Cry If I Want To

Wedding at Balsam Restaurant

2010-08-14T07:02:00.005-04:00

Ok, we've found a new favourite restaurant. Balsam Restaurant, at 2343 Queen St. East in the Beaches, is fabulous, and so are the people who run it! We were introduced to Balsam by Susan, then a bride-to-be who loved our decor ideas. We had a blast working with her, and then working with Mike (manager) and Dave (chef) over at the venue. Balsam is a beautiful venue, and we added some extra pretty for Sue & Don's wedding. Muchos gracias to Nathaniel Anderson of Nathaniel Inc for taking the pictures!

Twisted Imagery at the Scream Festival

2010-08-14T05:43:00.006-04:00

Cry If I Want To was happy to decorate a book reading festival at the Women's Art Association in the Annex. The reading was from a book of poetry by Margaret Christakos, and so the theme was based on images within the book's chapters. The book talked about class differences (burlap in an elegant Victorian setting), and twisted childhood images - a Fractured Victorian Nursery, of sorts.

Chair covers were fashioned with burlap tied with ribbon in a corset-like fashion, to portray class differences.

Bird cages were painted to give the impression that they were old and partially burned. They contained items from the fractured Nursery. The book featured referred to "Receptacles"of Woe, Vile and Guilt - these were featured within the above cages.

As part of the Fractured Nursery, the book elicited images of babies with flies around them - this was depicted in the above sad bird cage. Another cage had children's lessons and letters to depict life lessons. Yet another cage highlighted the recurring bird imagery, here partially burned lit birds.

While the event was quite different from other events that Cry if i want to had decorated, it was an opportunity for us to stretch our creative juices in another direction.

NYC Part 2

2010-07-11T15:01:00.009-04:00

It's now been almost 2 months since our New York trip but it feels as though it was just yesterday. They say time flies when you are having fun, well we must be having a blast because I'm not sure how the middle of July has snuck up on us. It's been a busy summer so far. Everyday I intend on finishing up our NYC trip summary but of course life and business always seem to get in the way. So now two months later I'll give you a quick synopsis of our trip to the Big Apple.

As we previously blogged, the main intent of our trip was to visit the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. There is nothing like being surrounded in a room full of creative people, checking out the latest designs that probably won't hit the retail world until a few years. (Of course we will try to bring in some of what we saw as soon as it hits production.) Sometimes its hard to believe that this qualifies as work!

Of course a trip to New York can never be all business, our second day there happened to be my birthday We found a cute little Cuban restaurant and I celebrated my birthday with my sister, best friend and business partner (all three are actually the same person!) and a few of our new Cuban and "wanna be Cuban for the night" new friends. If you are in New York, check out Havana Central http://www.havannacentral.com/ great food, incredible mojitos, fun atmosphere at affordable prices.

When you own a store, it makes it a bit of a challenge to do some of your own personal shopping, so we spent quite a bit of time in NYC updating our own wardrobes. In New York, we tend to shop in the SOHO, Union square district and then wander off to where ever our feet and the Metro will take us. Each time we do this we discover some new shopping destination.

This time, our adventures took us to this amazing looking building with bright lights on the outside. Both my sister and I have a thing for beautiful buildings, so as we stopped to try to take a few pictures, we discovered that it was an old church, that had been converted into a nightclub and was now opening as a shopping centre. I know, a shopping centre in a church ... well that has to be better than a night club right. So now, when you cross a beautiful building with shopping of course we had to go inside.

Turns out the name of this shopping mecca is Limelight market place (it was named after the night club) and the building is as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside and filled with an eclectic array of mostly independent retailers, most whom would never be able to afford such an amazing space on their own. See http://www.limelightmarketplace.com/ for a full listing of retailers.

My favourite stop in the market place was The Cupcake Stop, http://www.thecupcakestop.com/ . While, a part of me may feel a little tired of cupcakes, that sentiment goes out the window at this shop!!! We stopped to by a few cupcakes for my NYC family, when Lev (the owner) discovered that we were giving away the cup cakes he insisted that we try the cupcakes! This would have been awesome (I mean who in their right minds turns down free cupcakes right) but we had just finished some amazing gelato that topped off the Chinese food we had during Happy Hour (not to mention of course the drinks that went along with the Chinese food). As we tried to politely decline the scrumptious looking cupcakes, somehow we found them in our hands and Lev impatiently waiting for us to give him our review. Well of course, full stomach or not, those cupcakes were unbelievable, like heaven dancing on your tongue. While we gorged ourselves with cupcakes, Lev gave us the story of the shop, he actually had just started The Cupcake Stop about a year ago after graduating from law school. The job market in New York was not looking so great, so he bought a truck, hired some bakers and started selling some crazy amazing cupcakes, just like the ice cream truck except it drives through the streets of Manhattan where young yuppies and hipsters can indulge in some sweet treats. I was a bit obsessed.

