Art Deco, Lace and Valentine Kiss.

 

I completed a stock count earlier this week to work out what I needed to make the most of for Finders Keepers next month and to my surprise, I have been chipping away in great amounts and not realising it!  The wooden range is completely full - I really do not need to make anything more to take with me, this is yet another one of those high-five moments.
Reflecting on the last two market events of 2012, it is without a doubt that the item being snapped up the most at the market stall is the That Vintage Imprinted Clay earrings. 
These come in a huge rainbow of colours and now, seven different prints!  I have just finished working out three new prints to add to the range, which are pictured above: Art Deco, Lace and Valentine Kiss.

How do these prints come about, I hear you say?
I roll out the clay, mix up the chosen colour - in this case above, this is Sage Green, a mix of a mossy green with a smidgen of white.  I then use the wooden pieces that have been laser cut with the That Vintage designs and press the print into the small balls of clay.  This works well as the clay rarely sticks to the wood; when the wood starts to get a build up of clay residue, I simply wipe the wood clean with a damp cloth.
I don't use any rubber stamps or anything like that - these imprints are all part of the That Vintage range, in which ties together the wooden range with the clay range.
You can find some of the earrings for sale in the Etsy store.

Finding Out About The Keepers.

I thought I would share with you the faces of who will be at the That Vintage stall at Finders Keepers, Melbourne!
Of course I'll be there, probably a little frazzled which is a given when flying interstate to do a big market event, but I'll shake those sillies away and embrace the event, enjoying every single moment! 
The sweet Katie will be rockin' it by my side - this is Katie's first time working at the Finders Keepers event.  This year I decided to seek the helping hands of someone new, someone who is creative also and someone who is willing to sacrifice their Friday and Saturday to hang out with me, my jewellery and the masses of crowds!  I was lucky that Katie was super keen with the proposal and I am very excited to have her on board.
If you are coming along to the event, please don't be shy!  Say hello and tell me if you read the blog or if you are accumulating a collection of That Vintage pieces!  I love to meet those who support That Vintage, who adore it and appreciate all the time and energy that goes into my little brand.

It's Find & Keep Time Again!

I am so over the moon to announce that That Vintage will be at the upcoming Finders Keepers event in Melbourne next month!
Way back when I began this little handmade adventure, Finders Keepers was on my list of goals - I managed to tick this goal off with my first acceptance into the Sydney December 2011 event... and being completely honest with you, the moment I received the congratulations email, I cried and cried and cried! 
There is nothing more amazing than having success that you have worked hard for and having a goal accomplished.  I am very grateful that Finders Keepers is having That Vintage back for a third time now!

The Finders Keepers events are very well run; they are a highly professional team with that added zest for the handmade love within life.  The stallholders are all of amazing quality, there is always a vast array of different products, plus the added awesomeness of scrumptious food, beverages and entertainment. 
The market is in its 5th year and to ensure its growth and development, there will be a gold coin entry this time around - I think it is absolutely worth it! 
Finders Keepers is definitely more than just a market.  It is an experience - one that should be devoured completely, whilst savouring every single last drop!

If you are planning a trip to any of the Finders Keepers markets this year, come armed with a tote bag, plenty of cash and your plastic cards too, bring a friend and make sure you have oodles of time to spare - to get the most out of an event like this as a visitor, you need time - time in which you allow yourself to converse with the maker, let your eyes be captivated and absorb absolutely every single ounce of talent in the venue.

See you there!
Event information here.

Coming Up This Week.

Oh yes... the wait is nearly over people!
This week is Finders Keepers week!
If you haven't been to a Finders Keepers market event, ever, then you are missing out. This even in Melbourne is going to be their biggest to date - with over 120 stalls to make you starry eyed and giddy with handmade goodness - be sure to come cashed up and armed with a tote bag!
Here are the facts:
WHAT: Finders Keepers market
WHERE: Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton
WHEN: Friday 20th April 6pm-10pm & Saturday 21st April 10am-5pm
COST: FREE!

See you there!

Test Run.

I love finding old treasures and giving them a new way of existing... I found this really neat vintage soda bottle wooden crate on Etsy - it is now the new display piece for the wooden earrings!

Niche Is A Knocking!

One market done and dusted this week... another creeping up on the horizon!
Niche - All Wrapped Up returns to the Tramsheds at Inveresk, Launceston this coming Friday 30th of March 4pm-8pm and on Saturday 31st of March 10am-3pm. More information can be found on the Niche - All Wrapped Up event page.
Don't forget about the reason why Niche is in existence... it is a fundraising market event, in which 20% of the profits from each stallholder goes directly to the fantastic organisation that is St Giles Tasmania.
So, it is certainly a good-will good-feel shopping event!
See you there!

Lock In That Geo.

The unisex range from That Vintage is ready to roll and has been available in the Etsy store as a trial run over the past couple weeks - so far so good! These have been fun to make, changing up the combinations, seeing which shapes work best with others and being that mid length pendant makes it a versatile piece for both guys and girls.

