Bing Goes To Market!

When I heard that a brand new, weekly indoor market was coming to town, I decided to dust off a lifelong dream of being a vendor in a market, and signed up for a booth. My mission? To introduce the Glamping concept to my little corner of Vancouver Island.

Next thing I knew, Bing had been invited to make a guest appearance outside the venue on the Sidney Saturday Market opening day. The town crier was there, along with crowds of local folks who couldn't wait to check out the market. Bing was a hit, I sold some wares, and everybody had a whole lot of fun. 

The only calamity was that I wasn't able to get a picture of Bing in all her decorated cuteness parked out on main street in front of the market!! But here's a photo of her little backside, taken by Matt B Photoraphy: 

Here's me at my booth (note my copies of the Glamping books in the background!): 

What am I selling? Well, all sorts of wares, some vintage, some handmade, perfect for any glamper. And a gorgeous selection of vintage dresses! I lucked out and got the room with a very fifties black and white checkered floor and a giant window. The room used to be a beauty school, and is still equipped with mirrored tables that the market organizer fashioned into a change room for me so that people can try on my dresses. 

Here's my corner of the market. Practically a proper boudoir, wouldn't you say? See my lovely sister reflected in the mirror? She came along and helped me BIG TIME! Thanks again, Liz!)

Vintage dresses.

I repainted this folding table with Cottage Paint by Linda Lock. Here's her website: www.cottagepaint.com.

Similar to Annie Sloan's Chalk Paints, Lock's products make for quick restoration projects with beautiful results. (I'll post some before and after photos of some of my projects in another blog entry!)

A French stencil is always a good idea, if you ask me. I added a touch of gold on the crown to give the table a hint of sparkle. Although I would have loved it for myself, this little table sold on the first day.

Some Laura Ashley and Adrienne Vittadini pillowcase sets, all freshly laundered, starched and pressed. No wrinkled, musty linens at my booth, thank you!

The beautifully woven orange apron was hand loomed in Quebec. Stunning!

Here's a glamping chandelier and lampshade upcycled from brass shade frames I found in a salvage shop and covered with fabric scraps. They were fun projects, and I love them. The chandelier is fitted with a pendant light kit that plugs into a wall outlet.

Although I've displayed the white and red one as a lampshade, it could also be fashioned into a pendant light or glamping "chandelier" by adding some LED lights on the inside.

I put the beauty school props to use modeling my hats. The one below I crocheted with household twine embellished with a lovely silk scarf around the wide brim.

See anything you like? A birdhouse washcloth, maybe? Or perhaps a glamping cutlery set for two complete with vintage linen napkins and stainless cutlery in a lovely rose pattern, contained within a caddy fashioned from a fabric covered tin can?

The best part of market Opening Day was sharing Bing with hundreds of folks who were fascinated and charmed by the whole idea of Glamping. It's a new concept around these parts, but I think I converted several folks to our ranks on this day.

This Saturday marks Week Three, and already, exciting things are afoot for me. Stay tuned!