There were a number of other cool shops in Limelight, selling everything from food, clothes, beauty products, and home furnishings. Until I get our own pic loaded, here are a few pics from their facebook site:

ICFF 2010

2010-05-19T09:26:00.012-04:00

We've been having a blast getting inspiration for special event decor. This week we've been able to check out a design fair in NYC called International Contemporary Furniture Fair.

I love the idea of unplugging the phone so that one can actually enjoy friends/family/company - this is depicted in a place setting by Ingrid Zweifel.

The below room is made out of cardboard - walls, table, and lights. It's actually all by a Canadian company called Molo Design.

These pendant lamps look kinda ghostly to me ... but I kinda love them too!

The stationary show is on at the same time. There, we fell in love with placecard holder ideas from Kate Aspen, including these bird cages, and this brocade frame (soon to be available in white!)

There was more ... so much more, which we'd love to incorporate into your next special event! To contact us about decorating your upcoming wedding, gala, etc. please send us an email at info@cryifiwantto.com

Happy Earth Day everyone!

2010-04-22T16:56:00.005-04:00

Remembering the earth everyday is a challenge that we strive to meet ... but I have to say, it's not easy. But if the choice is between having a planet or not, we have to make the effort, even if it is one small step at a time.

But what is easy is beautiful, evironmentally friendly design. In that vein, we are proud to introduce Amenity 100% Linen pillows. These gorgeous pillows are hand silk screened and are filled with eco-fill. Eco-fill is a high quality polyester fiber generated from spun recycled bottles - how cool is that! These pillows usually retail for $79 + but we are offering them at the introductory price of $40 & $45 (dependant on size).

Take a look at these beauties ...

Spring Cleaning

2010-04-01T06:44:00.002-04:00

Don't you love it when the weather changes ... for the better? When you can leave the house without a winter jacket and boots? The beautiful weather has inspired us to clean up inside our store, and we've reorganized the store to make room for the new spring products we're bringing in. Stay tuned for our open house in a couple weeks!

Yummy Drink Infusions!

2010-02-27T01:26:00.005-05:00

So, I have to admit, we're excited. We've found a new favourite product, and we can't wait for it to arrive. These are spice kits for your drinks!!! You infuse them in wine, rum, or vodka and they are amazing! So far, we're the first ... and only ... to carry these delicious Quai Sud mixes in Toronto. Check with us soon, they'll be arriving in short order!

Happy 2010!

2010-01-01T10:39:00.003-05:00

Wishing you much peace, love and happiness throughout 2010. Although Cry If I Want To's winter hours are beginning, stay tuned for our Wild & Wacky Weekend Specials that we'll feature throughout January & February.

At Cry If I Want To - we're beginning our New Year's Resolution of being super busy ... beginning with another wedding (stay tuned for pictures), participation in the Eco-section of Canada's Wedding Expo (http://www.canadasweddingexpo.com/) and our own trips so we can bring in lots for your shopping pleasure.

We look forward to seeing you soon ... bonne année!

Last minute party ideas

2009-12-19T10:16:00.006-05:00

How do you define busy? How about being in a store full-time, and juggling personal Christmas parties, customer events, and planning for next year? We know you can relate - you've got more than your fair share of things to keep you busy too, whether it's kids, work, family and friend holiday events, Christmas shopping or throwing your own parties. We're here to help - if you're looking for fabulous ideas for gifts, or are trying to pull everything together for that party tonight, come on by.

I'm loving the serveware we've got - always beautiful, and perfect for adding dimension to your tablesetting.

As usual, everything at our store is at affordable prices or at crazy-low sale prices. Our sale until December 31 includes:
- Save 15% on small (11-flower) bottles of our famous Wild Hibiscus Drink Garnishes
- Save 25% on Christmas Decor (ornaments, trees, wrapping paper)
- Save 25% on Furniture (stools, mirrors, chairs, dining tables ... even if we have to order it in!)
- Save 25% on candles, candleholders, and matches

Hurry up - we'll see you soon.

Oh yeah - our extended hours:

Before Christmas Eve:
(We are open on Tuesdays in December!)
Tuesday to Friday 11:30 to 8
Saturday 11:30 to 7
Sunday 11:30 to 5

Thursday December 24 9:30 to 4
Christmas Day Closed
Boxing Day 11:30 to 6
Sunday December 27th 12 to 5

See you soon!

