Mathilda's Market "Meet the Maker" series - starting with me!!

This week, we‘re pleased to profile our very first Mathilda‘s Market stallholder in our new Meet The Makers series. We‘ll be asking probing questions of some of the talented designers and creators who set up shop at Mathilda‘s Market. Our hope is that we‘ll find out more about what they do, and what inspires them to be so creative.

Without further ado, please meet Jennie from Posie Patchwork .

Jennie will showcase her wares in Canberra on 15 November 2009.
Your name: Jennie McClelland
Your business name and web address: Posie Patchwork lives at www.posie.com.au

When and how did your business come to fruition? Sewing and design was my secret passion while studying science at University. So when I was pregnant with my first child, I purchased a sewing machine & taught myself to sew. Then in 2001 after the birth of twins, I turned my sewing hobby into a proper online business, retired from the oil industry at the age of 26, and have never looked back! I‘ve also since had my fourth child and started a wholesale label and appeared at many markets.
Describe your product range: After a decade of collecting unique vintage, retro & quirky fabrics from all over the world, I have around 5000 different designs to use to make quality products from badges, cards & purses to bags, clothes & patchwork quilts.
What inspires your creativity? The Posie motto is ’if you love something, it‘s always in style.‘ With my amazing selection of fabrics, a love of family & my ordinary daily life filled with handmade goodness, it‘s easy to be inspired to create beautiful products.
What‘s your favourite product from your range, and why do you love it? Oh, definitely my gorgeous patchwork pencil roll (pictured). It shows off lots of different fabrics, as well as my attention to detail & passion for colour. Plus, it‘s a practical product which makes a beautiful gift for boys, girls and grown ups too!
Name three things in life you just can‘t do without? My gorgeous husband & our wonderful children, and our puppy! But they‘re not really ’things‘, and besides, my husband goes off to courses, exercises & war, so I‘ve had to learn to live without him for long periods!

So here are my picks:

1. My Cath Kidston vintage-style sewing box, which holds everything I need to sew.

2. My Janome industrial sewing machine, as she glides beautifully through all my sewing projects.

3. My ’good‘ scissors which are strictly for fabric, ribbon & thread only! My catchcry is the same as my mother & my grandmother before me: “Not the good scissors!

Thanks Jennie for talking to Mathilda's Market! Below are some of Jennie's fun creations:

Why thank you Mathilda's, that was really rather sweet of you!! Comg alone to Mathilda's in Manuka, Canberra ACT (or your local city - this month they cover almost every state) & do some lovely shopping. Love Posie

on the road to Gundagai

tossing hay to the horses from the ute

rainbow trout success

tree climbing & then tree leaping!!

fly fishing lessons with Daddy

Greetings all,

With my husband's lovely best mate out in Gundagai, it's a short hop over there for a great weekend away, when you live in Canberra. We went fishing in the Tumut River, with a lovely Rainbow Trout finding its way onto our dinner plates on Saturday night; the children fed the horses & met the foals on the farm; we made damper by the river bank; some craft by the camp fire & all round lovely flowers to smell in the Spring gardens.

Must say, i won't duck away for the weekend after a full day on canteen duty again, as i wasn't in charge of the final packing of the car, a man was. Bless my husband, however, he didn't have my last minute & all important list in his head & we left behind anything warm for our eldest daughter & the boy's gum boots. One twin had to make do without pyjamas also, but they didn't mind!! We came straight from school so they had their sneakers & warm school jackets, just to be sure!!

A fabulous weekend away, now it's time to knuckle down & finish off orders, prepare for markets, get through the busy P&C fundraising season & prepare the house for Summer. It's certainly heating up now, so we can put away the Winter gear & the below zero evenings of last week!! Tally ho, love Posie

get knitting with Art Viva needles

Greetings all,

My fabulous haul of knitting needles have arrived in store!! Do you have the celebrity urge to get knitting too?? Try these stunningly gorgeous hand crafted needles on for size. In a variety of lengths, sizes, colours & combinations, the wonderful folk at Art Viva created these knitting needles from Tasmanian Oak, right here in Australia. The timbers are from environmentally sustainable sources & each needle is indvidually handmade & finished using natural, organic oils. Your yarn will glide over the beautiful smooth finish. The spotty balls on the ends are hand painted in a variety of fun colours. Each needle has both metric & US sizes stamped on them, to avoid confusion.

