And what an awesome market it was!

The day began early, with the cold wind that has appeared over the last few days making things a tad uncomfortable for the outdoor marketeers!

Inside, it was a bit more cozy – but little did we know just how cozy it would get when the crowds started rolling in later! Here’s the indoor marketeers putting the finishing touches on their stalls…

I managed to run around and get a few photos before the day really got underway… here we have the lovely Bec from BeckyBean (Jade was hiding off-camera). (P.S. that is Super-BrisStylette Helen in the background – the woman who made all this possible!)

I also grabbed a shot of SMBoutique - Sandrine came around and had introduced herself to me earlier – I just love her work!

And here is one of my neighbours, My Girl Designs – taken care of by Shannon’s lovely girls!

My other neighbour was Tracey from Denim Days, who very kindly looked after my stall a few times when I wanted to wander off and look around!

So, what about me, then? Well… Nick and I arrived at about 7:30, and we lugged everything inside and began setting up. I hadn’t done a trial run at home, so I wasn’t totally sure how to put it all together…

But by 8:30 we’d gotten it all pretty much storted, and my stand looked like this:

I was really happy with how it worked out – must remember to iron my table-cloth next time, though!! (It was brand-new out of the packet).

Nick hung around until about 10, and then I was on my own apart from a few visits from friends and family – my mum and dad made an appearance, as did a few ‘real-world’ friends. The most exciting visits I got, though, were from people I had only ever met online – it was so awesome to meet them in the real world! Early in the morning I met both Sam (from Jetta’s Nest – a fellow BrisSyler and customer of mine), and Sharon (from Shazzabeth, whom I’ve featured on my blog).

As the market progressed, I met one of my lovely online customers, who introduced herself and promptly bought another pair of earrings she had been eying off! The second was from Liz (hundredsofbuttons)! Liz was one of the previous donors to the Aussie Handmade Giveaway, as well as a DUST friend – it was great to meet her and her cute grand-baby. Finally, I met the Awesome Ange – one of my good mates online (and another fellow DUSTer). You might see her at the next BrisStyle markets, as she has been won over to the BrisStyle side!

Overall, I had a fantastic, though exhausting, day. I made 24 sales, which was just amazing. It was so wonderful to interact with people face-to-face, and actually see my customers enjoying my creations! I was left with a lot less business cards than I started with, so hopefully a few more people will come by and visit Epheriell online, too.

It was so incredibly busy – at one stage it was so packed inside that people had to queue at the door! I couldn’t have asked for a better first market, and you can be sure I’ll be doing all of the BrisStyle markets from now on. So, a big thank you to Helen and all the other BrisStylettes who made the market such a success – and here’s to each market being bigger and better!

(P.S. I made a few purchases too… I’ll show you those another time!)

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Well, as you all know, I’ve been sick this week – and I’ve also been preparing like crazy for the Brisbane Indie Designers Market (tomorrow, eep!).

I woke up this morning and I’d had enough! I felt I needed a mental and physical break from the work I’ve been doing – I am supposed to be on holidays, after all!

I also had been feeling the need for a new pair of boots, as the sole of one of my old pair is being partially held on by blue-tac – great look, I know.

However, before I could set out on my journey, this arrived…

What is it? Well, earlier in the week, as I blogged about, I received my copy of Peppermint in the mail. I read a great article about an eco-friendly small clothes designing business in New South Wales (that’s one of our states here in Australia, for my international readers). Their clothes sounded great, and when I turned over the page, I saw one of their jackets and fell in love with it!

So I e-mailed Kelli, who is the owner of PurePod, and asked if they had any stockists here in Bris. She said she had a jacket there and she could post it up to me to try! How good is that! I also scored it significantly below RRP, as it was a sample jacket.

It is made from a mix of hemp, wool and lyocel, with a hemp/soya bean lining, which was hand-printed in Byron Bay. All their workers are fair wage, the fabrics are grown without pesticides… in short, they’re a fantastic small eco-Aussie business.

Here I am in my new jacket… Nick did take some ’serious’ photos of me, but this random one is much more entertaining…

And a close-up…

So, before I ventured out I had already added to my wardrobe! Oh, if you’re in Bris, PurePod are stocked at Bliss Eco Wear in Paddington.

