This isn't the way we had planned it; we had originally expected to be starting the work late last year - in the quietest time of our year - but the previous tenant was very late in getting clear of the building, and by the time we got started, the busy spring season was almost on us.

And we hadn't planned on doing the work with just the two of us; we had made arrangements for an experienced young man to join us for a month, expecting that he would really make headway through much of the cabinetry, but he quit before getting much of anything done ...

But it doesn't much matter; our shop upstairs on the 2nd floor is of course still open, and our new space will be ready ... when it's ready!

Here are a few photos I took this evening ... it seems hard to believe that there is an attractive little shop 'hidden' in there somewhere ... can you see it? :-)

Here's the entranceway; as you can see, we've been accumulating a lot of construction waste over the past few weeks. Once we enough built up, we'll rent a truck and take it to a garbage/recycling centre:

Moving inside, we see the main room; the area on the left will be the main counter. It's actually already mostly built, but is here covered with general construction junk:

Over on the right hand of the room are the constructions that will become the browser bins full of interesting prints:

As we move further back, you can now see the area that will be the Print Party room. Please believe me when I tell you that it will be quite an attractive space when it's done!

Did you notice the angled ceiling 'beams' in that shot? They will be the basic support for these:

These are panels made of woven strips of finely planed wood. The ceiling in our current Party room has a similar structure, and we wanted something similar for this new space. Here's a closer view of the weave:

It's real wood, and I think that as it ages, it will take on a pleasant patina ... The floor of the space will be tatami mats, and the walls will be plastered. Interesting things happen in interesting spaces!

Against the rear wall will be a sink for washing brushes, etc., as well as the Coffee Corner. Part-way up the wall, will be a pair of shoji screens. We've found a pair of antique ones, and although they don't look like much just yet, once they are cleaned up and re-papered, they'll be beautiful!

I'll bring you another update when there is something to show! For now, I've got to get going on one of the waiting jobs ... perhaps preparing the colour separations for the next subscription print; checking a stack of prints on my desk from the workroom upstairs; sizing the next batch of paper; pushing forward with the carving of the new Print Party image that is now in preparation; getting some 'script' ideas ready for the next YouTube video; printing a batch of the 'Young Girl in Water' design that so many people are waiting for; prepare the colour blocks for the 2018 Patreon Chibi prints; do some more testing on the new module for our Management software system (more about this in the next blog post); place a bid on an interesting set of old woodblocks that is coming up on an auction this evening ... and somewhere, an octopus is waiting ... :-)