Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Bohemian Secret

With my foray into the Ballarat market world fast approaching, it is fitting that I get to make a wonderful announcement today that is all about new beginnings. 
A new, growing business from the heart of Ballarat is joining the Sugar & Spice family as our brand new official Ballarat Market photographer. Smile!


Bohemian Secret is a family run business, lead by Sonia Macak, that is a blend of love and art. With a focus on custom made childhood and family photography, they offer sessions in both traditional darkroom (film captured images) as well as digital photography.  A Bohemian Secret specialty is their timeless black and white photography.
Not only will they be capturing all of the handmade love at our July 31 Ballarat Market, they will also be sharing some of their favourite products from their Ballarat studio. 

Pop over and visit our beautiful new friends at Bohemian Secret.... if you're like me you will be there for awhile :)

Friday, June 24, 2011

Giveaway - Naughts & Crosses


Did somebody say Giveaway......?
If one giveaway for the month of June wasn't enough for you - we are over the moon about giving you the opportunity to win some more Sugar & Spice retailer goodness.

Louise from the amazingly stylish brand, Naughts & Crosses, is giving you the chance to win one of her pretty girls dresses. You can choose ANY frock from her range and in any size. Lucky you! 

I am quite besotted by this one....
Proudly designed and made in Melbourne, Naughts & Crosses garments represent a return to yesteryear - when children dressed in stylish, age-appropriate clothing, that they were free to have fun in. Naughts & Crosses offers a range of gorgeous garments that are not only Nanna approved, but also come with the added advantage of being specifically designed to withstand the rough and tumble of the playground. It also helps that they are very, very, very, beautiful.

For a chance to have a little piece of Naughts & Crosses in your little one's wardrobe, all you have to do is head over to the Naughts & Crosses facebook page, 'like' them, maybe leave her a little love while doing so and then leave a comment here on our blog telling us that you're now a Naughts & Crosses Facebook fan. Easy! The one lucky winner will be drawn by random generator on Friday 8 July. Best of luck.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

1st Birthday wrap up

Our special 1st birthday market has been and gone and I think it is fair to say it was a success.
Happy shoppers, smiley kiddies, busy retailers and lots of fun.
Goodie bags disappeared in under an hour, $264 was raised for SIDS & Kids through our raffle (congrats to Woodend local, Fiona Makin, who won the prize package) and the coffee lady was run dry just after lunch.

Thank you to everyone who braved the cold and visited, retailed and shared in Sugar & Spice's 1st birthday. A huge thanks to our lovely sponsors for the day; Pass-the-Parcel, The Inspired Occasion, Kim Selby Photography and Peekaboo Melbourne Magazine.

What a special way to begin my market life! Thank you
A very happy Miss Spice with some of her market day purchases. 
Her new Miss Ruby May Dolly (she insisted that Ruby Dolly wore her seat belt while shopping) and beanie from Spunkee.

Friday, June 3, 2011

All things nice - Creative Chic

I thought I might give you one last chance to meet one of our 1st Birthday retailers, before this Sunday's market. Don't forget that St Ambrose Hall, Woodend will be open from 9am-1pm this Sunday for lots of gorgeous shopping, kiddy entertainment, yummy cupcakes, 100 free goodie bags and spot door prizes. Can't wait to see you all there!
A Creative Chic personalised card

Our 'All Things Nice' business for today is Creative Chic. Two lovely ladies, Sharon and Janelle who create stunning personalised keepsakes.....


Are you more sugar or spice?
J: Oooh, both.
Janelle and her lovelies

S: Definitely Sugar… I’m a chocoholic!
Sharon and her boys

What inspired you to start your own business?
Individually, we began making pieces as gifts for family and friends.  We would have a regular show ‘n’ tell and then give advice and bounce ideas off each other. Friends started asking us to make gifts more and more. We could see there was a gap in the market for quality personalised keepsakes, so decided to join together. We both had different skill sets and style that we believed would complement one another. 

How did you name your business?
We looked at our product range, what we were designing; and how we viewed those products.  They were all our own “creations” with a “shabby chic” feel to them and were all with the ideal of our items being quality “personalised keepsakes”.

What is your favourite piece from your own range?
J:  That’s tough, I ♥ all our pieces.  Perhaps the digital design element of our range – announcements, invitations etc.
S: The Baby Keepsake boxes for their uniqueness; they make a ‘special’ gift and Name tiles for something ‘a little bit different’.
Keepsake Box

Where else can we check you out? 
Best place to find us is on Facebook.

Thank you Sharon & Janelle, looking forward to seeing your creations in real life on Sunday.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

buntyandsars giveaway!

Who doesn't love free stuff???
I confess that I had a small stint during my maternity leave as a 'competition enthusiast'. 
Well this was the official job title I gave to myself.... and it gave me a free pass from Mr Sugar & Spice to spend as much time as I wanted on the laptop, as he thought I was busy with the pursuit of winning things! I had great visions of winning cars, 5 star holidays, games for the kids etc, but what I was awarded with was NOTHING, sweet bloody nothing.

So it gives me great joy today to bring you a wonderfully exciting NEW initiative from Sugar & Spice..... drum rolls please....

Our very first online giveaway!!!!! Yay
buntyandsars character 'Felix' 

Our first online giveaway is bought to you by one of our beautiful retailers - buntyandsars
Emily of buntyandsars is this ridiculously talented individual who creates gorgeous things for kids from her own individual illustrations. Interactive colouring books, pencil tins, handcrafted cards, bookmarks and brooches are all beautiful creations that come from her own personal drawing room. You can meet Emily for yourself at our upcoming Ballarat market on Sunday 31 July where she will be retailing.

Emily has bundled up some of her favourite goodies for our giveaway - the Buntyandsars Hair Clipettes Illustrated book and the Finger Monsters Illustrated book. How unique are these two little treasures? 


They allow kiddies to cut and colour their very own hair clips and finger puppets and you can have the chance to win them for yourself. Also included in the prize bundle is a pencil tin and a bundle of textas, because colouring-in is no fun without the colours! All you need to do is visit Emily's blogcheck out her gorgeous illustrated range and post a comment below on this blog entry stating what is your favourite buntyandsars product. The winner will be drawn randomly on June 30th. Good luck!!!