.

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Hey EVERYBODY… I’M BACK!

Ok Ok, so I took some time away from the blogging thinking it was a waste of time. Especially because I developed a web site. However, I realized that the wave of the future is in blogging. I’ve had my severe career challenges in 2010, to the point where my late boss told us to stop using the markers to colour in pictures because it makes them dry out faster. Good Lord! I didn’t last with that job longer than 6 months. Which in my thoughts was pretty good. On the other hand many family and friends thought it was pitiful to be quitting a job before obtaining another. My question is, how much can you put your own values on the line for a measly little stable pay cheque. Hey we all do and it’s a compromise we all make but, where is the line that we draw for ourselves and our misery level. I feel better when I was told that the statistics show that the average person changes careers at least 3 times in their life. Well, I am had my share and I am looking for a career that pays the bills, allows self respect and allows my passion to shine every once in a while rather than being stifled. Watch out 2011 World. Here I come. I know you will challenge me on this. Let’s GO!