Allison & Rochelle

It's been a minute! Happy Holidays

2009-12-08T22:38:00.009-05:00

It's been a while since we've posted anything ... sorry, it's been crazy busy! Tonight's been the first time in a long time that I've been able to somewhat relax, as I contemplate the past few months and the upcoming events ... which includes our first impending snowstorm!

On November 25th, we celebrated our 1st anniversary in Leslieville with our Pink & Green party, raising funds for Willow Breast Cancer Support Canada. The party was a lot of fun ... thanks Paul & Peter for the amazing music!

We decided to make our food simple - taking simple, sometimes even prepared ingredients and making them look pretty ... to match our pretty pink & green accents

(fruit skewers, mini tacos, our green lit birdcage, pink & green candies & drinks, mom at our store window, chicken skewers and gazpacho)

Many thanks to Melissa Mather for her photos at our Pink & Green Party!

We also have been busy with other events. We were at the lovely Arcadian Court in October and again in November for a couple events - Harmony Movement's Gala, and the AroniAwards Gala. The venue is quite lovely, but adding our touches helped personalize the events.

Our products continue to be noticed! Check out this month's Zoomer magazine, where our stemware holder plate has been featured. The square ones are available for sale at $10 for a set of 2, and the oval ones are available on our rental catalogue for $0.40 each. I have to say I am in love with these plates - I hate when you're at a cocktail party and have to struggle to hold a plate a glass and try to shake someone's hand ... with these stemware holder plates, struggle no more. You'll be able to comfortably hold it all in one hand!

It's the holiday entertaining season, and some tips from Cry If I Want To on how to have the best parties are featured in Zoomer's online magazine - http://zoomermag.com/2009/11/get-the-party-started.html

We've also had our products featured in our fav event planning magazine, Biz Bash - http://www.bizbash.com/toronto/content/editorial/17102_5_last-minute_ideas_for_holiday_parties_in_toronto.php ... we'll be getting more black and gold rhinestone charger plates in January --- people have been reserving them for their special events already!

If you are stumped for gift ideas, or need help with your party planning, definitely come visit us in our store. We always love to help! See you soon!

Allison and Rochelle

Awesome Furniture Made for Entertaining!

2009-09-05T08:24:00.008-04:00

You know how some people like the smell of new cars ... well there is something about the smell of new furniture that I find absolutely divine. Last night the whole Cry If I Want To team stuck around until after midnight, arranging and setting up some of the new fall/winter line, which includes (among other things) furniture!!!

We are now stocking a limited supply of dining tables, chairs, consoles and beautiful mirrors (the better for your gorgeous guests to see themselves in and to make a small space look grand). We will soon be bringing in some bars to round off our furniture selection. While these will be the main pieces that we have available in store, we have access to many other pieces of modern, transitional and contemporary furniture including sofas, beds, lounges, patio furniture, etc, etc. If you are interested in that special piece, let us know, we have a knack for finding unique pieces that fit the bill at a price you can afford. That's the upside of being a furniture/design junkie!

Of the new pieces we have brought in, we have been able to arrange special introductory prices with our supplies. So if you see something you like, get it while its hot, reorders will very likely have to be at higher price (but still very reasonable).

I have many favourites of the new pieces we have brought in but I will narrow it down to two today. In a previous post, I spoke about the neo-classical baroque style. Following that design style we have brought in some gorgeous console tables. The manufactures suggested retail price of these beautiful pieces are $800. Our introductory price on these will be less than half price! So if you want one, you'll have to hurry in.

My other favourite piece is a basic dining table. This table is a solid ash wood table with a beautiful wood veneer finish. It is pretty classic and would fit into most homes from traditional, classic, transitional to modern. The picture below does not do it justice. What I like most about this table is its functionality. It easily extends from a table for six into a table for eight in seconds and one person can do it, without any awkward pulling or fitting. You don't have to worry about where to put the extra leaves when not in use because they slide in a little pocket mechanism within the table. It is definitely one of the coolest tables I've seen. My folks are ready to get one for themselves!

