Finders Keepers Wrap Up

Yes, it's long overdue, but here it is! My first Finders Keepers experience. Putting the final touches on my stall (the biggest I have ever had!) A big thanks goes to Tess for lending me her gorgeous floral tablecloths, and to Sue (Tom's mum) for giving me her brand-spanking new wooden dish rack for my postcard display.

Helper #1: Tom (my beloved!)
Carrier of heavy bags and boxes, director of taxi drivers and Sunday's super salesman.

Helper #2: Gina (my mum!)
Tidier of displays, a bringer of lunch and Saturday's super saleswoman.

I almost completely sold out of my plastic illustrated brooches on the first day of the markets!
At the moment I am trialling different ways to futher impove these brooches and come up with new designs, so you might not see them for some time. Hooray for cross-stitch! These are so much fun to make, and with a growing number of designs you can collect them! Designs so far include (but are not limited to): acorns, anchors, bunnies, coffee, cats, diamonds, hearts, moustaches, icecream, bows, alphabet, pears, spools of thread, pine trees...

In the lead up to Finders Keepers, I made 500 badges. Some were illustrated, some used my own photographs, some were made of origami paper and some were covered with fabric. Making badges is so satisfying for me. The instant gratification of pressing a few layers together to create a wearable object is rather magical. I think it's the kid within me.

By Sunday's end I completely sold out of my Vintage Valentine fridge magnets. I know Teneale from Wicked Child Designs snapped one up for herself!

Speaking of magnets, I have new designs to show you! These shadow magnets are quite sizeable, perfect for holding those hard-to-stick-down notices or even two smaller memos. I've illustrated five different silhouettes, which include a little girl, lamb, piglet, bunny and squirrel (my favourite!) These will be available in my Etsy and MadeIt stores very soon!
Did you know that I now have seven different tote bag designs? I almost can't believe it! So hands up if you like Mushrooms, Pigeons, Crafting, Dinosaurs, Silly Kids, Dala Horses, and Fancy Cats! My latest designs will be listed in my online stores this week, so keep your eyes peeled!

Gasp! What's this?! New products, yay!
My 'Word Up' Scrabble tile necklaces are an idea I have been sitting on for years, but have only just recently had the time and correct supplies to execute it. These necklaces are chunky, bold and fun. Each piece is coated in a clear, glossy resin and connected with a nickel-coloured chain and clasp. These particular necklaces are covered with varying fabrics on the reverse, however the next 'batch' will have something very different and slick. I can't wait to show you all!
As usual, I had my animal menagerie with me in the form of pendant necklaces galore! So many found new homes over the weekend, I hope you are all enjoying them!
There are now six postcard designs for you all to choose from and at $2 a pop they make great gifts and stocking stuffers. New designs include:

The Joy In Discovery
Owl Always Be Here For You
EnidWhat did you find at Finders Keepers?

I didn't have much time to leave my stall and wander around, but I think that's probably for the best, as the array of art, design and craft on offer would have sent me to heaven, and my wallet to the grave.

Some favourite stalls include:

Lauren Carney Art
Penelope and Pip
Frankie Magazine
Cat Rabbit
Delilah Devine
Paper Boat Press
Tree Party Design
REread Design
Miss Dish
Courtney Brims
Red Revival
Ra Ra Superstar
Leeloo

BrisStyle Indie Market Wrap Up!

Hallo!
I was so keen to blog about the BrisStyle Indie Designers Market as soon as I arrived home Saturday afternoon, but by the time I got to my 'little nest' all I could think about was a ginormous feast followed by a nice big sleep.

So here I am, Monday morning, blogging my heart out about not one but two markets from the weekend! Market number two was Suitcase Rummage on Sunday, and boy am I glad the rainy weather didn't scare away the rummagers!

But first, let me tell you about Saturday's adventures.

6am saw me waiting with my two trollies for the 300 bus to Hamilton, where the BiDM was located. By 7am I was panicking because none of these buses went by - I checked the timetable and silly me forgot it was Saturday! The next bus came at 8am. What a wait! Listening to the Melvins at max volume on my phone helped calm me down.

I arrived at around 8:20am, frazzled and shaky - setting up a market stall quickly is a wee bit hard for an almost-perfectionist. Especially when you have 300+ badges plus other items to organise into specific spots. I was lucky to have the helping hand of one of the ladies set up next to me (I have forgotten your name, but thank-you ever so much for helping me with the tablecloth, bunting and balloons!)

But all was well as I finished putting up the finishing touches on my stall, all by 9am!
From there it was such an enjoyable day. I was a wee bit worried that the weather would scare away a lot of market goers, but it seems not many were put off by a spot of drizzly rain or wind. My heart goes out to those who were set up outside and had to keep chasing fly-away stock and displays.

I met such a wonderful group of people and had a marvellous time. One lady was particularly impressed by Pip, my display doll. A little research that evening (with a few ideas to origins and names from Helen Berthold) reveals that little Pip is actually a Patch doll from the 1960's! She was the little sister to the popular Sindy dolls from the same decade and man they are the cutest things. I wish I had ALL of their clothes! I found Pip in an opshop in West End - she stuck out like a sore thumb amongst all the other toys so I took her home for the small price of $2.
At some point during the day, I managed to find a spare minute to skip over to Enticing Icing to buy the biggest (and possibly the most delicious) chocolate chip cookie I have ever seen. It was the size of a pancake!

