Great learning space to start your pottery journey. It's not the prettiest of studios but there's a…read moregreat collective sensibility. Lots of talk and jokes among students. Every class starts with a lesson, then students work at their own wheel while the instructor answers individual questions and gives special tips. As much instruction as you want. Chika is an awesome instructor! It's also great to watch some advanced potters working in the corner at the same time as the class. You can see them putting into action what you are still trying to master.

Took my first class here and was really impressed, the set up is great, the teaching was…read moreinformative and all of it was reasonably priced.

I've been the the Barns a few times over the years for different events. A few times when they…read morehave held their Vintage Fair here (amazing vintage items, clothing, jewellry); once for a play and most recently for the Tabasco Hawkers Market. This is a great place to hold an event, party or wedding. This is a former hub for streetcars back in the day but has now been turned into an event space. Interior brick walls, high ceilings and open floor plan allows the venue to become accommodating to almost any kind of event. It has that vintage but industrial kind of ceiling. There are a lot of great photo ops in here. There are also photos/info on the walls that tells the history of this place.

This is probably one of the best things to happen to the neighbourhood in recent history. Grand…read moreopening was November 2008 and it hasn't looked back since. The space is a reclaimed TTC barn and has five 'barns' each labeled with giant steel numbers. First is the artist live-work space, 2 is the event space where you will find the market on Saturdays in the winter and various other community events, 3 is the community theatre, 4 is The Stop greenhouse and kitchen, and 5 is the open air barn. There is also a children's playground on the east side of the building, an open field that becomes an ice rink in the winter on the south end, an off-leash dog park at the south-west corner, beach volleyball court on the west side, and plenty of benches and picnic tables scattered throughout. I find that their website is not as informative as it could be, perhaps because it is administered by the umbrella Artscape organization: http://www.torontoartscape.on.ca/places-spaces/artscape-wychwood-barns So it's better to go directly to the Stop's website to find out about the market and the many very interesting fund- and awareness-raising events they have: http://www.thestop.org/green-barn-market I find that being on the mailing lists for The Stop and our local city councillor Joe Mihevc (http://www.joemihevc.com) keeps me informed of upcoming events like the solar energy info session this Sunday. Some additional notes: ** The Market ** During the cold months it is indoors and runs 8 a.m. - noon. It gets crowded by 11 and goodies like cinnamon buns don't last until then. Bring cash, your own bags and if you're really good, your own travel-mug for the wonderful Kurtis coffee. Interesting vendors include the venison guy, sweet potato man, Mennonite meat lady, knife sharpening guy, tofu dude, the fungi, and the freshwater fish people. In the warmer months it is outdoors and runs a bit later until 1 I think (it is still indoors as I write this so I'm not sure). The vendors are spread out over the walkways under their tents. Half the fun is stopping to chat with neighbours so check your usual Toronto sidewalk pace as you might get stuck behind a stroller and wagon jam. There are several vegetable vendors that also sell organic and heirloom variety seeds and seedlings in the spring. Too bad last summer was so cold and rainy - even so the purple tomatoes I planted were wonderful! ** The Dogpark ** It has weird hours and no commercial dog walkers are allowed. It is closed everyday between noon-3 p.m. and opens later in the morning on Sunday. I'll take a picture of the sign next time I'm there because it's confusing. There is a human + dog drinking fountain but the city doesn't turn on the water until mid-May so bring water for your pooches. Best doggy party times (as with most parks I'm sure) are from 5 - 7 p.m. There might be a morning party but I'm never up early enough to find out.

I've walked by this gallery several times, finally took the plunge and walked in. The entrance is a…read morelittle interesting but don't let it fool you, you have to walk through a side gate to access the gallery door. Once you enter the door opens into a wide space and you are welcomed by the gallery director. I particularly like this gallery because they are so heavily involved in community and arts education. The gallery is actually in an old police station and has three gallery's in it, with three different shows running at the same time. Everyone there is very friendly and the rotating exhibitions are something to keep your eye on!