Shopping Trips

2009-08-27T08:10:00.007-04:00

As usual, your friends at Cry If I Want To have been keeping busy. The last month or so we have been doing one of our favourite things (apart from partying) ... we've been shopping. Recently we've traveled to Montreal, NYC and we've been checking out the local scene for what's new and fabulous for your entertaining needs (Thanks Mom and Dad for looking after the store while we've been away!). You always need to check out the trade shows to see what's new and exciting on the market and we have a couple tricks up our sleeves to keep us current and ahead of the curve.
I'll give you a quick synopsis of what we found and saw:

Montreal: Our Quebecois friends are really into fine arts, we saw beautifully master pieced furniture. These pieces were not just functional but true pieces of art (usually with the price tag associated with it). What inspired us the most were the dining tables used as a canvas. Not only were the works of art on the tables beautiful but the handcraft tables were sinfully gorgeous. If you are ever in Montreal check out Interversion http://www.interversion.com/, on Boulevard St. Laurent. The young ladies there were so hospitable and gracious in telling us about the Quebec artists who create everything in their store. Along St. Laurent and in the surrounding areas there is a Mecca of inspiration and beautiful furniture, home decor and gift stores.

Toronto: Two weekends ago, we had a chance to visit the Gift Show in Toronto. At this show, suppliers from all of Canada as well as international suppliers display there wares. While we were able to pick up a few items for our fall/winter line that we know that you'll love, we really had to search these out. Trends that we noted were borrowed from fashion - teal blues and purple. You'll find a bit of this trend in our store this fall along with a return to decadence (without the associated price tag - we believe in affordable luxury). We took these colours a bit deeper and played upon their royal and regal and jewel tones but more on this later.

NYC: Ok, I might seem a bit biased, but as much as I love our fair city of Toronto, I absolutely love New York. As I walk down the city street all of the I love New York songs run through my head and I have to be really careful not to let them slip out. (Sorry if that old I heart NYC commercial is running through your head now - or worse yet ...start spreading the news ....)
While we were in New York, we also had the chance to visit the gift show there. I hate to say it, but they really know how to do it right. Of course you find the usual everyday stuff, but there are several sections focused on original design. I saw salad bowls made out of old records - although I thought it was sacrilege to use a perfect good Roy Ayers record in this manner! Actually UMBRA (yeah Canada!) who displays at both the Toronto and NY shows http://www.umbra.com/ had a great selection of items made out of old cassette tapes.
I think the love of all things "green" is pretty universal these days, and in NYC we saw some of the most beautiful examples of this concept in home decor. We also got a few lessons in "green". Many of you I'm sure have noticed the animal head on wall trend that's happening right now. Ever since Jeannette Ewen from City Line used that big ugly blue head in the space she designed for the spring home show I've had a strange attraction to faux animal heads (I'm sorry Jeannette but although I love the risk you took and the design concept that head was just ugly!). I'm a bit partial to white resin ones but I've seen them in every material from resins to woods to even cardboards. However the real animal heads and antlers make me a bit sad (and I'm not even an animal lover). Still I found out from a Canadian supplier that their antlers are from animals that are killed only to control herd populations and that all parts of the animal are used. So while still not a fan of real animal parts used as decor, I felt a bit better.
In New York we saw some great trends:
1) Oversized
This was my favourite trend. I love great big statement pieces. Actually, I first saw this trend in Montreal were I saw beautiful oversized table lamps from one of my favourite suppliers (unfortunately he brought in a tiny shipment and very quickly sold out!). These lamps were so big (over 5ft tall) that they were actually floor lamps. In Toronto, we've seen many oversized vases which I still think are beautiful. We saw many examples of this in New York, along with oversized cutlery (art for your kitchen), oversized fames, chairs and sofas, etc etc. These pieces seem obvious for large spaces but the right piece in a small space (especially the oversized table turned floor lamp) can be exquisite.
2) Organic Flow - this trend had been going on for a bit and not only relates to the beautiful organic materials that are all over the market right now, but also the beautiful organic shapes especially in white ceramic. If you are reading this within the next two weeks, take a look at our store window for an example.
3) Luxury - Traditional colours of luxury are purple and blue and we will see a lot of this, this fall. But who can think of luxury with out reference to the beautiful precious metals and jewels. Bling is still in big time, and it is especially beautiful in your dining room. This Christmas you will find lots and lots of crystal in various colours, my favourite will always be crystal clear!
4) Black and white - some people call this a trend, anyone who knows me and has seen my loft knows that for me black and white in home decor is a way of life. This fall/winter we will see lots of pattern, beautiful lines and probably more white than black. This ties in to the next trend which we love and will be featured in Cry If I Want To this September ...
5) Neo classical modern - think baroque in white and black done cleanly. I'm so excited about this look I don't know what to write, you'll just have to come and see for yourself.