The That Geo range will be available at:
Boutique Market Hobart: Sunday 25th of March, 9am-1pm at the Old Woolstore, 1 Macquarie Street.
Niche: All Wrapped Up Launceston: Friday 30th of March 4pm-8pm, Saturday 31st of March 10am-4pm at the Tramsheds, Inveresk.
Finders Keepers Melbourne: Friday 20th of April 6pm-10pm, Saturday 21st of April 10am-5pm at the Royal Exhibition Building, 9 Nicholson Street in Carlton.

Hobart, Come Look And See.

Only 12 days until the Hobart Boutique Market is on!
Sunday 25th of March, 9am-1pm at the Old Woolstore.
Come and check out all the new goodies from That Vintage, including the That Geo range!

Finding and Keeping Ahead.

So happy to announce that That Vintage will be heading over to Melbourne for the Finders Keepers event, 20th & 21st of April!
This is super exciting because flicking back to last year when That Vintage made its debut at the Sydney event, it was a dream come true! Now, for a second time around, it is even more special...
I cannot wait to hang out with all the creative cats and meet some new lovers and the faithful loyal ones!

Heading South.

Look out Hobart!
That Vintage is coming to your neck of the woods for the Boutique Market on Sunday 25th of March, 9am-1pm at the Old Woolstore.
This will be That Vintage's first market trip down south - it shall be oodles of fun!

Found And Kept.

Finders Keepers: Done and Dusted!
And what an experience it was...
A huge line of people out the front door just before 6pm; once the door had opened, the people streamed in thick and fast... it was almost like watching the doors of a major department store opening just before a huge sale - except Finders Keepers was twenty thousand times better than any department store sale opening!
The atmosphere, space and music was fab - live band and a great DJ, it really set the mood to "awesome handmade shopping time" - it was buzzing; oodles of inquisitive lovers of handmade casting their eyes over stall after stall of incredible talent.
I got goosebumps a number of times during the event - almost as though I had to pinch myself to make sure this was really happening!
It was lovely to meet the amazing fellow creatives, the loyal and adoring lovers of That Vintage and meet the new lovers also - thanks for coming and saying hello!
Thanks to the crew at Finders Keepers for putting on such a schmick event - it was an experience I'll never ever forget!

Get Your Finding And Keeping On.

Can you believe it?
It's that time of year already - Finders Keepers time!
The Brisbane event kicks off this Saturday, 5th November, 10am - 4pm - and again on Sunday, 6th November, 10am - 4pm at the Old Museum.
The lovely ladies from Style Milk are having another stall at this event - hurrah!
So if you are in that neck of the woods, you should pop along and do some finding and keeping for yourself and check out That Vintage goodies on the Style Milk stall.
Count down for the Sydney event is... 30 days!

What Will You Find?

Yes - it is true!
That Vintage will be at the Sydney Finders Keepers Market event and I can barely contain my excitement!
This has been a long standing dream of mine since That Vintage began to grow from a hobby to a small business. If you have a dream that you are passionate about, go and put your heart and soul right into it - you can achieve whatever your heart desires.
See you there!

Make And Bake.

More time was spent in the kitchen yesterday afternoon, finishing off the clay pieces for Niche: All Wrapped Up.
Little rings have been added to the range, as well as small round pin brooches!

On A Roll.

I managed to lock myself away in my little studio space for 4 hours straight yesterday, in that time frame I finished over 80 pendants.
I have a blister on the palm of my hand from where my pliers rest when I am using them - rather amusing to me as I've never had a blister in that spot before!
It must have been the music cranked really loudly that encouraged me to work at double speed - because I have never worked so fast when making jewellery - it was actually a lot of fun.
When I packed up the pendants into their little zip-lock bags, ready to be tagged next week, I decided to do a preliminary stock count...
107 pendants and necklaces.
185 pairs of clay earrings.
243 pairs of wooden earrings.

Phew.
Today is the day of focusing on rings and brooches - feeling very prepared for Niche: All Wrapped Up now!

The Niche-est Experience Ever! (warning - long entry!!)

Excuse the rather quirky title for this entry - but I am still buzzing from The Niche Market and all the delightful people that I got to meet and all the fantastic customers that came to the event - such a great experience, so much so that I became rather sad whilst packing up my stall yesterday!



Firstly, let me begin from ..well, the beginning.

I had the majority of last week off work (thank goodness!) and spent each day super busy with creativeness and slight spurts of stressing out... true artist fashion of course! (Hence why I didn't post much - or at all - last week.)

Thursday was "Messy Bird Wrap" day.
I knew that I needed to dedicate an entire day to creating these wraps... as I am not exactly the most speediest sewing machine user - I am still a beginner (December is when I got my lovely Brother NS10) but since unpacking it from the box, procrastinating about setting it up and trying to jolt my memory back to the days of "home economics & sewing classes" - I finally got the thread through the eye of the needle and wella!

Crushed Poly-Cotton in Magenta - hmm yummo! The other colours in the Poly-Cotton for my "winter" range of Messy Bird Wraps include chocolate, plum and a colour that I like to call gum leaf blue... a really deep blue/green - oohh yeah!

