Shopping Night Success - See what we can buy Ardoch kids!

Well despite the rain, we had a wonderful turn out of about 60 people at our combined opening and shopping night last night. A HUGE thank you to all who came along and supported Maker Handmade, Blue Door Gallery and of course Ardoch Youth Foundation.

Between Blue Door Gallery and Maker Handmade we raised $525 for Ardoch Youth Foundation. To get an idea of what that means in real terms, here's an example of what we could buy from their online catalogue (which you can browse at the Ardoch website):

1. New school shoes for 10 kids!!
For a family experiencing hardship, new shoes for fast growing feet can be difficult to manage.

2. Breakfast for two children for a year, and substantial change for other items.
Kids can't learn on an empty stomach. Ardoch runs Breakfast Club Programs which gives kids, what can be for some, their only meal for the day.

3. A weekly Met ticket for 37 children!!
If they can't get to school, they can't learn. At $14 per week per child, this can turn out to be a big ticket expense item for some families.

4. Infant Care Package
At $60 per week, our donation could buy a baby whose family is experiencing disadvantage nearly 9 weeks worth of nappies, formula, baby wipes, cream and powder.

The list goes on - honestly a little bit of money can make a huge difference to a child who is struggling to stay in school. If you're in the habit of buying Oxfam gifts for xmas (I've purchased the odd goat myself), perhaps give this local organisation a go this year...

And now a few pics of our night:

Kellee with her Zoe.O satchel purchase, Lisa with Formosa Design T'Towel and
Mandy Burns, Chief Executive of Ardoch Youth Foundation.

Me, Madeleine and Jacqui from Reissued

Passing a Cosse handwash - they were a big hit!

Jenny & Richard -  product display assistants extraordinaire!

Husband Steve and me!

Shopping Night tonight - and look at all of our new Makers!

Wow it's been a big week here at Maker Handmade. One or several new Maker products arriving every day which has of course required constant re-arranging of the store (stops me from re-arranging our living area which makes husband happy).

We have our champagne shopping night / opening / fundraiser on tonight. If you're around pop in any time from 6pm to 9pm for a glass of champers, free gift wrapping on your purchases and 10% of sales going to Ardoch Youth Foundation.

Now - take a look at what has come in over the last week! (sorry about the dodgy photo placement).

Handmade Living was co-created by the talented Julie Nicholls, founder of Shop Handmade in Canberra and features Melbourne's wonderful Nicole James of Yardage Design.

Tilli Michelle clutches - antique japanese silk & leather

Zoe.O satchels

Kate Ward's journal covers

Formosa Design's tea towels

and O designs porcelain brooches & dishes

and O porcelain pendants

Cosse Body Products

Cosse Soaps

evie lala booties, t's and accessories

Babushka Baby cotton hand stitched quilts

Cracked, worn and a little uneven but oh so lovely....

A couple of days ago I took a little wander down Clarendon Street to my favourite second hand shop which is always full to the brim with furniture and bits and pieces. On the hunt for some interesting display options for the new stock that has been arriving lately, I sorted through some old wine boxes and ceramic kitchen bowls but as I headed to the counter I spied this little treasure on a shelf somewhere up near the ceiling...

It's delightfully uneven and was clearly loved, broken at some point and put back together with vast amounts of glue that years later look like rivers of treacle...

Everything I had picked up in the shop went back on the shelf in favour of my new lovely bowl which has created a temporary shop-home for Formosa Design's brooches and magnets, covered with Jenny's hand screen printed textiles.

The origin of the bowl remains a mystery, 2nd hand shop Steven thinks it may be c. 1920s but we're both very unsure. If anyone out there is a fan of antique earthenware, pottery etc and could give us some clues as to where it started its life I would love to hear from you!

As for the bits between its birth and its new life in Maker Handmade, my imagination has already been at work creating a full and wonderful 90 years....

Well hello there little fella

Leisa and Nicole, the two lovely sisters behind Mookah dropped in some gorgeous floor cushions and softies today. Tell me you don't want to give this little guy a squeeze...