In addition to the design trends and inspirations, we were able to sample gourmet items from all over. These little parties in a box and/or jar are great to have on hand in your homes for surprise guests or for those quick impromptu get togethers we love to have and I promise to write all about them in my next post.

We've missed you online too!

2009-05-19T22:47:00.004-04:00

You're probably wondering what's been going on at Cry If I Want To, and why we haven't posted a blog entry in forever! Well, we've been busy as always trying to find creative ways to keep the retail, invitations and rental & decor side exciting for you!

The store: We always want to make sure that when you come into our store, you continue to be inspired and find beautiful, practical and affordable goods. So we've been doing very selective shopping, and we're quite proud of our new products. I can't wait for you to see the patio fire lights (think tiki lights ... but stainless steel sleek) ... that have flames in purple or green! So hot! We've still got the different coloured lamp kits, and the birthday candles are always a hit.

Luckily for you, now that its June nearly everything is on sale! We can't wait to bring in new products ... although even some of our new summer products are on sale!

What else ... Events! We had our tea party the day before Mother's Day, and despite the rain we and our guests loved it! We had quite the spread ... cucumber & watercress sandwiches, scones, apple & cheddar sandwiches, cupcakes, fresh fruit, so much more food ... and of course, the tea! It was really yummy, and free to our guests! We played music that was our take on tea party music -- jazz, not classical -- it was great. And then afterwards we put toothpicks in our eyes 'cause some friends came by to celebrate Rochelle's birthday ... hosting two parties in one day!

Oh, and by the way, Colin Cowie, David Tutera and Preston Bailey (all famous event designers) need to move over just a little bit to make room for Cry If I Want To -- there's room for all of us. We recently decorated a wedding - so rewarding - and hope we're not tooting our own horns too much when we say it was so beautiful! We'll post pictures soon (a sneak preview is below).

Online ... we've started to become twits ... I mean, we're on twitter. I have to say it's interesting to "meet" new people through twitter and read what they're tweeting about. Let us know your take on twitter -- is it the latest fad or is it here to stay?

In the neighbourhood - now that the weather's nicer, we've started to slowly visit our new neighbourhood of Leslieville ... our newest fave spot is the new ice cream shop down the street (Ed's Real Scoop at 92o Queen St. East) ... the gelato is to die for (Alli loves the Blood Orange gelato ... Rochelle loves the Tiramisu)

Stationary: We love our plantable stationary, and saw that our plantable invitations were a hit at the Wedding Show. We've got a couple more designs that we just need to finalize, photograph and let you see. For now we've got our invitations displayed nicely in our store along the side wall at the back ... come by and see!

In the News

Our seeded paper was featured in August's Style at Home! Also, we've heard that there's going to be an article on us in a local paper, the Town Crier!

Rentals & Decor: We've brought in some more products ... teapots, sugar bowl, creamers, more 3-tiered servers, a punch bowl, shot glasses, chandeliers that you can hang or use on tables, lighted centrepieces, more vases ... what else have I missed, I know there's something I missed ... anyways, give us a call to see what we've got for your next event. We've been bringing in more products as we do various events.

What else are we planning? We're hoping to do at least one other store party this summer ... stay tuned. We're also looking at organizing a couple party seminars for you. And we've got to do a photo shoot to update our rental catalogue. More people visiting us at the store as the weather gets better, more invitations, more design for events, ... we're never bored!

So, we do apologize for being lax on the blog, but we've been sooo busy ... don't be strangers! We'll see you at the store!

I Think It Is Finally Safe to Say ...

2009-03-28T17:47:00.000-04:00

that Spring is finally here!!!
Well folks, its been a long, cold and depressing winter. Try as we did to envoke the essense of entertaining, it was hard enough to convince ourselves to get out and party!
But now that Spring is here, we are fully back into the swing of things and we have already started planning our in store parties see http://www.cryifiwantto.com/news.php for details. Summer entertaining season is just around the corner, and if all goes according to plan we'll throw a summer BBQ jam session featuring our incoming summer gourmet food and drink and our brand new summer line of dinnerware and linens!
I can't wait until it gets really hot ...

Wedding show booth

2009-03-02T07:02:00.001-05:00

It was great to meet so many of you at Canada's Wedding Expo. Thanks for the compliments on our booth, we had fun putting it together. For those of you who missed it, we've decided to show you some pictures below! And if you're interested in taking a look at a few of the products we featured, our seeded invitations have now been added to our website! Over the next while we'll add more products ... stay tuned.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T11:04:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year friends!

