Hamilton pottery and painting business moving into former funeral home

The Studio's owners, Lori (left) and Erin Noga, stand outside their company's future location at 547 Main St. They plan to open there Sept. 17. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

The Studio's owners, Lori (left) and Erin Noga, stand outside their company's future location at 547 Main St. They plan to open there Sept. 17. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

The Studio, where customers can paint pottery and canvases, soon will move four blocks west of its present location at 118 Main St.

The shop, owned by Lori Noga and daughter Erin Noga, will temporarily close when its lease expires in July. Its owners plan to reopen at 547 Main St., in a former Zettler Funeral Home property, Sept. 17, The Studio’s five-year anniversary.

Zettler’s Pleasant Avenue location remains open.

“It’ll be our big grand-reopening, five-year celebration,” Erin Noga said.

Their current lease expires in July, “so we’ll be homeless in August,” she said with a laugh, “but we’re always happy to go out into the community and we have our studio-on-the-go,” which travels and lets people paint pottery or on canvas.

The Studio soon will be moving four blocks west to 547 Main St, a former Zettler Funeral Home location. The one on Pleasant Avenue remains open. The Studio should open there Sept. 17. NICK GRAHAM / STAFF

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During that period they will make field trips, do community art and will be available for parties. They can be reached through their website at www.thestudioinhamilton.rocks or 513-892-9814.

“We really wanted to stay on Main Street, and we actually inquired about purchasing the property where we are located now,” Erin Noga said.

Instead, Lori bought the Zettler property in February for $177,500.

The new location “is a great building, and it’s comparable space to this studio,” she said. “It offers garage space in the back, so we hope to convert that to additional spaces for classes or whatnot. Phase 1 is the studio.”

Dean Baker, 9, enjoyed painting at The Studio on Thursday. The Studio soon will be moving four blocks west to 547 Main St., and should open there Sept. 17. NICK GRAHAM / STAFF

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An apartment also will be created on the building’s second level, in yet another addition of apartment housing along Main Street. At the moment, the new location “is completely gutted right now,” she said. “We can just make the space our own, because it is our own.”

The new building will allow The Studio to provide “a lot more offerings for art here in our community,” Erin Noga said.

Katie Baker and her son Dean, 9, on Thursday were in The Studio, painting. Katie happened to have a strong connection with The Studio’s future site: Her grandfather, and uncle, Jim and Tom Zettler, owned the funeral home, “so my mom grew up with the funeral home as her home. That particular one, on Main Street, my aunt lived there for many years. It’s just always been part of our family.”

“It’s a place I spent part of my childhood going in and out of,” Baker said. “We love coming to The Studio and spending time here, and it’s really exciting they’re moving into a place where there’s history there.”

The Studio soon will be moving four blocks west to 547 Main St, a former Zettler Funeral Home location. The Zettler location on Pleasant Avenue remains open. The Studio should open there Sept. 17. NICK GRAHAM / STAFF

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