I did, now I just have to stop my daughter from doing the same. Repeatedly.

Fairy Penguin and his friends provide a bit of bright eye candy in the window on a grey rainy day.

Now you see it....then it's sold. Reissued now (briefly) in stock

Jacqui from Reissued and I have been discussing the best style of chair to stock in the store, and boy did Jacqui get it right when on Friday she delivered a beautiful vintage carver chair reupholstered in a beautiful burnt spot cloth fabric.

The chair sold a couple of hours after it was delivered, so fast neither of us managed to get a photo so all I can show you is a photo of the empty space:

The good news is that we have a lovely Danish style 60s chair in a rough rose cloth fabric still available, sitting well with our Kabwares herb garden display in the window and some Yardage Design artichoke market bags:

and can you see the town hall outside the window? Such an amazing view from my chair at the counter.....

Kabwares garden markers have just arrived

I fell in love with these herb markers, made from upcycled vintage spoons, when I visited Bec's Little Shop of Handmade in Carnegie. I bought myself a set and then had to take a trip to Bunnings to buy herbs to match and a pot to put them in!!

The delightful Jane dropped them in to me yesterday and I've put them in the window this morning. There's a constant chink of metal from passers by stopping quickly to rifle through.

Style your garden and get the added benefit of a warm fuzzy trip down memory lane as you notice all of those patterns on the cutlery you had growing up. Ahhh, love a bit of nostalgia.

Yardage Design, Space Candles and a new take on retail therapy

I've had a big few days since my last post. Drinks with the girls, a christening, tradesman turning up late (and today not at all...) and in the process of creating and launching my husband's new website I broke his email. Whoops. In the midst of it all my daughter and I came into the shop while it was closed and discovered retail therapy of the meditative kind:

We caressed a Yardage Design cushion....

took a deep breath over a Space Candle....

and we were ready to face the next few hours - a trip to Chadstone - but more on that tomorrow!!


 

Loving the Postman

When I was young and single I had a distinct, rather disconcerting, lack of deliveries from the postman. With the arrival of children the postman increased his visits to my address, but the mail was of the boring white envelope kind.

So imagine my excitement at receiving this little parcel in the mail from Delilah Devine. Opening the box was a visual delight and I just had to clap my hands and do a little dance!

Delilah Devine. Vintage. Handmade. Lovely

Brooches, necklaces and flying wall ducks made with vintage wallpaper. 

In the week that Maker Handmade has been open I have come to really love the postman.

Maker Profile - Lamps by SPACED

This is our first blog post and our first Maker Profile - welcome everyone!

This month we're profiling Lamps by SPACED. Our lamp is attracting huge interest from the boys so if you have one of those 'what to buy for the man who has everything' dilemmas, here's the answer. The Lamps are made from vintage surveyor stands and map pages from the Melways. You can customise the shade by selecting the Melways pages depicting a place that means something to you. Cool huh?

Who is the Maker behind Lamps by SPACED?
Dianna Chapman of Lamps by SPACED has combined her love of maps, Melbourne and vintage surveys equipment with her appreciation of the spatial aesthetics to come up with a quirky and very modern furniture piece.

What's in the name?
Lamps by SPACED incorporates the mapping genre and everything spatial.

How did you get to where you are today?
I started Lamps by SPACED out of my love of the Melway. Being a graduate of Geomatic Engineering, I believe that spatial information inspires and evokes a sense of belonging and place. The Melway is something that all Melburnians relate to. It is an icon. And what better way to appreciate an icon than lighting it up!

What do you love about what you do?
I love discovering how many people love maps! It is truly amazing. In our modern lifestyle filled with GPS that tell you where to go, the old fashioned map can not fall by the wayside. All maps tell a story and I love that each one of my laps will mean something special to its owner.

What do you hope happens when you send your works out into the world?
I hope to ignite our passion for place and belonging, and an appreciate of where we are in the world.