2008 was a busy year for us at Cry If I Want To. In addition to working on parties & events, we had our big move over to our new spot. By the time Dec. 31 came around, although many of our friends went partying, believe it or not we were tired of the big stuff and decided to do something more low-key to ring in the New Year.

I called our dress code slobby chic: track pants or PJs, anything comfortable, with one basic nice thing (jewellery, shoes, or something!)

This year's "menu"consisted of the following things that we could easily get from our own store, around our homes, or at a nearby grocery:
- some delicious dim sum from our local chinese grocery - wontons, shrimp, and spring rolls - served with sweet chilli sauce
- cherry chocolate fondue (our Luxe dessert sauce was awesome) with sliced bananas
- Alize Martinis
- videos & tv reruns to entertain us!

And in the morning with breakfast, our twist on the mimosa. To make:
1 part hibiscus syrup
2 parts orange, passion, guava juice (we had minute maid's drink)
2 parts champagne
You can have this with regular orange juice instead -- that's what we started out with until it ran out -- but the orange-passion-guava made it extra good.

Garnish with a hibiscus flower and enjoy!

A quiet start to the new year was a great way for us to kick-off 2009, which promises to be an amzing year full of fun events that we're planning for you, so as usual ... stay tuned!

Hope that your New Years celebrations were great also! Tell us, did you also have a low-key celebration, or did you go all out?

What's Pink & Green All Over?

2008-12-10T13:56:00.001-05:00

Our opening party - a fundraiser for Willow Breast Cancer Support Canada - was so much fun! Special thanks to Melissa Nicole Mather for the pictures she took at "What's Pink and Green All Over?":

The Band - Paul Knight & Peter B.

Julia found her place with the band too!

Our Decor

Our Pink & Green Christmas Tree!

Some of our volunteers -with the pink & green Vitamin Water from one of our sponsors

Party People

To see more pictures, view Melissa's albums on Facebook:

Album 1

Album 2

Thanks for a fun & successful night everyone!

How we managed major renovations and had an opening party all in less than a month!

2008-11-30T17:59:00.000-05:00

Wow, we are finally finished!

Rochelle & I have so much to be grateful for! We've decided to outline them here, hoping that these tips will help you when you're doing any party/event, renovation, or any other kind of project:

1) CALL FOR HELP

My sister and I are the type of people who can do almost anything(that doesn't mean we'll enjoy it), given enough time and training. We've learned however, that there are only 24 hours in a day, and not all 24 are even productive because unfortunately we also need sleep (believe me we tried to see if we could get away without sleep). We're thankful that those we called upon were able to help!

2) LEAN ON FRIENDS & FAMILY

Now, this doesn't mean that you need to ask them to do everything for you ... we wouldn't feel right about that! But definitely talk to them. Find out who and what they know. You never know what connections you can use.

3) BE CREATIVE

It's hard to be creative when you're stressed out, but sometimes the friends and family in #2 above are great for that. We checked out craigslist to hire contractors and to get rid of junk that we didn't want taking up all of our space. When time ran out, we found creative ways to decorate that could only be inspired by sleep deprivation -- and yet it worked!

4) BE WILLING TO LET GO & TO TAKE ADVICE

We were surprisingly happy to relinquish control to any of our volunteers who were helping us paint, decorate, merchandise, etc. Keep in mind that if you don't like something someone else has done, it can pretty much be easily changed later on (hopefully when you're less stressed). Taking advice from other experts is also great - when we were shopping for flooring, we knew we wanted hardwood flooring so that we could resand it and restain it in future ... untill one of the sales staff pointed out that in a small business, closing down for a week to refinish flooring could be a huge deal, and might be unlikely. Needless to say we decided to go with the more practical but still lovely laminate instead!

5) BE FIRM ON WHAT YOU NEED

Some things aren't so easily changed. Take the time to do your research, know what is easily changed, what you want and what you may decide you want in future. We knew we weren't going to want to call in contractors while we were opening, so we wanted all the outlets and lighting in place, so that we could change our minds in future without any hassles. When our contractor didn't initially do what we wanted, we pushed back and found ways to be creative with our timelines so that everything would be done to our liking & on-time.

6) TIME + QUALITY + ON BUDGET = DIFFICULT

When we signed our lease, we had a goal of being open in 3 weeks - that included lighting, flooring, painting, plumbing and partial basement finishing. If that sounds incredible - it was, and yet we basically did it. Good contractors are rarely sitting around waiting for you to call them, and so be prepared to either spend more for a company that has a few staff that they're willing to throw your way, or be willing to wait. Referrals are great most of the time, and sometimes you're just lucky, but there are other times when you have to wonder...

