Nitty Gritty Furniture Design and Restoration
Nitty Gritty is on the MOVE !
After 11 years on King Street and 35 years in the Lower East Side, the time has come to move on.
We’ve been planning this move for almost a year, with a few major first steps completed.
In the Spring, we publically relaunched our refinishing and restoration business. There will soon be a published feature article in the Toronto Star on our restoration history and our continued commitment to fine restoration. The second step was the development of a new web-site; one with more relevance, more information and mostly with greater depth of product. We now have over 3000 photos of furniture we’ve built shown on the site, with many more to come!
Changing with the times, has meant looking at fewer real square feet of showroom and a greater virtual presence. So, showroom downsizing is the order of the day and the web will help as a more effective design and sales tool.
However, we understand that touching and feeling the product is as important as seeing it, so we will still have a showroom. It will just be smaller. Where else can we put over 2000 wood, colour and finish samples!
As 70% of our business comes from wonderful repeat customers, we felt that a smaller showroom presence, and a more mobile design crew making house calls would far outweigh expensive showroom space downtown, as nice as it has been.
We have been scouting locations, off the beaten path, and with parking! We hope to have a new location dressed for the New Year.
Because our new location will be much smaller, probably with a dining room, bedroom & office set-up, we have way too much inventory, and some particularly spectacular pieces as well, that we won’t be taking.
Our commitment to this move is best paraphrased as,
“in for a penny, in for a pound”.
So, we’re selling off all of our inventory at
35-75% off + extra 10%
...furniture, upholstery, accessories, art, fixtures, and more.
While we are changing retail locations, we haven’t changed our cabinetry nor finishing operations, but we felt it an appropriate opportunity to offer all new standard and custom orders at 25% off, as well.
The sale starts Oct. 29th, and we are planning to move out in the next 2-3 weeks. If you have interest, come quick! First come, first served!
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
- Toronto, October 28, 2009
Many thanks to all of our wonderful customers, and neighbours for your support and good wishes. The past month’s “blow out” sale has been a huge success with scores of new orders, and a huge amount of inventory sold off. That said, it’s still amazing how many truckloads it took to move everything out from 170 King St. E.
If you’re just finding out...after 11 years on King Street and 35 years in the Lower East Side, we decided earlier in the year to move. Please see the article below for more background.
We are hard at working scouting new locations in the Laird and Eglinton area. We feel this area provides more convenient access for our customers, with parking! We also hope to be able to bring some of the restoration and finishing work on site.
The new store front we plan to have up and running early in the New Year, and will be advising clients by email. Click here if you want to be on our list.
We still have inventory for sale. Please visit our “blow-out” price list for details.
In the interim, we continue to design and build beautiful furniture. Our mobile design studio is available by appointment. Please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca
If you need our expert restoration services, please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca, It is always helpful to send clear photos of the items you need restored. We can then discuss by phone, or arrange a time to see them in person.
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
Nitty Gritty has MOVED out!
- Toronto, November 27, 2009
Nitty Gritty’s studio coming soon
- Toronto, February 20, 2010
We’ve discovered that while we believe the Laird and Eglinton area a perfect spot for our new studio, there are not many available locations. We have set specific parameters to judge any given location, and while we we have seen seven different spaces, none have met all our requirements. We continue to receive calls and emails from those of you looking to visit us in our new studio and feel pressure to set up. However, we aren’t rushing. We’ll look forward to advising you when we have found that new location. Click here if you want to be on our list.
In the interim, we continue to design and build beautiful furniture. You’ll see our most recent projects by clicking HERE. Our mobile design studio is available by appointment. Please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca If you need our expert restoration services, please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca, It is always helpful to send clear photos of the items you need restored. We can then discuss by phone, or arrange a time to see them in person. We still have inventory for sale from the King St. E. showroom.
Visit our “blow-out” pricing for details.
