2 week countdown

We are all very excited over here at Northside Makers, the March Market is going to be the biggest yet!

And we have a special treat for you all ... in addition to the children's craft table, face painters and fabulous crafters we also have a musician to entertain visitors and stallholders alike.

So help to make this one the best yet, please email this pamphlet to family and friends and make sure that we cover Melbourne in Northside Makers Market posters.

Email northsidemakers [at] gmail dot com if you would like a marketing pack sent out to you (A3, A4 and A6 pamphlets) to help spread the word.....

Screenprinting Workshop

Northside Makers are thrilled to offer members our first workshop opportunity doing screenprinting at Olive Grove!

Classes are run by the director of Olive Grove Studio, Roze Elizabeth. She teaches at RMIT's Fashion & Textiles school and recently conducted a workshop for Marysville residents as part of 'The Colour of Hope' project.

Roze offers monthly workshops at Olive Grove Studio teaching the basics of screenprinting. The workshops are ideal for both absolute beginners and those who've screenprinted before but want to polish up their skills.

Photo from Olive Grove Studio

Mark your calender and be sure to keep the day free on Sunday 14th March as Roze is running a screenprinting workshop exclusively for Northside Makers members. We are offering places to members at discounted prices. So come learn, work and play with other Northside Makers (and save a few dollars too)!

The details:

Screenprinting Workshop at Olive Grove Studios
159 Sydney Road Brunswick
Sunday 14th March
11pm-3pm
$85 for Northside Makers members* (usual cost $105)
$75 for Northside Makers members that hold a concession card (usual cost $95)

There are only six spots in the workshop and at this price they will go fast.

So if you would like to participate shoot us an email at northsidemakers@gmail.com and we'll send you the payment details. Payment can be made via Paypal or bank deposit and must be made before Wednesday 3rd March to secure your spot.
Allocation is first come best dressed.

Hope to see you there!

*Discounts apply to existing Northside Makers members only. Non members are welcome to come but full price applies.

Craft & Cider Tonight!

Don't forget tonight is Northside Makers' Craft & Cider evening!

Cider quilt by Retta Warehime

Hope to see you at:

Northcote Social Club
Wednesday 24th February
7:30pm 'til we start yawning

Bring a craft project, cider money and gossip!

Craft & Cider evening

It's an even-numbered month which means were due for a Craft & Cider evening!

Cider quilt by Retta Warehime

All and sundry are welcome to join the Northside Makers at:

Northcote Social Club
Wednesday 24th February
7:30pm 'til we start yawning

Bring a craft project, cider money and gossip!

March applications are still open... but not for long!

Have you been thinking about trying your first ever market stall?

Taken a break over Christmas and are ready to get back in the swing of things for 2010?

Northside Makers Market still has a smidgen of spots available for our next market on Saturday 13th March. But you'd better get your application in quick - we'll be allocating the last places in the next couple of days!

Applying is simple and 100% online - just click here to get started.

An important note - if you've been accepted for one of our markets before and had to pull out, please complete the application form again so we don't forget about you! Our memories have a finite capacity.

February Market: First Photos

We're too weary to write about today's lovely market, but here's 86 photos.



You can add photos to our Flickr pool here. We'd love to see your visuals of the day!

Did you attend the February Northside Makers Market?

Did you come along and enjoy the festivities of the day?



If so, we would LOVE your opinions.



It is important to Northside Makers to practice continuous improvement, so please click along to our Visitors Survey and give us your feedback.

Have YOU Seen This Ad?

Do you live in Alphington, Fairfield, Clifton Hill, Northcote or Thornbury? Run to your letterbox and check out page 3 of this week's Northcote Leader paper!

That's our ad, waiting to be seen by 28,000 locals!

If you live a little further away you can still check out our ad by visiting the Leader Community ePaper site, clicking on the tiny little map of Northcote and checking out page three. Ain't the internet grand!

Saturday's forecast is for early showers and 26 degrees. Here's hoping BOM restore the word 'sunny' in our forecast...