It's almost sad packing up after a BrisStyle market - you have so much fun during the day you wish you could hang out and talk with everyone for the rest of the afternoon, but come 2pm I had become super worn-out and all I could think about was a big nap after I hauled my gear back home.

So a big thanks to everyone who came along to the BrisStyle Indie Designers Market and braved the iffy weather. Also, thanks to those designers who stopped by my stall to have a chat; you really made my day.

Here are a few more piccies from the day:

My Very First: Valley Laneway Markets!

Hello dear-lings, I do apologise for being out of the blog-loop lately. Things have been mighty hectic here at Pannikin headquarters a.k.a my house but I am back to share stories about the last two weeks of marketeering I have done at the Valley Laneway Markets!

Yes, this is me, in my silliest, pink-est nanna get-up yet! I love hats, especially berets. At last count I had 6 in various colours.

Sunday August 22nd saw me at my first-ever Valley Laneway Market (or for the purpose of faster reading and 'in-the-know-ness', will be shortened to VLM).
I didn't really know what to expect from these markets, but I was pretty chuffed with the day's results, which included meeting some super wonderful people and catching up with other thrifty/creatively-inclined stall holders and friends.

It was a steady day in California Lane (where my stall was situated) with a slow start to the morning. Things picked up around lunchtime when the live music kicked off and people came to dine at California Cafe, browse the markets and (I assume) shake off the remainder of their obligatory Sunday Morning Sleep-in.

In my opinion, there is nothing better than having the kind of passers by who come to have a little chit-chat with you. I was flying solo that Sunday, as my boyfriend Tom (who is always keen accompany me and lend a helping hand) needed to stay home, so as usual, every bit of conversation, no matter how small, was enjoyed very much.

This was also the market day where my Fun & Games fridge magnets and Spell It Out badges made their debut!

The ability to have a wall behind me was a huge help, as it provided the perfect backdrop for my screenprinted tote bags!

Sometimes the simplest things really make my day, whether it is the squeal of glee some people emit when they spy a really cute item or the chuckles shared between friends when they notice my 'Talk Crafty To Me' tote bag or the '99 Problems But A Stitch Ain't One' badges.

I have been drawing new badge designs during the week whenever I get the chance, and my latest brainstorming session saw me hand write enough illustration ideas to completely fill 3 A4 pages.

If you would like to see more photos from my first day at the Valley Laneway Markets, please head on over to my facebook fan page by clicking here.

Coming To Valley Laneway Markets

Yessiree Bob! Pannikin is preparing some new goodies for you to adorn your clothes and home with. First up, Fun & Games fridge magnets!
These are created from vintage children's wooden dominos, with colourful and oh-so-cute pictures including roosters, lady bugs, frogs, ducklings and butterflies. I'm also planning on turning these into necklaces - if all goes well I'll let you know!

Next we have a new series of 35mm badges! The 'Spell It Out' range is a new favourite of mine, for a few reasons.

1. I can spell out almost anything! (For practicalities sake, I'll be keeping these to short words and phrases. Too many letters and your badge loses it's punch. No one likes squinting to see the design, trust me.)

2. You get an insight into my favourite words, which I seem to mentally collect day in, day out. Favourites include but are not limited to: nifty, gravy, cat lady, hand made, lame, super, neat and so on and so forth.

3. I can do custom work! Maybe you want to declare your love for tea, cookies or cats or feel the need to announce that you are amazing, cute, swell, dandy or all four? Send me an email and I'll do my best!

Both of these products will be available at the upcoming Valley Laneway Markets on Sunday 22nd August 2010. My stall will be located in California Lane, which can be accessed via McLachlan St, Fortitude Valley. The markets run from 10am til 4pm.

Please click here tobe taken to the Valley laneway Market website for more information and applications for those who would like to apply for a stall.

Our Adventures at the Marky Markets

Apologies for such a late post, being Thursday evening and all, but I'm sure you wouldn't mind me sharing a photo or two of the Marky Markets that were held on Sunday 15th August at the Hi Fi in West End, Brisbane.

I think next time I will make sure to take a LOT more photos of the whole market, stall holders and market goers. Sometimes it is just a bit too hard to drag myself away from the fun of stall-holding and take pics. Funny thing is, it's all too easy to spend a whole wodge of money on other fun things being sold by local creatives - especially if they are gorgeous fabrics and vintage buttons from Voodoo Rabbit and rad brooches by Polly Gone.

I was also having a great time sharing chit-chats with Svetlana of Lady Sveta and Amanda Whitelaw of Hungry Designs, not to mention sharing a quick little hello with Kiara Notaras and a few other stall holders who I am sorry I have forgotten the names of.

(Oh and I must mention the wonderfully fun chill-times and conversation with 'the boy', Mister Thomas Griffin, stall-buddy extraordinaire.)

For more Pannikin market pics, please visit my facebook.

Marky Markets Wrap Up

Greetings and salutations!

It's been a while since my last post but I think I have a pretty good reason - I got to do my market stall at the Marky Markets last Sunday! Wee!

I have spent the past two weeks or so madly creating, packaging and all the little odds and ends that come along with preparing for a market stall, in between almost-full-time work and spending time with friends. How I manage to eat anything I don't know, I sure know I don't get much sleep though! It feels great to be busy though.

A big thank-you goes out to the organisers, the stall holders, the helpers and (how could I not forget!) you guys! Without you, Pannikin would not be what it is today, or what it could become down the track.

Merci beaucoup, mon cheries!