Magnetic attraction

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My covered button magnets were snapped by the very talented Annie La Rue and the resulting photo was featured in Anne's wrap up post about last Sunday's market on the Mathilda's Market blog.

Annie has also emailed me some more fabulous photos she took of my stock on the day, so here are some of them for your viewing pleasure:

Thank you Annie and Anne (and what fabulous names you both have! ;-) )

More exciting news!

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Mama Goose and I have just received some very exciting news! Goosey Gander and Flibbertigibbet have been accepted to be stallholders at the amazing Handmade Market here in Canberra on the 28th of March.

We've attended several Handmade markets as shoppers, and are just so, so excited to be attending as stallholders (although we'll still make time to shop, I'm sure!)

Click on the postcard above to be redirected to the Handmade Market website where you can read about the gorgeous new venue at Kamberra Wine Company and get a glimpse of some of the wonderful handmade products on offer. There is something for everyone at Handmade Market.

Under the big top (and some exciting news!)

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Today Mama Goose and I baptised our new marquee under a short and sweet sprinkling of summer rain. We've had the marquee for quite a few months now, but a low hanging tree branch above our allocated spot has thwarted our attempts to erect it. Fortunately the weather has been kind to us and all the protection we have required thus far was a hat and some sunscreen - during summer anyway, winter is a completely different matter!

Last night we dutifully checked the BOM website for Sunday's forecast:

Mostly fine until scattered showers and possible isolated

thunderstorms develop in the afternoon. Cloudy with

moderate east to southeast winds.

Hmm. We decided to take the marquee along, and due to some renovations going on at Hall, we were able to move a few feet to the side of our usual spot and - voila, up went the big top! Well, with a bit of help from our friendly neighbouring stallholders, who had much more experience with marquees than we did and took pity on us!

It was a very quiet day at Hall. I'm not sure if the threatening (but otherwise quite pleasant) weather kept customers away, but even the number of stallholders seemed fewer than usual. Mama Goose and I whiled away a very pleasant day chatting with customers, eating freshly popped Classic Kettle Corn from the stall next door (keep an eye out for their cheerful red marquee at a market or event near you, their 'slightly sweet, slightly salty' popcorn is absolutely delicious!) and discussing plans for our stall at the fast approaching Mathilda's Market.

With the 'moderate east to southeast winds' in mind, I secured

the tags in place with some ribbon and these gorgeous little

ladybird pegs. I've been hoarding them for, oh, about ten

years now - just waiting for the perfect use for them.

I think I've finally found it!

Here you can see one of Mama Goose's gorgeous new Pinny

designs hanging in the background, and some of the quilted

and denim handbags too. These bags are made exclusively

for Flibbertigibbet by my lovely and very talented

mother-in-law, Mary. I added a few new magnet designs

to the range too, and there are lots more to come!

The pegs were a great success, everything stayed

exactly where I intended.

Flibbertigibbet and Goosey Gander will be taking a break from Hall Markets for a few months. Mama Goose and I are very excited to announce that we have recently been accepted as stallholders at the Old Bus Depot Markets at Kingston, and we will be booking in for our first market there very soon. However we still intend to make further appearances at Hall from time to time. Our list of upcoming markets is on the right hand side of this blog and is updated regularly.

Hooray!

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I'm delighted to announce that Flibbertigibbet and Goosey Gander will be stallholders at the next Mathilda's Market in Canberra.

You can click on the banner above to be redirected to the Mathilda's Market website.

I can't wait!

Christmas at Hall Market

Still on a high from our hugely successful day at Mathilda's Market, Mama Goose and I went into overdrive making sure we replenished our stock in time for the Baby and Kids Market the following week and then the last market of the year at Hall Market the week after that.


Here are some photos from the December Market at Hall. This time I remembered to take them before the customers arrived and bought half our stock! You can click on the photos to see a larger version and more detail.

A fully stocked Christmas tree.

I could have sold that bauble wreath ten times over!

All my best sellers fully stocked and ready to go.

Mama Goose did a roaring trade with her Summer range for girls.

I had to be a bit creative with displaying the daisy and crochet
flower magnets, so the Christmas tree did double duty.

Now to find something just as useful for display purposes

for the rest of the year!

We had a fantastic day. What a great way to end the year!

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A most marvellous day at Mathilda's

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Here are some long overdue photos of the Flibbertigibbet and Goosey Gander stall at Mathilda's Market in November last year. You can click on each photo to view a larger version. You will note the stall is in some state of disarray and there are gaps where things have sold. This is because we couldn't actually get out from behind our stall to take photos before we were swamped by hordes of eager customers! So these photos were taken several hours later after most of the happy throng had departed to coo over their new-found treasures.

You can see Mama Goose's taggy blankets in a basket in front

of the table in this photo. They were a big hit, and no wonder

- they are gorgeous!

A view from front on this time.

Can you see the twinkling lights on the Christmas tree?

Magnets and Crochet Flower clips were the two new ranges

that debuted at Mathilda's and both proved very popular.

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The fabric flower clips, and button clips and elastics were, as always, best sellers. Fortunately I was well prepared with lots of stock in reserve to replenish the stall and for customer requests.

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Mama Goose and I made sure we got a chance to browse and shop too; it was an opportunity not to be missed - what a wealth of talent we have here in Canberra! We just love Mathilda's Market. There's another coming up on the 28th of February 2010, with the Park Hyatt Canberra being the new venue.

Happy New Year!

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Here we are, nearly halfway through January already - goodness me!

You could be forgiven for thinking it is still Spring around here, despite these hot days we've been having lately. My workroom is a riot of colour - fabric, ribbons, buttons and thread are threatening to take over - indeed, I think they already have.

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I thought you might like a peek at what's in bloom. My apologies for the poor lighting in the photos, but with two young daughters around I have to seize whatever moment I can get these days! As always, you can click on the photos to see a larger version with more detail.

First up are the crochet flower clips that were so well received when they debuted at Mathilda's Market in November last year. These are so cheerful and bright, and the buttons add that extra dimension. I've only shown a select few here, but they are available in a wide range of colours.

Then there are the magnets. I introduced these because so many customers were lingering over my stock but lamenting the fact they didn't have anyone to buy hairclips for. But everyone needs good magnets, don't they? The magnets have been very popular, and have proven to be a very welcome addition to my range.

Don't let these ditsy daisies fool you, they might look dainty but the magnet is surprisingly strong. One of these can comfortably hold three A4 sheets of paper or three business cards.

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The Crochet Flower range has the same size magnet as the Daisy range, but their larger flowers and bold bright colours mean they are definitely no shrinking violets! I'm still trying to decide which flowers they most resemble so I can give them a more creative name. They are just that tad gaudy and not at all pretentious. Petunias maybe?

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Then there are the Covered Button Magnets. These have a very strong magnet indeed and you can really feel their pulling power. Just one of these is capable of holding up to 8 sheets of A4 paper. These are available in a wide range of fabrics and designs, and as with the hair clips there are frequent new additions - I just can't say no to fabric!