See you on Saturday for our next Northside Makers Market...

After a hearty break over Christmas and the new year, all our crafters are bursting at the seems to come back for the next Northside Makers market this Saturday.
Well rested and full of fresh new ideas, this one's set to be even bigger and better than our last one. We're glad to have many of your favorite stallholders back for the February market, as well as welcoming a lot of new faces and quite a few first time stallholders. It will be a real treat for the eyes.

Check out all the fabulous stallholders that will be displaying oodles of handmade wonder at our February market 2010. (in alphabetical order):

Ada Henna Body Art
Alannah Banana Designs
Amanda O'Donnell

Buttonlicious
Cathie Crocker
Cherry Stew
Daniela Carvacho

Ena Designs
Finki Handmade
Flickettysplits
Giant Shoots
Holden Street Neighborhood House
Jenny Balzan
Jo Woodberry
Kate Symmons
Konstant Kaos
Lalahiprism
Lauren Williams
Little Cooties
Little Ray
Mecino
Melbourne Epicure
Mrs Beckinsale
Olive Grove
Passions Dreams
Pepperberry & Co
Pivotal Xpressions
Polly Pratt
Rabbit and the Duck
Rebound Books
Ros Chambers
Ruby and Sam Shoes
Susan Cusinato
Sylvia Segon
Stitch in Time
Teddybears Wednesday
Two Cheese Please
Two Bits Patches

* Not every one has a blog or web to link to, so you'll just have to come see them on the day!

Once again we'll have free balloons, and craft table activities for the kids, as well as badge making and a face painter from 10:30 - 2:30. So head on down to:

Northside Makers Market this Saturday 6th Feb
9.30am - 2.30 pm
251 High St, Northcote

Come and support all the amazing handmade craft your local community has to offer.

See yah there!

Meet the Crafters: Two Cheese Please

One of the many crafters making their Northside Makers Market debut this Saturday is Holly from Two Cheese Please. Hola Holly!

Tell us about what you sell ...
I suffer from craft ADD so I tend to make a lot of things! When I first started my wee crafty 'business' I was just trying to sell whatever I had fun making, but I think that worked out to be too broad a range, so I've narrowed it down to custom plushies, hand-carved stamps, and my felt/needlefelt range of toys, jewellery, and needlefelt sculptures.


What's your favourite medium to work in?
I love felt and fabric! And polar fleece which is kind of like a softer, stretchier felt. I started off using felt as a medium because it's so forgiving and you don't need seam allowances, which is great for a beginner. I've since moved on from store bought pre-made acrylic felt to hand dyed 100% wool felt and of course, my new love, needle felting! Oh and of course how can you forget the carving rubber for my stamps!

What would you be lost without ....
I'd be lost without my kitchen paper which I use for drafting patterns, tracing, and pattern templates. I'm also a big fan of my rotary cutter and quilting ruler - I have a neat little set-up on a kitchen cutting board with my cutting mat to fit and my rotary cutter - great for cutting fabric while watching TV on the couch!


What do you like to listen to when you craft?
I have a rather ecclectic range of music but for crafting I prefer softer music with a good upbeat beat and a nice melody. I love too many artists to possibly name!

Your proudest crafty moment?
Definitely attending the Stitches & Craft Show last year. I hadn't done any markets before and so it was completely nerve-wracking. I was filled with self-doubt but it was one of the best experiences I've had since starting my craft journey, so I'm so glad I could take part!


Are you working on something new for this market?
I'm madly working away on some needle felted jewellery, which I hope to have finished in time for the February Northside Makers Market! I'm a big fan of treating yourself to something new and pretty to wear, and I think needle felted rings and earrings (and maybe a few necklaces) will be something interesting and different.

Where else can people shop for your goodies?
I have an etsy store people can visit at twocheeseplease.etsy.com but since a lot of my work is custom/commission, a better idea is to pop over to my flickr portfolio and check out the sort of work I have done before (and could do for you!).