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
Studios, Furniture and Restoration
- Toronto, September 28, 2010
We have yet to find a new studio! If you can help, we would appreciate it! We were scooped in August for one studio, as someone else beat us to the punch. There is another that we like but as it became available this month, the landlord decided to undertake major renovations. It may not be available until the new year. We may take it then, if nothing else comes up. If you know of a studio space 1000-2000 ft2, we would love to hear. Please click here to offer suggestions.
In the interim, we continue an enlightening practice of make house calls both for custom furniture and restoration projects. It seems to work exceptionally well in every regard. It gives us a chance to see the situation, and help advise within context. Please call or email if you would like further information.
Our Web-site has been updated and expanded significantly over the summer, with more direct and easier links. You'll also see new sections on our Fine Finishing, Furniture Elements (Facts) (hardware, cabinet crowns, table legs, etc), and both Customer Furniture Testimonials, and Restoration Testimonials.
In the interim, we continue to design and build beautiful furniture. You’ll see our most recent projects by clicking HERE. Our mobile design studio is available by appointment. Please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca If you need our expert restoration services, please call 416-364-1393, or email us at mail@nittygritty.ca, It is always helpful to send clear photos of the items you need restored. We can then discuss by phone, or arrange a time to see them in person. We still have inventory for sale from the King St. E. showroom.
Visit our “Floor Model Sale” for details.
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
New Studio Showroom!!
- Toronto, January 20, 2011
We are delighted to have recently moved into our spacious new studio/showroom in Leaside. At close to 2000 ft2, it is similar in size to our previous King St. location. We are currently setting up both our showroom and an added restoration studio on site.
Best of all there is FREE parking right in front! UNIT #8 - 95 RESEARCH RD.
If you know Leaside, we’re only one block from the Home Depot at the east end of Research Rd. We love it because we’re now only 11 minutes drive from the old store on King St., from the Summerhill liquor store, and from Lawrence and Avenue Rd. Great convenience!
We haven’t formally set our hours, but they should be similar to King St., namely:
Monday-Friday 10-5:30
Saturdays 10-5
Sundays 12-5
All other times by chance or appointment.
There is one caveat...This year we have found great success visiting clients in their homes, and will continue to do so. Also we are being asked to make more house calls, for restoration and repair services. SO... if you want to come and visit, please call ahead to make sure we’re in.
Please call or email if you would like further information 416-364-1393 or Email us
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
We’re settling into our Studio!!
- Toronto, January 22, 2012
It’s easy to see why such a full year year has passed so quickly...we so were busy. Cabinetry continued unabated, while at the same time we hit our stride with so many restoration projects. At some points we had 1/2 a dozen chairs, plus occasional tables, in the back for repair, all the while larger pieces were at our refinishing shop being restored or refinished to perfect condition. One client had us work on 25 different pieces of furniture!
An added pleasure last year was our work completely restorating of a 100 year old English glider rocking horse. We’ll soon do a mailing on that special piece.
Over the past year we’ve also made time to create more interesting mailings, profiling the furniture our clients have had us design and build, plus the stories surrounding various restorations we’ve undertaken. We receive such great feedback from clients on these flyers, we are sending out two this month. Keep your eyes peeled or check our Recent Flyer Page.
As always we’re happen to respond to any questions you may have.
Please call or email if you would like further information 416-364-1393 or Email us
Regards
Dave Ross
416-364-1393
Nitty Gritty is winding down!
After almost 38 years of designing, building, restoring, and refinishing stunning furniture and selling wonderful antiques, rugs, lighting and accessories, Nitty Gritty is winding down.
Our clients throughout the years have told us we were the best in the business at what we did, and we took great pride in that acknowledgement. In fact, we’ve received such wonderful endorsements over the years, it’s a pity we only started to post them on our web-site and Facebook pages recently.
The media has loved our work, and we have been profiled in, and recognized with awards by over 18 publications and broadcast venues.