7) HAVE A PLAN/DO YOUR RESEARCH

We decided that although we'd consult with designers, we'd do the actual plan ourselves. Although we both love design and can design a party/event and easily decorate a room, we've never done up blueprints or anything! I don't know what people did without the Internet!!! We did some research on retail lighting, and came up with a plan that I think gives us some flexibility to change our design in future. This was great, because although the contractors could give us some insight, they also needed something to work with! We happened to find a cool program that could help us layout the room, and when we had meetings with the contractors, we could easily tell them what we needed.

8) FIND SOME TIME TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF

We don't really have a lot to say here, because we didn't take care of ourselves as much as we would have liked! We do know it's important, and look forward to taking care of ourselves one day! On the day of our opening party, we had plans of doing our nails, hair, and makeup ... well, that didn't happen! Next time, we'll not combine a big party with major renos ...

9) PLAN FOR THE WORST AND HOPE FOR THE BEST

Always have a buffer plan. Ours was that an extra 24-hours would fall out of the sky. We were lucky to find one extra hour when daylight savings time occured, but then somehow we lost it, probably because of sleep. When our buffer-plan didn't work out, we had an additional contingency plan of working up to the last minute with most details in place, and that's what we ran with.

10) KNOW WHAT YOU'RE WILLING TO DROP

On the day of our opening party, we had soooo much to do. It didn't take us long to realise that we couldn't do it all. We had to look at the big picture, and realise that our floor moulding in the basement, door trim, hanging some of our products from the ceiling, putting up artwork/photography were not going to happen, and so we just had to let them go, and figure out mandatory things that had to be done. We rented a few fixtures when we realised we wouldn't have time to buy, and did the best with what we had time for.

11) NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK

We were lucky enough to be featured in a magazine (BizBash) early in our career, and through it met a few people who were able to help us at our opening party. Charysse, an amazing PR-firm owner (pdaPR.com), and Sher, a very talented chef (shers.ca), were just two of the people we met through the article. We met Tabitha (enjoynotcooking.com) through our real-estate agent, and her food was awesome at our party. Janette we met at a home show, and she brought her TV producer and they plan to feature us on their show.

It helps to be nice to everyone, regardless of whether you think they can help you or not. These and many other people were instrumental in helping us get the store ready for opening, prep for our party, and putting smiles on our faces in the past few weeks. Thank you!!!

A tentative opening

2008-11-12T21:22:00.000-05:00

Whew ... we did it! After too many sleepless nights, and support from our family & friends, we were able to get it finished! We've all put a lot of blood sweat & tears into this place -- our mom even broke her heel painting (she fell off the ladder ... of course I feel soooo bad!)

Like a house, it's never really finished. Our walls seem bare, and we can't wait to decorate for our opening party November 26th. More merchandise is coming, and we're going to need new fixtures to properly display everything. We're still stickering our inventory, and getting our sale system working ... but it's all coming along! We look forward to further beautifying the space in the next couple weeks. In the meantime, we'll give you a sneak preview of the interior space:

From our perspective, it's a huge improvement over what we started with! Look forward to further improvements!

Almost there!

2008-11-04T09:50:00.000-05:00

There's too much to report today. It's been an interesting experience, opening a store. Managing contractors, suppliers, finances and still trying to be creative all at the same time is definitely ... trying. We've been fortunate to have been able to pull together what we have!

On Friday we got our building painted. We had powerwashed it ourselves a couple days before ... all the neighbours passing the store stopped to look ... I guess it's not a common sight to see women powerwashing a building :-) ? And, at this time of year, we were checking the weather forecast on a daily basis, since the temparature has to be warm enough to do exterior painting. Thanks to the marvels of craigslist, we found an inexpensive painter who helped us to finally get rid of the "lovely" orange/yellow and paint our building a classic black. He also painted out our awning so that we can now get our own signage. Yay, a blank palette!

The next step was getting our floors done. We had to mop a few times, with bleach, to get rid of any residual stuff from the previous owner, a butcher shop. But the floors, done this weekend, look fabulous now!

Thanks to Jim & Ahmad for installing our beautiful floors ... in a timely fashion!

Rochelle & I were thinking about doing dark, basically black wood floors, but I'm glad we went with the lighter colour, it makes our space look bigger. We still had our heart set on this wire-scraped black & white flooring that would have looked really hot, but hey, we're happy with this floooring too.

Our awesome real-estate agent helped us move our stuff into storage, and back into our new store, with the help of his trailer. Honestly, if you need a dedicated super-agent, you need to talk to Maroof!