Located in an old police station, Gallery 1313 is a must-see in the Parkdale neighborhood. In my…read moreview, the exhibitions are always amazing and very inspiring. Additionally, discovering something new each time you walk into Gallery 1313 is guaranteed as they have new exhibitions every two weeks. The nice and positive staff they have is also convincing. Giving emerging and established artists chances to display their work, I do think that places like Gallery 1313 are essential. We definitely need more places like this! Gallery 1313 is a great place for visitors as well as artists. Make sure you don't miss it!

So glad they have one located at Vaughan Mills. It's makes shopping a lot easier when a mall has…read moremajority of the popular stores. I came to return some clothes and picked up some stuff I ordered online. The store was really busy. They have the usual 50% discount. The cashier was efficient in terms of locating my online order.

NOT wheelchair accessible!! Counters too high, cannot reach debit terminal, nor see it from my…read morechair, aisles are cluttered and narrow. Must be a pain with strollers too.

Just stumbled by chance. They have quite nice furnishings. I was short on time but plan to revisit.read more

Great furniture store with a fully furnished apartment show room! I did not expect to see such a…read moregreat shop in that neck of the woods. Worth checking out! Great prices and very good selection of modern and contemporary furniture. Located right across from Canadian Tire.

Beaver Hall is an independent art space that is located mere steps of OCADU and Queen West. They…read morehold a variety of art shows like movie festivals to student art shows from Ryerson and Herzig College. It's a good size space. There's ample room for someone wanting to do a solo show and big enough for a group show. I don't know the specifics about how much it would cost to organize a show there but since they promote independent artists, most of them being students, it might be worth looking into. Looking through their blog and reading about past exhibits, they seem to organize some thought-provoking and original shows. The show I visited last night had an urban exploration theme which included more than photography by the artists but also actual objects from the places they visited. It was really inspiring stuff to see.

This is a not-so-fancy gallery space. I've been to better and I've been to worse. Conveniently…read morelocated for OCAD and Ryerson students, right in the middle of the queen street hipster hub. The walls at the entrance are a tasteless orange and the floors aren't clean either. There's a little patio in the back. The Nuit Blanche 2015 artwork here was rather tasteless.

I visited the Angell Gallery recently for the launch of Canadian Art's fall issue. Apparently this…read moreis a new location for it - it used to be on Queen? Anyway, now it's on Ossington just north of Queen. The gallery space is quite nice - one large room and three smaller ones (including a perfect little film-screening space) on two levels. The layout is kind of interesting without being anything exactly special - it's a nice place to wander, and there's lots of wall space - there were probably three or four exhibits going on at the same time without anything feeling crowded. It was completely packed for the opening, and there were definitely bottlenecking problems with that many people trying to circulate (and get at the open bar), but I imagine that under most circumstances that wouldn't be a problem.

This gallery is located a hop, skip, and jump from Queen St. W. on Ossington. If you haven't…read morestopped by, you should check it out. Not that I'm a little biased or anything, but seriously, Jamie Angell always has interesting art on display. And the gallery itself is very spacious, so the work has adequate breathing room around it. If you can, come on an opening night and enjoy the mix of artists, art lovers, and random socialites.

One of my new fave galleries in TO!…read more Owned by two absolutely fab women who are professional artists themselves, this gallery features a new exhibit every four weeks. They focus on photography, and like to showcase local, and often up & coming talent. The space is bright and beautiful; small but great for intimate viewing of each piece. Furthermore, Akasha offers framing services. I had a number of pieces framed by them, and they were extremely helpful (and patient) through the process. I say patient because my husband and I changed framing direction on them a few items. Check my blog for reviews on their last two exhibits: fabulouslyaverage.com.

This hidden GEM is located in the Village. I noticed the sign outside...saying it was a GEM...and I…read moreverified it. I walked up the stairs revealing a beautifully open and well lit gallery featuring Bret Culp's Mystical Ireland Collection. My warm welcome by the girl watching the place explained every 4 months they feature a new exhibit. in addition to the featured art...this gallery offers professional custom framing and art installation services. Great place :)