Really love your knitting, well try a set of sizes & colours which are packed in a fabulous tube made from original 1950's & 1960's newspapers, featuring the most incredible ads. Have a closer look at the detail, find Elizabeth Taylor as a spokesmodel for jewllery & the ultimate in housewifey advertising appeal for cleaning agents. Brilliant!! Check out the great value prices by buying the sets!!

Check them out, they are in the Posie on line shop now!! Love Posie

it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas . . .

Greetings all, no i'm not 3 months early it's just that when you go grocery shopping & your children are pointing out Christmas decorations, you start to see your last quarter of the year flash before your eyes.

Well stocking up on fabrics over at Retro Mummy, bless her fabulousness . . . i'm also stocking up on organic cotton baby suits, cotton singlets & Ts for my new cookie cutter screen print range to launch in November. It's easier to sell one off cuteness at markets rather than on line, but we'll see what i can do for non ACT locals.
I have booked in & confirmed all my markets for November & December, i haven't confirmed Old Bus Depot yet, so fingers crossed i'm back there in mid December, as for me last year - December was the ONLY decent trade i ever did at that place.
So this is my Christmas Market schedule, pretty busy but wow, the Canberra (& Sydney) market scenes have really stepped up. Sticking to the high end markets like Handmade & school fairs that i'm associated with, i'm keeping it sensible. I wish wish wish i could make it to Allie's Attic in Sydney, that concept is so much fun, but it clashes with Mathilda's weekend which i booked 6 months ago. My market motto is "there is always another market" so maybe i'll sneak up to do one of Allie's great events next year with a family visit??

. . . November 2009 . . .
Ravenswood School Fair at Ravenswood School for Girls, Pacific Highway to Cecil Street, Gordon NSWSaturday 7th November 9a.m. to 4p.m.
Campbell School Fair at Campbell Primary School, Blamey Avenue to Chauvel Street, Campbell ACTSaturday 14th November 10a.m. to 2p.m. Mathilda's Market Canberra at the Bradman Room, Manuka Oval on Manuka Circut, Manuka ACTSunday 15th November 10a.m. to 2p.m.
Handmade Canberra's UpMarket at the Yarralumla Woolshed,Adelaide Avenue to Cotter Road, Yarralumla ACT Friday 20th November 6p.m. to 9p.m. & Saturday 21st November 10a.m. to 4p.m.
. . . December 2009 . . . Ginger Lane Markets at Old Parliament House,Canberra ACTFriday 4th December 5p.m. to 9p.m.
Hall Markets at Hall Showground,Barton Highway to Gladstone Street, Hall ACTSunday 6th December 10a.m. to 4p.m.
MOCCA Manuka Child Care Centre Fair,Manuka Circuit to Flinders Street, Manuka ACTSaturday 12th December TBA
Old Bus Depot Markets, outside stall Wentworth Avenue, Kingston ACTSunday 13th December 10a.m. to 4p.m.
Old Bus Depot Markets, outside stall Wentworth Avenue, Kingston ACTSaturday 19th December 10a.m. to 4p.m.
Old Bus Depot Markets, outside stall Wentworth Avenue, Kingston ACTSunday 20th December 10a.m. to 4p.m.
Remember at markets i sell a full range of handmade original pieces, imported fabric, Meet Me at Mike's Craft book & depending on the market style or stall size, i also bring my Dumpling Dynasty, Lark, Lady Bird vintage tin range plus Rosie Flo colouring in books. Oh & a whole lot more. EFTPOS available, your goodies are popped in super cute bags & most packaging is biodegradable or post use recylced from Green Wares Australia.
Would love to meet you at any of these events, love Posie

my life run down in a few short pictures & words

Greetings all, yes, busy as always but throw in a family reunion in Sydney, a massive Handmade market, husband endlessly interstate, a daughter singing at Floriade, another in Tournament of Minds & all the goings on of my home . . . it's a blur!! I won't even start on the P&C committments to wrap up this year, how did i end up volunteering to run the fete??
In short we have had a Learning Journey at school, my proud son . . .