I then ventured off to the mall. I usually hate going to the mall – crowds and me don’t mix well. Mostly because I’ m a naturally fast walker… and most people, well, aren’t.

I have to say, I spent more money today than I have for a long time! I almost never go out shopping just for me, so I decided to go a bit mad today and treat myself.

I ended up with a lovely dusty pink frilly-ish shirt and grey knitted button-up vest, as well as a simple black cardigan from some cheapy women’s clothing stores. (BTW, do you know how hard it is to find a simple black cardigan?! I had to look in like 10 shops before I found one even remotely suitable!).

I also indulged in a few new pairs of tights to see out the winter – a semi-fishnet set in black, and another set in dusty purple. Oh, and a pair of cute black day-heels, and a new pair of black half-calf boots.

I ventured into Myer, and totally got lucky! One of my favourite brands, Basque, was having a 30% off sale on dresses – and I scored a gorgeous one. You’ll see me in it tomorrow if you’re visiting the market, otherwise I’ll have photos in a day or two!

My most expensive purchase was probably the strangest (for me). You see, I almost never wear makeup – I’m too lazy to bother with it, and I think I’ve always looked reasonably good without it. But my couple-of-years-old bottle of mascara was looking pretty sad, and I had no foundation to speak of, so I decided to venture into the world of mineral makeup. I find most foundations way too icky to wear – but this stuff is actually pretty fine!

The girl at The Body Shop sat me down and did a bit of a make-over on me – and it came out how I like it – basically so you can barely tell I’m wearing anything!

Here is my haul…

So, that should keep me going for at least the next three years

After the shopping spree, I moseyed up to The Full Moon Cafe – a gorgeous cafe/restaraunt/bar over at Sandgate – it’s up on the hill so it overlooks the bay. If you’re in Brissie, I totally recommend it – wonderful food and atmosphere! My friend Liz and I had a coffee and a chat, and then, much relaxed and refreshed, I headed home.

Now I must go and finish my preparations for tomorrow – beginning with cleaning out my car so I can fit everything in!

Wish me luck at the market tomorrow, and make sure you come down if you’re in Brisbane – St Augustine’s Church Hall, Racecourse Rd, Hamilton, from 9 to 2!

**Update – I finally checked the mail about 5, and found that I’d received my prints from Sam! Woot!

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Okay, this time next week it will definitely be more scared than excited – because next Saturday I’ll be selling at my first market!

I decided to go all ‘professional’ and wanted to find myself a vendor’s apron – imagine how excited I was when I found one on Etsy that had swirls just like my logo! And not only that, the lovely Elle  over at Down the Street Creations even went to the extra trouble of embroidering my logo and brand onto it for me – check it out!

Pretty neat, huh? (Please ignore the totally stylish work uniform shirt I’m wearing… Nick took the photo on Wednesday night after I got home from the day job).

This week has been exciting on another couple of fronts, too.

When I got home tonight, a lovely surprise was waiting in the mailbox. This month I participated in the regular DUST craft swap, and my swap partner was the gorgeous Aovana from Arc En Ciel Creations. I tell you, I was actually left breathless by the beauty of what I received!

Now, I made her a choker necklace in the same style as my Bramble Bracelet..

And here is the amazing nuno-felted scarf she sent me in return…

The flash-photos don’t do it complete justice! It is a wonderous mix of blues and greens felted onto a scarf – it’s just divine! Thank you Aovana! Make sure to pop over to her shop and see what other lovelies she has made…

And finally – the biggest news of all! I have been contacted by Artbeads.com and asked if I will be a product reviewer for them! I happily accepted, and now I have to choose which of their gorgeous products I would like to review – it’s not an easy decision, let me tell you! Their range of stock is just massive – so stay tuned for a post in the future about the goodies I receive.

This weekend I am Nick-free – he has gone off to the rainforest property of one of our close friends – so it’s time to get my butt into gear and get organised for the market! Just in case you missed it earlier – here are the details. If you’re in Brisbane next Saturday, come along and say hi – I’ll be there in all my Epheriell-y glory!

Oh, and did I mention I also have to organise the amazing list of people who have volunteered to be my Monday Featured Artisans – and all of their wonderful giveaways and discounts? The first one is this coming Monday – and it’s a beauty!

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