pop goes the woodlands….

And the lovely Woodlands Market is now OFFICIALLY EVERY LAST MONDAY EVENING OF THE MONTH! That means there will be one this coming monday the 27th May! With an awesome selection of designers selling awesome products, from art to fashion to jewellery to interiors to plants to food to all kinds of bits and bobs, this is a market that you don’t want to miss out on! Keep up to date and in the know by liking the Woodlands Market facbook page!

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To get you in the mood here are a few of the brands and designers who will be selling their wares this monday…

Windowsill, Bow Peep, Lindsay Boucher, Roxanne Amos, Lauren FowlerPostcard HappinessJill TrapplerNinon Shoes and Handmade by Me of course : ) plus there are still more confirming as I type…

And don’t forget the lovely Will of Willy’s Food will be in the kitchen making his famous prego rolls and willy poppers or something just as amazing sounding…and Lauren Gange-Harris of Flavour-Its will take care of your dessert with her delicious cupcakes… so you can safely assume monday night dinner is sorted!

Here are some pics from the last market courtesy of Leila Badsha of Bow Peep : ) Thanks Leila!

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You are also very welcome to order ahead any products from the handmade by me online shop and collect from the market on Monday at no extra charge, that way you can pay online by credit card or eft, have your item/s wrapped, and make sure you don’t miss out on any stock! Please just let me know if you will be collecting there.

I look forward to seeing you on Monday!

win win…

A few months ago I received an email from a family who were looking to adopt a child from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Because adoption is such an expensive process they were looking to raise the appropriate funds by having a big giveaway on their blog, Outnumbered and living to tell about it. With the thought that last year there were 147 million children living without parents and only an estimated 25,000 adoptions in mind, I immediately offered to help by supplying them with a tea towel for their giveaway. Apparently I wasn’t the only one, as they managed to get so many products, that they have been able to have 2 completely separate giveaways.

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Today I heard that they have a referral and will be adopting a little 4 year old girl to be their new daughter. I am so delighted to hear this and timing couldn’t be better as the 2nd giveaway (including a handmade by me tea towel) is up for grabs as of today! You can help support their adoption too by entering the giveaway here, a donation of $5 equals one entry and it really is so easy to do! If you can’t help financially maybe you can share the link with your friends and families. The winner will be chosen randomly on May 27th… Winner takes all!

Here is what is up for grabs…please click on this link to enter the competition, and see the actual giveaway post on their blog, as well as all the live links to all their lovely sponsors

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http://craftadoption.blogspot.com/2013/05/fundraiser-giveaway.html

Now available at…Veldt Deli in Glasgow!

Yay handmade by me is now available in Glasgow, Scotland!!! I am super delighted about this as Veldt Deli is the gorgeous creation by an old friend of mine who is South African and her Scottish husband. Veldt Deli is Glasgow’s only Scottish/South African fusion deli where they make their own home-made Boerewors, Biltong and have daily bakery specials such as Koeksisters, Malva Pudding, Melktart and Peppermint Fridge Tart. From what I’ve seen so far it looks unbelievably welcoming and delicious and I can’t wait to visit for myself and try one of their red espressos made with homegrown Rooibos tea with a side of milk tart and possibly a koeksister : )

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There they are in the window : ) They opened their doors last week and after only 4 days they had this amazing write up in the Herald Scotland. If you’re still not convinced (are u kidding me??) then check out these gorgeous photos below…this should get your mouth watering and make you want to book yourself on the next flight out!

You can keep up to date with all kinds of specials on their facebook page and their new website will be up and running soon.

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House and Leisure Night Market

I just want to give all my Joburg peeps a heads up that all kinds of delicious and delightful Handmade by Me products will be available to buy at the first House and Leisure Night Market in Kramerville this Thursday! Our super awesome stockist Room Online will be selling a lovely selection of our products, including our new tote bags and purses, along with a huge array of other gorgeous designer goods.

“When it comes to optimising your night market shopping experience, House and Leisure has specially selected some of South Africa’s foremost designers, makers and artisans to showcase and sell their creations. From fashion to homeware, you’ll be able to find gorgeous offerings from top-quality vendors.”

Please do one of these in Cape Town House and Leisure!!

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In anticipation of the event this is what House and Leisure had to say about Room Online:

“When it comes to craft and design, too often the fruits of the independent designer’s creativity remain hidden away in tiny studios and backrooms, where few can appreciate or acquire these precious gems. This is especially true in South Africa, where independent designers typically don’t have the budget or resources to market their goods on a large scale.

Room Online hopes to change all that. We’re the first of our kind: an online platform whose primary mission is to showcase South Africa’s wealth of local design and decor talent. As the founders, we’re passionate about all things South African. Because of this, we’ve trawled the length and breadth of our vibrant country to be bring you the very best in design and decor. We’ve created an online retail space where you can browse and buy beautiful things for your home, all of which have been locally-inspired, locally-designed and locally-produced.”

