Sunday 7 April 2013

Just call me Pippi Longstocking

Yesterday saw Frocktasia's second outing at The Dandy Lion Market.
Granted I almost killed myself getting there carting a huge big case on wheels with my rail strapped onto it and another huge bag on my back. Who said being a vintage market trader would be easy or glamorous, not me anyway that's for sure. It is hard graft but I like it that way.You get a special feeling of smugness after managing to travel from A to B on public transport, laden down like a donkey ..like you've done something pretty special, akin to walking up Ben Nevis in your bare feet for instance ;)
Anyroad I survived and got there early doors too, so that I could give Aiden a quick hand with the bunting.
I took quite a few pics of the day but after I got home I realized that I'd had the camera on some silly setting, so the majority of my pics came out either overexposed or blurry which needless to say was rather annoying but such is life, it doesn't always work out the way you want it to.
Here is my wonderful friend Leslie next to her rail of vintage loveliness and her dapper son Erik that helped out with the leafleting on the day. Leslie is not only the organizer of the Dandy and a fellow vintage seller, she's also a magnificently creative soul. You can check out some of her wonderful wares on etsy HERE.
Another fellow vintage peddler La Maison Pearl was my stall neighbor for the day and gave me some smashing tips on what London fairs are worth doing.
Thay had some cracking stuff on their stall and I was very tempted to bag this wonderful colour explosion of a frock...
This gorgeous chick was trading at the Dandy last month but she was on one of the downstairs stalls so sadly I forgot to mention her in last months post. The Jewellery Garden creates a stunning array of fabulous jewellery with a special emphasis on holistic crystals & gemstones.
I met the lovely Amanda of the The Prettiest Thing last month. She was back with more of her tremendously funky and very useful items. I think this wonderful woman can turn her hand to making anything, just check out her impressive FB albums HERE. I hope Amanda will be there next month cause my Oyster card holder decided to disintegrate this morning and she makes totally brilliant ones.
Also returning sellers from last month was Bright River & Gorgeous Jewellery.
Bright River sells beautiful cards and prints and is run by a very lovely lady called Claire Shannon and Gorgeous Jewellery sells splendid handmade jewellery and is run by husband and wife team Sue & Mark.
 When I was perusing the product pics of Juliet Rose Soaps before the market, I just couldn't wait to smell them in real life. These handmade soaps look good enough to eat and smell absolutely divine. Like myself Juliet is a newbie to the market scene and it was actually her first ever foray into having a stall.
I think she did herself very proud, just look at her fabulous display and the soaps did not disappoint  they smell just as good as the look. You can buy a bar in her on-line store right now.
There was more fragrant goodness for the body at yesterdays Dandy too. Brown Angel Fragrances were there with a wonderful array of beautifully packaged homemade natural lotions and potions. They also have an on-line store where you can purchase their lovely goodies.
The three gorgeous girls behind Triptych Designs & Wheels and Butterflies  are architectural students with an interest in quirky design. They make fabulously unique jewellery and I loved their  amazing display. You can buy their stuff on-line HERE & HERE.
This lovely lady is called Gillian Bull and she was selling a mighty fine collection of vintage bric-a-brac and home wares...
This next chick was another newbie to the Dandy with her funky stall The 3R Crafts. She makes both decorative and useful things with upcycled materials like cork and cans. You can check out her FB page HERE.
 Next up are the lovely peeps from Genuie scarves. They were offering up a vast range of stunning hand painted scarves made from 100% Mulberry silk. These fantastic scarves are a colourful treat for the eye and feel amazingly lush against the skin. The Genuie team have an on-line store where you can purchase their beautiful wares.
 Dapper chappy Roderick Barker-Benfield is the brains and creative talent behind Rodology handmade jewellery. I'm so gutted my camera was on the wrong setting cause I would have loved to have captured his wonderful work in a sharper picture to do it justice. He's got an on-line store where you can marvel over his fantastic pieces, especially check out the cufflinks. Roderick said that they are his best selling item and I am not surprised, marvelous stuff.
These two lovely ladies were selling vintage compacts, cases and a whole heap of other lovely stuff on their one off stall. A friend of theirs is a dab hand at crocheting so they'd brought along some of her creations too. I was especially impressed with two pairs of mittens that had been knitted with wool that their friend had spun from the molted hair of her angora rabbit. I did take pictures of them but because my camera was on the wrong setting they came out all blurry. Hopefully Leslie got some pics, if she did I'll add them later.
In the smaller picture you can see the lovely Juliet of Juliet Rose Soaps rocking a fabulous frock.
Downstairs we had Shonel of Poetic Solace with her awesomely funky jewellery stall. I only briefly caught up with her as she was setting up and the picture I took was...you guessed it very blurry. So if you want to see Shonel's lovely face you'll have to check out last months Dandy post. She's been keeping herself very busy this month, doing regular markets. If you want to check out her wares she's got a fabulous store on etsy HERE.
I hope I haven't forgotten anybody this time. 
As I was on my own, I didn't have that much time to wander around with my camera, it's much nicer when you have a stall buddy at hand. Mark very kindly came around at five to help me with packing up and carting home, which was much appreciated...especially by my back and arms ;)
Today I've been feeling like someone gave me a right old kicking last night. I guess that if I'm planning on doing this on a regular basis there is only one thing for it...get fit!
Frocktasia's next market will be Can't Buy Me Love at The Boogaloo in Archway on Saturday the 27th of this months and then I'll of course be at the next Dandy Lion Market on Saturday the 4th of May.
If you see anything in my for sale or preview albums on the Facebook page that you'd like to purchase directly from me just give me a shout, I ship worldwide.
For next months Dandy I've decided that Frocktasia has to stop procrastinating and pull her proverbial straw to the stack as regards to spreading the word about The Dandy. So the Friday before the market I am scheming a "leaflet bombing" of Camden in full dress-up :)
People need to know about this market and its fabulous sellers!
This was yesterday's Dandy ensemble:
Vintage 50s floral dress, 90s lurex jumper, 80s boots, tights & crochet & soapstone heart earrings.
Hope you've all had a fantastic weekend :)
I'm burying my face in my First Aid book in preparation for my course next Saturday but I'm hoping to get a couple of hours over the next few days to catch up with all my faves in the blogosphere.
Loads of love,
Jennie
xXx