If I sound like things have been only running smoothly, it's because I've found that focusing on the good helps get things done better than if I focus on the set-backs we've had. Right? We have to be glad that despite the fact that it took so long to get the previous tenant's stuff out, they're now mostly out (anyone need a stove -- let me know, it'll be posted on craigslist soon). Despite the "hodge-podge" renos that were done before, our contractors and our landlord's contractors have been great in helping us out. The money ... well, that's another story.

I feel like the Home Depot at Gerrard Square has become my second home. Why is it that the staff there knows who we are, we're there so often!!! Some of them joke about us having our own tv show called "I saw it on the Internet". Every other day either Rochelle or I (or both) are there buying floor moulding, no-nails glue, lighting, drywall, paint, and all the other supplies we need. It started off as a joke that we were doing everything by ourselves, but it honestly feels like it (sorry, forgot the focus on the positive). We'll get there!

Just a few days left until we open ... stay tuned, or just come visit us on Sunday!

The New Home of Cry If I Want To

2008-10-25T04:52:00.001-04:00

For those of you who want to know what our new home looks like, here's a before picture of the outside:

And here's during - we've begun removing the sign and have powerwashed off the yellow paint: A little before picture, showing the inside of our store from the front door (the counter & freezer remained from the previous tenant) - note that the suspended ceiling ...

Is now gone...
And we're still working on the inside of the store...

If we get our way, the store will look nothing like the above when we're finished with it!!! We've got tons of work ahead of us (flooring, ceilings, lighting, painting, among other things), but we're still aiming for an early-mid November opening.

Wish us luck!

We're Getting Ready ...

2008-10-10T00:29:00.000-04:00

I've been inspired reading a Toronto Life blog about a restaurant opening ... it's nice to know that we're not the only ones struggling to get everything together.

1175 Queen St, our new home, has so much potential, and yet there's so much work to do. The floors, ceilings, basement ... oh my! And there's only a few weeks left to do it in. We're starting to get deliveries as well, and we're very excited to open and show off the fun we've had sourcing stuff for you!

Cry If I Want To will have a larger selection of easy food/drink mixes. We've kept ourselves busy trying them out, so we know you'll like them too!

There's also a kids party section ... we're still finding things we like that we are trying to bring in for you ... all will fit into our theme of contemporary party (kids are cool too, you know!), and will be as unwasteful & green as possible.

You loved our party conversation cards when we first brought them in ... well now we've got more, fun topics for you to enjoy.

We're also creating a space so that if you just want to sit & chat with us, or if you want advice on your event, we'll have resources easily available to help you with them.

There's much more in store ... too much for one blog posting....

In the next few posts we'll try to post some pictures of the new store for you - so you can see our progress. Stay tuned!

Ciao for now,
Allison

We're Moving On Up ... to the East Side!!!

2008-10-01T18:53:00.000-04:00

If you say it, and believe it, it will happen …

Not really sure what wise person said this, but there is a bit of truth to this … at least a little. When we first conceptualized cry if I want to, we had no idea how it would happen, but we said we would be open in the summer of 2007 … after months of looking for an affordable and suitable place, after a lot of disappointment and just when it seemed that it would be impossible to open that same summer, our friends Sapna and Amanda of Liloo came up with the idea of us sharing space with them. So was the start of our humble beginnings… in July of 2007 we had a storefront as promised.

After a year in business, we had outgrown our space and were ready to forge our own identity in the retail world, so we needed to find our own space for this to happen. In August of 2008 we closed up shop at Liloo and promised our faithful cliental that we would re-open in Fall of 2008. Well my friends, just this afternoon, we delivered our deposit cheque to our new landlord and we have every intention of opening our doors on November 1, 2008. For those of you who don’t know, Fall starts in the 3rd week of September and goes until the 3rd week of December … so we're keeping our promise!

In November cry if i want to will reopen its doors to you in Leslieville. We will start off with a party, a fundraiser for Willow Breast Cancer Support Canada on November 26th … stay tuned for your invite and more information, but save the date, it will be a fun evening.!

Okay, I know that we may have mentioned a little something about an online shopping site being up and running in September (did we say which September?). Unfortunately, we are a little behind with this project – it is a bit more involved than we ever imagined, but I can promise that it will get done.

This business venture has certainly taught me the power of positive thinking. "If you believe it you can achieve it"! That rhymes so it must be Jesse Jackson who coined that one … give me a second to google it ... I was almost right ... this is actually his quote:

“If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it, I know I can achieve it.” J. Jackson

See you in November!

Rochelle