Our desire to work with those who appreciated hand crafted furniture, and fine restoration put us clearly at the higher end of the market. As such, we felt each client’s project deserved both our intense focus and extra attention designing or researching to ensure complete success. We also preferred to handcraft with only first class materials, and spent the extra time to make sure each piece was the best it could be.
Throughout this time, we created thousands of amazing hand rubbed, wood finishes. as well as painted character finishes for client’s furniture; probably more that any other studio in Canada.
Our custom furniture resides in every province, at least one territory, 15 US states and seven other countries, to our knowledge!
We have worked on amazing projects, including designing and building 2300 pieces of furniture for Chapters cross-Canada expansion over 13 years ago. Interestingly, our contract required us in part to engineer large display tables with minimal structure, yet guarantee them to last for 5 years in high traffic. We were told the tables only needed to support the weight of 100 lbs. of books and that they would be replaced after 5 years as the stores were “redone”. However, when we saw them in use, the tables were shockingly piled high with 500 lbs. of books and being dragged around the stores.
It gives us untold satisfaction today to walk through Chapters stores and see our furniture still working hard and surprisingly, even looking great 13 years and lots of abuse later. Chapters isn’t alone in that regard; furniture we built or restored 10, 20, and even over 30 years ago continues to look great and enjoys prominent placement in many of our client’s homes.
Every project over the years has had it’s own charm, challenge or appeal whether we were furnishing a Tim’s Horton’s Camp, building and installing a spectacular kitchen for a Canadian Bank Chairman, or just repairing a loose spindle on your chair. We took the same care for each one.
About 8-9 years ago we noticed market conditions starting to change. We responded by expanding the breadth of our business to include restoration as a large focus (as it was when Nitty Gritty started in 1976) and moved our showroom to Leaside where we could more easily handle the restoration activities as well as our custom furniture clients.
That was an excellent move initially, however, the market has continued to deteriorate, and we don’t see a recovery soon.
So as in all good things, Nitty Gritty will come to and end and be judged on its own history and in particular, on its impact on those who appreciated hand crafted furniture.
We will wind down this coming winter, which will allow us time to take on a few more final projects, as well as finish off others. It will also allow us to have a huge, “Everything Must Go” sale. That sale will start soon, and we’ll advise you of all the details shortly.
For those of you who have always wanted something from Nitty Gritty, this is your last chance. We will continue to build and finish, and restore right to the end.
Neither Pauline nor I have planned our next move yet, but it’s much on our minds. If you have thoughts on what we might do, would like our help in what you do, know someone you could refer us too, or even just want to provide encouragement, please let us know. We value your friendship and support.
We will miss the carousel animals and restorations we worked on, the Milk Paint we brought back to the forefront in Canada in 1980, our Capel Rugs and Hubbarton Forge light fixtures; both companies producing amazing designs and quality items. We will miss building those stunning dining room tables and gorgeous sleigh beds with huge cedar lined drawers!
We’ll miss managing those huge projects and installations on one hand, and just sharing our knowledge and expertise to help you on your own projects on the other.
But most of all we’ll miss you. You’re the ones who have given us so much: great challenges, novel experiences, great fun, and most especially, great friendships.
It’s been a great run. Many thanks for sharing in it with us.
Dave & Liz Ross & Pauline Crespillo
- Toronto, October, 2013
© Nitty Gritty Furniture Design
2222216 Ontario Inc.
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mail@nittygritty.ca • 416-364-1393 • mail@nittygritty.ca
- Toronto, March, 2020
Nitty Gritty is Back!
Every since we closed our studio in Leaside in 2013, we have been inundated with orders for custom furniture, and equally, but now more and more, for restoration and repair services. It’s an interesting circle as that’s how Nitty Gritty started in 1976.
While many of my crew retired a while ago, I still have my head cabinetmaker and finisher, both keen to work. If you have interest in antique restoration, carousel restoration or custom furniture, please let me know.
Please call or email if you would like further information 416-364-1393 or Email us
Regards
Dave Ross
