A day trip one hour east of Toronto brings you to Port Hope where Primitive Designs is located. The retail import store is open six days a week from March till Christmas Day. The last time we were there it was in February and the store was closed so we could only see a few robots from outside the entrance gate. This time we checked when it was open and called in a reservation to explore the extensive grounds, tents and buildings and it was worth the trip to Northumberland County in south east Ontario along the shores of Lake Ontario.
Originally it was an adventure tour and we weren't sure what to expect. Seeing the big transformer and dinosaur in the front yard really peaked our interest, so we have been waiting to return to the store and luckily the day we picked was a gorgeous fall weekend. They have plenty of parking on site and check your reservation at the entrance. You have to wear a mask and use hand sanitizer and off you go checking out their vast inventory of stuff - items from around the world and their amazing fabricated art works made from recycled auto parts. The impressive robots include a three headed dragon, a rhino, crocodile, terminator, transformer and many others. The rhino is on a wagon and they roll it out into town on the odd occasion.
From their website, "We are happy to welcome you to Primitive Designs we are located 2 minutes north of the 401 in Port Hope’s beautiful countryside for the last twenty years. Ron Rhonda and Maximus have traveled the globe hand-selecting exotic and unusual antiques and crafts from around the world. We are a family run business importing from Morocco, Bali, Thailand, Mexico, India, Vietnam, Nepal, Sumatra& Timor. In our 8000 square foot gallery, you will find a market type atmosphere filled with treasures both for your home and garden. Take your time and enjoy, there is no need to rush. Feel free to ask questions, we are proud of the people we work with and are happy to tell their story. Many of whom we have been doing business with for over 40 years. We pride ourselves in giving you products that are free from child labor and bought at a fair market value by family-run business."
They are located on Highway 28, just minutes north of Highway 401 and open from 9-5 Tuesdays to Sunday, closed on Mondays (except for Holiday Mondays). Check out the
Primitive Designs website to confirm hours and to make reservations.
See more photos after the jump.