A delightful day

Walking into the Hawthorn Town Hall last Sunday, it was instantly clear that we Mathilda’s Market Melbourne shoppers were in for a real treat. The venue provided welcome shelter from the morning’s horrid weather. As we entered, adorning the entrance were paper decorations by KatyJane Designs. They were a cheery sight and nice diversion from the relentless drizzle and bleak grey skies. (Loved the big Christmas tree made out of KatyJane’s Chrissy card range!) But the rain didn’t keep the smiles from the faces of shoppers, who eagerly lined up before 9am waiting for the doors to open. We warmed up with a coffee from the van outside and were enticed by the scrumptious cupcakes from The Cake Collective. (Oh, by the way, the photos in this blog entry were snapped on the day by the very clever team at Tea & Jam Photography).

It was the biggest Mathilda’s Market in Melbourne ever, with over 80 retailers with gorgeously presented stalls taking part. Once inside, shoppers were welcomed by a host of stalls in the foyer area. It was impossible not to stop there and drool over the clothing designs from Knuffle Kid (LOVED those summery girls shorts!), the bright wall decals from the folks at Wallallure and the stunning quilts and mobiles from Made By Mosey – but there were two more big rooms just bursting with beautiful things, so onwards we soldiered, shopping bags at the ready!

There were so many highlights, and it almost feels unfair to single out stallholders, but THIS blogger just adored the beautiful hand-drawn coin purses from Pocket Carnival ... 

And I could have taken home just about every Japanese inspired doll made by the Little House of Kokeshi …

Also loved the artworks by Sweet William, and the exquisitely crafted bed linen and accessories (like these nappy change mats and burp cloths) from Smallish.

I silently applauded the eco wear range from Mudd Kids, and Thula Thula’s whole collection (especially the girl’s sun suit!) …. Phew, let me just take a breath! Oh, what else … Little Bubble and Tree’s sun wise kiddie kaftans were popular and with good reason, and I loved the philosophy behind Eco Toys. I snapped up a fabulous art print from Printspace for a friend for Christmas, and enjoyed chatting to Nieta from Nietz, who had travelled all the way from Alice Springs to sell her wares at Mathilda’s. Given she’d made such an effort, it would have been remiss of me NOT to buy one of her beautiful baby tees. (Mother’s Group Kris Kringle gift for little Katie taken care of, thank you!) Also stopped to admire the colourful and environmentally friendly cloth nappies, wipes and other accessories from MiniLaLa, as pictured here. 

It’s a tough call to pick favourites, but I just LOVED Billie & Frankie’s exquisite organic dresses (their website is coming!) As soon as I saw Jo Dellow’s stall from a distance, I made a beeline for it and was never going to leave without one of her frocks! And Bug and Pop’s brilliant clothing range really stood out for me, especially their cute-as-a-button denim capris with robot trim (I know they're really for boys, but my little girl will look so cute in them) and great little skirts. Oh, and on the interior decorating front, I marvelled over the high originality and appeal of Adorning Al’s beautiful wall mirrors, especially the owl. The atmosphere at Mathilda’s was buzzing and happy, and it was so blissful to step into the room adjacent to the larger hall to hear the calming music emanating from the Baby Love Music Fun quarters ... especially when Melanie Maslin, opera singer and the businesses’ creator happened to break into glorious song! I thoroughly enjoyed my Mathilda’s Market experience, and simply can’t wait till it’s back again next year.

Peta x

Mathilda's Market blogger