A trip to Sydney & here are some of my siblings' off spring (i collectively have 19 nieces & nephews) . . . i drove the children up on the Saturday morning, nothing like watching the sun rise & having breakfast in the car cruising up the Federal Highway. The children loved it. We went straight to Retro Mummy's place to pick up fabric & see Corrie's gorgeous family, then onto my parents. The big event was at my eldest brother's place around the corner. Lots of lovely teenagers for my primary schoolers to run around with. My father bought 6 pieces of Moyou jewellery for these 3 granddaughters for Christmas. Got to love a grandfather with style. He thinks Amy, who he met at Magnolia Square, is lovely & thrilled to support her business. Go Dad!!
Gorgeous boy on the right is not a nephew, but the boyfriend of my lovely niece in the middle. He was rather taken with my silver Emma Kidson Origami Box Ring, like my husband he kept trying it on. He also loved Amy's Moyou acryllic jewellery for his sister too. Go Canberra & Wagga designers!!

My children are . . . front left The Boy in his new Seed trousers & boots from their fabulous Winter sale; front 2nd left, The Princess in a Cakewalk silk dress; front right, Miss Quirky in Fred Bare with a Moyou necklace; & middle centre in the floral Fred Bare strapy frock, The Controller. I know, labelling my children, if you knew them, it's all true.

Oh no, we hit a kangaroo on the way home from Sydney. Typical, hadn't passed a car for 90 minutes & then just as i come up behind another car, right on the ACT boarder, i flick off the high beam & i see 'hop hop hop bang'. As a good country driver i held my line & let me the bull bar on the car keep us safe. Very sorry to hit a huge Eastern Grey kangaroo, we see far too many on the road side every day to & from school. The children were asleep & it was 3C outside, brrrrr. I convinced the children the next morning it wasn't a mummy kangaroo with a joey, but they did point out that i'd killed a daddy kangaroo on Father's Day. So i'm going straight to hell. I wouldn't normally do Sydney & back in a day but we had Tournament of Minds at ANU the next day, it was fun. My daugther's team got honours & went to the state finals.

AIS Athletics for my 3 big girls (they are all regional & state level cross country runners, plus throw in the middle distance, relays & long jump) . . . my entry in this race is the tiny 7y.o. over on the left in the yellow T & track pants. Regionals only ran a 10 & under race for the 800m & she was the fastest at school (after her 2 sisters dropped out to enter different events, what sisterly love).

I tidied up the garage with my market stock & dusty red car now fits neatly again . . . it's so functional, on shelving & works beautifully, can't wait for my husband to see it & feel like he has his garage back!! We didn't quite get the blood red dusty sky which Sydney & Brisbane copped, more an orange haze, still amazing & eery. Quick tip for young players in this work from home game, if you keep your business products clear & tidy, your husband will really appreciate it. I've learnt that after 10 years of sewing & picking threads off my husband's clothes, moving tables so he can get to his tools . . .
My studio has had a complete make over too, those images to come shortly, it's a bit busy in there with new orders from All The Kings Horses SA & Little Owl ACT.
Did i mention no husband around for months plus i'm on a weight loss programme?? So all this without a piece of bread, chooclate or coca cola in my body. 10kg in 6 weeks & counting, yippee!! I was never a big person, but somehow 30kg crept onto me in the past 3 years, YES, after having babies, twins, after 4 children, i was still in shape, slim, toned . . . then i hit the age of 30 & it all went horribly wrong!! After all tests proved phsyiologically i was healthy, i took the path of many friends lately, Tony Ferguson!! I'll keep you posted. Basically carbs are evil, EVIL I TELL YOU!! It's amazing how quickly you can live without bread, rice, pasta, potatoes, if you try. I am determined & it's working!! I'm not a alcohol, tea or coffee drinker so i'm breezing along.