15 comments:

thorne garnet said...

Beautiful print on your dress. We don't have a lot of markets like that here, too small of a town. What a great range of sellers. It looks like fun

Unknown said...

YUMMY dress and looks like a great weekend! I'm back and trying to get re-sorted...
huge hugs,
Reva <3

Curtise said...

The market looks wonderful - so much to see! Hope you had a successful day's selling.
Gorgeous frock, what a beautiful print. xxx

Panty Buns said...

Having seen photos of the large number of frocks and goodies you were planning to bring and reading your description of the arduous trek I'm amazed at your accomplishment in getting all your treasures (and Monia) to the Dandy Lion Market at The Oxford via public transportation. It conjures up images of heavily laden Nepalese Sherpas Himalayan mountain ascents. Well done! I can see that the Dandy Lion Market has a huge array of colourful and fascinating creations and vintage to browse and more stalls than I'd suspected. So sorry to read that many photos didn't come out that well. The trips to and from the Dandy Lion Market would have made posts all by themselves. It's nice, thankfully, that you got some assistance from Mark packing and carting home. Bset of luck at the "Can't Buy Me Love" market at "The Boogaloo in Archway on 27 April and back at the Dandy Lion Market again on May 4th.. The floral print of your vintage 50s dress is beautiful - pretty outfit! Good luck with your study, course and tests. It's an admirable endeavor!

Trees said...

Good work managing to get all your wares to the market on public transport - than can be tricky! So many great stalls, its so much fun attending and selling at markets :D

Anonymous said...

That was the best market/ event I've ever seen!
I can only add that it was better for me not to be there because I could have probabily spent all my money, but it sounds like the fox and the grapes fable!
You look amazing in that floral 50's dress! I really love the colour of the flowers that you repeated with the accessories and the sweater for a wonderful outfit!
Love xxxxxxxx

Lucys Lounge said...

oh jennie . i feel like i was at the dandy fair. what a great selection of traders. i hope i am in london when the fair is on. i am going to have a great time going through their on line shops. you look as stunning as ever. i love that purple skirt. love lucyx

Melanie said...

If my Concorde jet weren't in the shop, I'd have flown over for your sale. What a great group of people! I am cross-eyed for your gorgeous loooorex jumper and A-frame skirt.

Vix said...

Gorgeous outfit, loving the Fifties skirt with the lurex - brings it bang up to date.
It makes me laugh when people think all you do all day is sit behind a stall - do they think you've a tardis or something? We've got wheels but there's still Hitler-like traffic wardens and limited waiting times to unload, tables & rails to erect and dresses that insist on slipping off their hangers as soon as you look at them. xxx

Unknown said...

Wish that we had such markets here! Everything looks so great!

Leslie Wilson-Rutterford said...

Wow, what a great review! (You put me to shame) It is so lovely having you, and I am so appreciative of your hard work before, during and after the Dandy! Can't wait till the next one! One of these days peeps will want to come to everyone to make sure they don't miss anything, cuz soe traders just do one, or they skip months. Each month is different, full of surprises and have something for everyone. Thanks again sweetness. Lxx

Connie Staccato said...

Looks like the best time ever! And I love your dress.

Mrs. D said...

Lovely floral dress, I love it!

Looks like it was a very animated market. I hope I can go again some time soon!

Good luck with the 1st Aid. I qualified a couple of years ago but I should study it too as I seem to have forgotten most of it by now. I really don't want anyone to feel ill or have an accident near me! I'm praying for the qualification to run out so I can free myself of the responsibility lol

Becky said...

The market looks fantastic! It is so much work carting around and setting up all the stuff... Then taking it all home at the end. Trust me, I know! I LOVE that rose print dress to pieces. SO perfect with the 80s boots and lurex sweater!!!

Miss Simmonds Says said...

oooh I love your hair! Bit of a Betty Draper look going on. The skirt is pretty too!