Inside the Grape Witches’ chic new event space on Dundas West

In early 2020, Nicole Campbell and Krysta Oben, the wine-loving event pros known as the Grape Witches, received the keys to their first long-term lease location: a two-storey space on Dundas West with a series of apartments on the second. At the time, the plan was to create a ground-floor social area and rent out the upstairs rooms for getaways, birthdays and bachelorette parties. But then a few things happened—a pandemic, for one. Then the city lifted a ban on bottle shops. Downstairs became a retail mecca to keep revenue rolling in over the last year. Upstairs, Campbell and Oben dreamed up the perfect salon-slash-event space with designer and fabricator Rachelle Leblanc of Company Company Projects. Here’s a peek inside.

“The space was in really bad shape upstairs,” says Campbell. “There were three tiny and very, very dingy apartments stuffed into 1,100 square feet.” Leblanc tore down the walls to open up the space. The Portuguese carved plaster ceiling is original to the building; they repainted it a rich green:

Leblanc covered an exposed column with marble contact paper. The team sourced most of the furnishings in the space from vintage dealers and local makers. Other pieces are custom-made by Company Company, including the lightweight wood seating, which was designed to be stackable:

Since the space needs to host different events—such as meetings, micro-weddings, micro-markets, panels, private parties—it’s designed as a blank canvas, with a few select statement pieces thrown in to keep with Grape Witches’ signature zany-chic style. The big green lamp is a garbage can fitted with a vintage light from Eclectisaurus, and the painting is by Azadeh Elmizad:

Company Company designed the massive faux fireplace, and the ceiling light is from Mitzi:

The wood and vinyl console, by Leblanc, is finished with marble-print contact paper; it looks weighty but it’s light enough to move about the space. The gilded grape lamp is from LukesLukesLukes, and the painting is by Jasmine Cardenas:

A small office with a daybed doubles as a bedroom for visiting winemakers and speakers (plus a place for the staff to catch some shut-eye). “This is a usable space for events during the day so it couldn’t be a bed bed,” says Campbell. “At night you can throw on a duvet and pillows and it’s a comfortable place to sleep”:

The shelves are finished with marble contact paper, and the chair is a Facebook Marketplace snag:

In the kitchen, Campbell and Oben kept the original Portuguese tile flooring. The cabinets are also original, though the team painted over the ‘80s-era yellow and dark-stained wood finishings. The lighting is by Pablo Designs:

This planter was created with bathroom tiling, plywood and grout:

A large eight-seat dinner table, designed by Company Company, hosts rotating dinners and pop-ups from local ghost kitchens (think Spice Girl Eats). Down the line, Campbell and Oben plan to begin a curated supper series. For conviviality’s sake, the table faces the kitchen, so guests can interact with the chef:

The powder-blue tiled bathroom features a custom mirror by local stained glass artist Dear Heart:

The downstairs space—also Company Company’s doing—is Grape Witches’ followers de facto destination for bottle purchasing:

Here’s the back patio: