Button Goodness

I braved the Australasian Quilt Convention yesterday with Nicholas, but I haven't gotten around to writing a blog post and processing all the pictures that I have taken. I got a tooth extracted on Thursday and well, I am still very very sore :-(

Just a reminder that I have a market tomorrow. It's more of a gigantic garage sale than a makers market, but it will be a good day. Tori has been excitedly helping me make some button badges to take along, she has worked out how to use the machine herself.

Compact Mirrors

I was very excited when my mirrors arrived today for my market on Sunday. Trying something new with my designs on the back. Very Konstant Kaos ...

 

I've been stocktaking today. Laying out all my stock, pressing table cloths and making sure that I have everything that I need like bags and a float. I haven't had much time to sew as I usually would, but I am still looking forward to this market. I will be there under a marquee with Nicholas .. let's hope he behaves!

I am also going to have some "old" but in good condition club gear  and black corporate wear from when I was a size 10 ... so come along, enjoy the bands and company. Sunday is going to be a lovely day.

And if you love patchwork, remember that I have a giveaway that closes tomorrow midnight, Melbourne time!

The Black Market 17th April 2011

As mad as I am, I have booked a space at the up and coming "Black Market" on Sunday 17th April 2011. Located on the banks of Merri Creek yet again, we are hoping that the rain will hold off!

I am not sure how much "new" stock I will have there, but I will also have some second hand black clothes for sale. Come and say "hi". My next market will probably be in the second half of the year.

One of the reasons that I do this market is the atmosphere and the fact that it is more of a community gathering than a market.

The Resignators will also be playing, so it is worthwhile turning up just to sit around and have a listen to them.

Black Market part 2

I'm feeling quite ill today, but I need to start functioning. So a quick blog post to get my brain going is in order. First some gratuitous stall pictures from the Konstant Kaos camera.

The one thing that disappeared rather quickly was my crime scene embroidered pencil cases. You might be able to spot the black "kitchen fruit holder". Originally white, the hubby rubbed it back and re-sprayed it a more Konstant Kaos friendly colour.

People were interested in my gothy patchwork, but probably not the right audience for it. I am hoping to get a few more done in time for my next stall at the Modish Market on the 8th May.

Tori spent some time on my back in my Batty baby carrier that I made a while back.

Tori and I bought a few things from hair accessories to a lovely bracelet. But the purchase of the market, was a pre-loved wrought iron candle rack which now sits in our back room and lights up an awkward wall quite nicely!

It has been interesting seeing the reactions to the market online. It is a very casual market or garage sale which is placed in someone's backyard. There are a few of us who runs stalls for a business reason, but most of the stalls are friends selling their pre-loved stuff.

Goth Club blog did an interesting review on the market writing about how much better it would be if it was a bit more organised. But I fear that if it was, then it would not be the lovely casual event that it is.

The Black Market

The thing that I love about this market is that it is so casual. Konstant Kaos were one of a handful of commercial stalls, but it was mostly pre-loved things for sale. The marketed is targeted towards goths, punks and alternative crowds and originally came about because a few friends wanted to sell off their old black clothing and club wear

We got there nice and early and it was cold! Tori behaved particularly well for a day that was not her usual routine and lots of friends with kids rocked up and said hello. For part of the morning she was strapped to my back in my Kaos baby carrier and there was a lot of interest about that.

Thanks to Beky at Pivotal Xpressions

Both Beky from Pivotal Xpressions and Fab from Little Cooties joined me for the day with some of their products that suited the audience.

It was a good day and I found a home for my Wicked Witch bag and Decapitation bags, but then a rain storm went through and washed a lot of us out :-(

Thanks to Beky at Pivotal Xpressions

My crime scene pencil cases walked out and whilst people were interested in my patchwork, it wasn't the right time or place for it.

The Resignators played yet again. A group of talented gentlemen, if you caught them and loved them or missed the Black Market, go along and show your support their CD launch at the Evelyn Hotel on Brunswick Street on the 4th June.

Oh! and I have a lot more pictures on my camera, but I feel quite under the weather at the moment, so I thought I would use a pre-loved one from Beky's facebook!

Sunday Stash

I had some lovely fabric arrive this week, time permitting it will be turned into something wonderful for my market stall next weekend at "The Black Market" .. warning, this market isn't like the usual craft market that I attend.

If I ever get the time to sew, this is what I might do with these fabrics, I don't have much of them only a few metres combined, enough to make a few "one off's" with ...

This one is such a large and dominating print that it really needs to be on a large bag or cushion.

This print is just divine, and I want to use it on little things; wallets, journal covers or eye masks .. nice and small projects where the fabric has been fussy cut to accentuate the design.

Unlike the one above, this print is a bit spread out. I am thinking that I might use the individual prints for applique.

A dear friend sent me a fat quarter of this print and I just loved it so I found it and bought some more. The print is so complex and full of contrasts. Definately bag material this one.

Black Market Madness

I really should have taken more pictures, but I was kept busy for most of the day. When I wasn't tending the stall, I was chatting, drinking or grooving to the band that played.

The Black Market on Sunday was fabulous. Unlike other markets, this is actually a really big garage sale on someones double block in Northcote.

So it has a different feel to other markets. Sausage Sizzles, a Band and more importantly beer. Slap Cosmetics came along and shared a stall with me, but I didn't get any pictures of the lovely Nikki and her wares.

I had been fretting for days as to how to display my new fridge magnets and then I found myself thinking of a martini and voila ... cocktail shaker to the rescue!

I had a good day and there were lots of other crafty peeps, including the Melbourne Alternative Crafters. My fabric journal covers sold well, people liking the fact that you could exchange the insides for a diary if you wanted to. Probably a bit early for peoploe buying diaries, I am also glad that I made them a standard size.

On my stall I had a family of softies from Little Cooties keeping me company and people loved them! The lovely Angelica was there, or "Jelli" as Tori calls her from Jellibat with her delightful creations. Angelica is a Northside chick.

Angelia

Duncan from DunxWerx was there with his leather bits and pieces. Head over to his facebook page and give him feedback on what he is doing.

Duncan

But the best thing about the day was coming home to some home made chicken noodle soup, made by the hubby .. we are all down with the snots and coughs at the moment, so this hit the spot.

New Konstant Kaos goodies

Here are a few things that I will have at my stall on Sunday at the The Black Market.

Date:	Sunday, October 18, 2009
Time:	12:00pm - 6:00pm
Location:	By the banks of the Merri Creek
Street:	7 Eunson Avenue
City/Town:	Northcote, Australia

My crime scene pillows will make an appearance ...

And I have been slaving away at the ol' Janome to make some 2010 diary covers out of my usual fabrics.

It took me ages to find a diary insert that I finally liked. I ended up going for a day to a page with space for a priority list.

Here is an arty farty shot showing the different linings.

*grins* After a week of doing school reports, marking and Year 12 practice exam marking, it was good to get behind the machine and create something unique.

Northside Makers Market Wrap Up

Now that I have time to think about Saturday ... if you visited the market, give us your feedback on the day. The survey is open until the end of the week.

From a Konstant Kaos point of view, it was a good day. I introduced a number of new products and they did well, adjusted a few prices up and down. It also helped that I could spread all my stuff out and I loved my corner spot.

My button badges were quite popular and almost everyone who visited my stall walked away with at least one on their lapel. Someone actually bought every design, 10 badges! The big question is whether I do another run, or completely new designs ... along with a proper sign!

When I went ahead with the badges, I had Jennie's advice in my mind, to make sure I had a range of products at a range of price points. So whilst not everyone would want to buy a bag, a button badge might lead to customers staying longer at my stall or someone might pick buy a button badge when buying something else to make up a whole number.

I really enjoyed doing the crime scene pillows and I had a few more ideas for home decor in that vein.

The other thing that went well was my little flex wallet pouches and my padded media pockets. So I might make a new batch of them for the next market.

My next gig is next Sunday at the Black Market Garage Sale in Northcote, a little bit more low key than the last one and more of a casual feel with a band playing and a sausage sizzle.

I have organised a marque for this one as well and I am sharing the space with SLAP Cosmetics with Little Cooties contributing her wonderful cat and bat softies to my stall. I'll have Northside Makers application forms there for anyone interested.