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All in good taste…

If you read the lovely Good Taste magazine you may have seen a small feature on me and Handmade by Me in the “Latest Looks” section which features “all the newest decor and design trends” yay I couldn’t be more delighted! and they featured my favourite Fly Away Birds cushion cover : )

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Here is a closeup of my Fly Away Birds Cushion Cover…

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This design is also available in tea towels, napkins, aprons, bags, purses, wallpaper and lampshades. Visit the handmade by me online shop or email me for more details : )

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Handmade by Me is flooring it…

Floor vinyls for everyone! House and Leisure have listed floor vinyls as no 2 in their “top 26 flooring finishes”. This is what they had to say…”Today’s vinyl is slick, highly durable, easily maintained and installed, cost-effective, and can mimic anything from travertine, quartz and stone to real wood, porcelain and slate.” I can design you your own custom floor finish if you’d like, or pick one of my current designs like my Square Style in Pink as featured in the House and Leisure article below. Email me at sera@handmadebyme.co.za for a quote.

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And here’s a closeup of my Square Style in Pink Design…also available in fabric and wallpaper.

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Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

Handmade by Me, Decorex and the CCDI…

As most of you know handmade by me made it to the Cape Town Decorex this year as a part of the CCDI Collective Store. The expo ended yesterday and I was lucky enough to go and have a mooch around last Thursday. Here are some photos of (mostly handmade by me goodies) on display alongside the 40 something designers that were all chosen to be featured. Please excuse the shoddy iphone picture quality!!

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While I’m at it, I would really like to introduce you to the Cape Craft & Design Institute (CCDI) and tell you a little more about what they do. And if you are a crafter, or a designer who makes products and lives in the western cape, this is for you!

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The Cape Craft & Design Institute (CCDI) was set up in 2001 to promote and grow craft as an economic sector in the Western Cape province of South Africa. A not-for-profit company, the CCDI is a joint initiative of the Provincial Government of the Western Cape and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. The CCDI has also been adopted by the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) as a model craft hub, to serve as a template for the establishment of similar craft institutes in other provinces of South Africa.

The CCDI supports craft producers and helps to network all players in the product-to-market chain. This includes craft producers and designer-makers, retailers, marketing agents, exporters and service providers such as designers, product developers, skills trainers, business development practitioners and mentors. Government and other funders form a vital part of this collaboration, to build relationships across sectors.

For more details check out their website www.ccdi.org.za

And lastly….don’t forget its the lovely Woodlands Market on tonight from 6pm!! I have lots of lovely aprons and tea towels if you’re looking for any last-minute mother’s day gifts! Its a perfect day for it, I hope to see some of you there : )

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all aboard the week ahead…

And speaking of going to market, we have a great line-up of events happening over the next week! Magpie Motel‘s Durban pop up shop, Cape Town’s Decorex 2014, The Doilie Market in Durbanville, and our favourite, The Woodlands Market in Vredehoek! And what with Mother’s Day round the corner, there is no better time than now to do some last minute gift purchasing!

Kicking it all off from Wednesday 24th to Friday 26th, is the first Magpie Motel pop up shop held in Durban. Most of you may remember the awesome goodies on sale at their hilton venue, well now you can get all that and more, and a little closer to home…well for all the Durban folks anyways!

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Then very importantly we have Cape Town’s Decorex 2014, South Africa’s finest décor, design and lifestyle expo! It’s on at the CTICC and starts on Thursday 25th and runs until Sunday the 28th. I won’t be there personally but you can find a wide variety of handmade by me goodies on display at the CCDI collective stand. I am very much looking forward to being on the other side of the “table” for a change…

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Then Saturday we are going to be doing our first Doilie Market at Poplars, D’Aria Winery in Durbanville. They seem to have got it right with cover in case it rains, heaters in case its cold and a huge play area to keep your kids entertained! And of course lots and lots of awesome things to buy! Its meant to be a beautiful day so we’re really looking forward to giving this a go…we hope you will pop in and say hi if you’re in the area: )

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And finally on Monday 29th we will be back at our favourite Woodlands Market. I love this market, and its not because of the pizzas or the wine, but because you’re guaranteed to have a good time…and possibly indulge in a little retail therapy while you’re at it : )

Woodlands Blank dateAnd if you can’t make any of these, then you can always find something for Mother’s Day at the handmade by me online shop! I highly recommend the cup o tea chef apron which is guaranteed to brighten any tea lovers day : )

this little piggy went to market…

Most of you get to see handmade by me’s online presence every day, but some of you might not know that we are also avid marketers, always looking for the next great place to be selling our wares! We have been trying out a few different markets over the summer and so I thought I’d share some of the pics which have only really featured on our facebook page…till now : ) Hopefully this will convince you to come say hi at the next one which will be… The Doilie Market at Poplars, D’Aria Winery Durbanville, on the 27th April.

The Treasury Market

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The Doilie Market

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The Market at Val de Vie

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Magpie Motel Popup Shop

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The Lock Stock Market

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Tjing Tjing Market

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Design Indaba Expo

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For any information about which market we will be at next, check out our facebook page, or email me : )

Origami style…

Look what I spotted in yesterday’s Rapport‘s my styl section : ) My blue origami birds cushion cover : ) Its seems origami is all the rage these days, check out these lovely origami inspired decor items, I just LOVE the beautiful paper strelitzia by freshlyfound!

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And if you love this design, here are some other lovely blue origami products…

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…all available in blue and white OR black and white….from the handmade by me online shop and other lovely stockists : )