Handmade can have a blog all of it's own, 2 days of amazing people, sales, ideas . . . i was a stall holder, VIP bag maker & decorator for the new venue. I've also found myself doing the decorations for the Canberra Mathilda's Market too, really excited about that venture.
How do i have time to blog?? Call is school holiday relaxation, a severe storm warning outside & children with full bellies from 2 rounds of breakfast all zooming up & down the halls on wheely bugs. If only you could hear the noise, phew!! Love Posie

Posie at Magnolia Square in Sydney

Greetings, here is a little peek at how Posie looked at Magnolia & some more goodies that were purchased. Now Posie is crazy in love with Moyou, i picked up these ceramics for family & friends plus now have a fair collection of Amy Kerr's acrylic jewellery on the Posie website. While the new site is still being added too, there are lots of things to look at now. Amy will have these ceramics & i'll have all these products & more at the next Handmade Canberra's UpMarket in September. Lots of sewing time between then & now. Enjoy, love Posie

Amy Kerr's Moyou ceramics were launched at Magnolia Square, i think i bought 12!! Beautiful colours, lovely to hold & perfect for hot drinks. Amazing patterns to choose from, my children each have one for hot chocolate, loving her designs.

While my stall wasn't stylised, white or minimal, it was 'cosy' & i had a lot to offer!! My darling friend Lisa who was my Saturday helper, did a great job selling from this side of the stall. Note the Kristen Doran screen printed panels, huge success, go Kristen!!

As always, everyone loved the badges, as they are usually a best seller, for this market i put them in 3 massive bowls, making it very easy for customers to sort through & find their favourites!!

Best seller at Magnolia Square & product chosen for their favourite things display were the pretty pencil rolls. My mother used to make these for us when we were children, this is an updated version, although, they look rather fabulous in vintage fabrics, prettier than the prints from my 80's childhood?? These pencil rolls were orders from the market, shipped off to very nice customers.

I wasn't really sure if Magnolia Square customers would be the handmade crafty types, as this isn't a purely handmade in Australia market, alas, my patchwork stall offering up Fat Quarters of vintage, retro, reproduction & Japanese printed quirky fun fabrics were a huge hit!!

A great seller during the market were the breakfast cushions, i went for a bit of a Dutch look with bright colours & fun Babushka styles, all these fabrics will be on my website shortly!!

Lots of lovely things at Magnolia Square in Sydney

the giant handmade pink paper chandelier making quite the entrance

inviting reception area

a collection of 'favourite things' from each stall

Welcome to a little piece of the Magnolia Square experience. The venue looked beautiful, the stalls very pretty & stylish, super lovely stall holders to meet & chat to, including my neighbours from Yknot, Beautiful Souls, Sweet Dreams Cakes & the Kinder Gallery. All very nice to look at during the breaks between customers. It was busy during the first couple of hours of trade each day, then not so much, so i had the chance to look around & shop!! As i've been doing markets for some 3 years & sewing professionally for 10, i spent much of my time handstitching headbands & brooches, so no time wasting for me!! the sweet Kinder Gallery stand was simply adorable

meeting Yogi from Sweet Dreams Cakes was a highlight, what a talent!!
between Yogi & my stall was Emma from Yknot, up from Melbourne for the event

Lucy & Ally from Beautiful Souls had me laughing all day & night!!

Enjoy these images . . . & maybe if you didn't make Magnolia Square this time, next time you'll get there one day. I won't be returning, it was a big call for me to do a 3 day event interstate away from my family, i actually felt out of my comfort zone as after all, i do what i do as i'm a stay at home mother & being away for 4 whole days, well that's not being at home is it??

the gorgeous Sam from Little Nest had me enticed with this replica Arne Jacobsen chair, so it came home with me back to Canberra for my eldest daughter, i chose red!!

Blue Bird & Honey, sweet name & totally gorgeous vibe going on here

i didn't actually meet this lovely lady from Little Bubble & Tree, pretty stall isn't it, she looks adorable too

It was lovely to visit Sydney (my home town), saw lots of family & friends, new fabrics from Retro Mummy & home baked cookies from my mum. Oh & of course, a trip to Ikea!! I came home to a happy husband, clean home, 4 very excited children & lots of cuddles. That's more like it!! Love Posie