Each wrap takes me approximately 50 minutes... that includes cutting the crushed poly-cotton as neatly as possible (so hard to cut something straight and even that is designed to be crinkled and crushed!) - figuring out what feature fabric to use on the base colour, cutting out the birds and the circles, sewing up the rough edges and sewing on the birds and circles - the birds are so tricky but well worth it, as they "make" the Messy Bird Wraps birdy. HA!

Beginning the long task of sewing the bird shape on the poly-cotton, which has a mind of it's own and tends to want to wander around the sewing machine... in other words, hard to control! I find that a slower speed setting of the sewing machine is great, taking it in baby steps and not rushing - otherwise the bird would probably end up looking like roadkill? Ouch!!!

Sewing the circles seemed a bit of a brain teaser for me and my little sewing-knowledge, as I just stated, the Poly-Cotton has a mind of it's own, and because of that, I find that sewing at a low-speed helps with control it's movements, but in turn that makes it harder to spin the course of the sewing in a circular motion haha.. oh my... many tantrums occured with the first few Messy Bird Wraps that I created!

And there you have it. They made my stall look complete and mighty colourful.
In total I ended up making nine wraps which I thought was going to be pleanty, but little did I know that on the Saturday of The Niche Market that I would actually sell SEVEN! And I sold the last two on Sunday, one to my Godmother (yay!) and the other to the lovely Annie Burns (beeeeautiful soaps and candles and a delightful lady!)

The response was awesome! All the hard work and long hours put into making the wraps had paid off - I was overwhelmed with the comments from the admirers. Jodie Campbell (who I think is a rather fab lady!) bought a Chocolate brown one with an autumn coloured Bird Scene - I will be watching Parliament Question Time on the ABC from now on, with hopes to spot her wearing it ...haha!

Here are my little darling tweeters in brooch form, chillin' out on their blocks waiting for people to snap them up and give them some loving - I sold out of the Pair Of Birds brooch by the end of Sunday, I was so happy with that!

The small fabric covered button earrings... Trademark of my stall perhaps?

I personally love being swamped with colour and even more so in a regimental fashion like how I place my earrings out - the only downfall of being so nit-picky with lining up earrings is that when each customer picks up a pair, they some how manage to destroy the neat-line-up. I found myself forever straightening them up throughout the weekend... haha will I ever learn?

More colour! I knew I didn't make enough of the popular prints
...but there are only so many hours in the day!

I truly felt rather honoured to be apart of The Niche Market... For starters, the designers. Oh my. Everyone was so lovely, so very creative and it was pretty inspirational to see other peoples talents displayed and of course, pick their brains..!

Vanilla, Pomegrante and Black Currant Goats Milk Soap
by Annie Burns Red Bamboo

I was lucky enough to be positioned right next to the lovely Annie Burns "Red Bamboo" (of Examiner fame from Friday's paper!) and her scrumptious soaps and candles (yay for sellling out on Saturday Annie!) ...I was hoping to dart around the other stalls more frequently but due to the fact that The Niche Market was SOOOOOO busy, I barely had time to look up from my own stall - and that was awesome! It was only on Sunday that I got to really give Annie's soaps a once-over with my nose! She was kind enough to give me a bar of her scrumptious (and popular) Vanilla, Pomegrante and Black Currant Goats Milk soap. YUM! This impressed me so much that I bought another two bars haha... everyone in my house will be squeaky clean and smelling divine! Check out Annie's blog - redbamboohandmadethings.blogspot.com

So, I treated myself... I bought this beautiful "Free As A Bird" pendant from Dick & Dora - I had earned it (pfft who really needs to justify a gorgeous piece like this!) and I absolutely love it to bits! I have a strong feeling that my mother may pinch it off me at some point... better lock it away!

My highlight of The Niche Market would have to be the that I was quite literally (well almost!) rubbing shoulders with Dick & Dora. On Friday I was a little "star struck" whilst setting up my stall - I knew they had arrived yet I was almost... slightly scared of coming across as a crazed fan!! So I had my head down-bottom up finalising my stall and figured that we would find time to chat over the weekend.

Here I am modelling my newest love... Ohh how I adore Dick & Dora!

I am not sure of the right words exactly - but I guess this statement is true: "I have idolised Dick & Dora since I was 18..." - for my 20th birthday I actually bought myself a present from CONTENT ... a red "Dizzy Bird" brooch - and haven't looked back since! So once I heard that Dick & Dora would be at Niche, I became even more excited about even being in the same vacinity as their creative brains!

A little bit of Dick & Dora goes a long way... look at how my white "Bunny" brooch just MAKES my coat look complete! I had suggested in a "round-about-way" to Dora on her blog, that perhaps a "trade" was in order... yay! And so we did the "deed" and I scored this beautiful white "Bunny" brooch and Dora became a proud and loving owner of two of my acrylic Bird Rings.

I'd like to thank Selena Palmer from St Giles, for inviting me to be apart of such a delightful event - thankyou!