Posts Tagged ‘farmers market’

Market Day Recap

Monday, September 26th, 2011

 

Due to summer being INSANELY busy for me, I just got involved with Market Day  this year.  It’s only a few months late …

My first experience this year was last month. They have an amazing new venue this year — the Kirkwood hotel.  It’s bright, clean and has climate control.  And all the booths are indoors.  On carpet.  SUPER fabulous.

Last month I experimented with a new setup. I added shelving, courtesy of my roommates and their video game addiction (normally this shelf houses some of their games — yes, I said some).

 

Also, I made an epic butt-ton of zippy pouches. Shown here are a small amount of what I had or inventory that day, as well as the last of my wallets.  I’m going to be revamping my wallets for next year.  Wallets 2.0.  There will be zippers or snaps involved.  Potentially lace, flowers or rhinestones.

 

Sadly, I sold this adorable pouch.  Well, not sadly. I made a sale (this was not ALL I sold that day, thank you — I actually sold about 60-70% of what I brought that day). I love using selvege edges in my zippy pouches to keep the scrappy look going and because the concept behind the pouches is to use EVERY BIT of fabric scrap possible.

 

This month’s Market Day was a suitcase showdown (ie. they were only able to reserve the front part of the building).  I really enjoyed this idea — for one, I always use a suitcase.  Two — I didn’t have ANY time last month to make any new items, so I just brought what I had left from the previous month.  Three — I didn’t have to bring a table.  Four — it was less expensive for me.  And five — I got to network with so many more people.  We shared a booth, so there was less pressure to stay at your space the entire time as there was somebody there that could talk about your work and hopefully help sell your stuff as well as their own.

That being said, I sold ONE item — to a coworker.  It seemed like that was the general vibe of the day.  I don’t think it was due to a change in format. I think it just happens to be a slow month.  October and November will be busy, but September is kind of weird because it’s too far away from the holidays and the weather is changing and colder so not as many people were probably out at the Farmers Market (which is where a good portion of our crowd comes from).

I shared a booth with Meg, who makes fabulous needle-felted creations. Although she makes hats and other winter gear, this month she brought home decor.  I love that fox pillow. And our stuff meshed so well together!

 

There was definitely a bird theme at our table.

 

My friend Kyle, who formerly created White Boy Burritos, had a booth with these really sweet antler decorations.  This one was burnt, painted a bit on the end and clear-coated. Sooo pretty!

 

Here are more of his creations.

 

This booth had some beautiful wooden art.  I didn’t catch the vendor’s name, but I love the green piece in the center.

 

Best part of the day? As usual, the dogs.  Shown here is a long haired doxie WITH A MOHAWK. No, Barney is NOT getting this haircut.  Unless one of my roommates is drunk and has the clippers out.


 

Market Day!

Saturday, September 24th, 2011

Hey, Des Moines! Come downtown today (from 9–2) for Market Day’s special September Suitcase Showdown. Be sure to hit up the Farmers Market while you’re at it … we’re right next door. Thirty vendors with everything they can fit into suitcases or whatever they can find. Don’t miss it! See you there.

Pappardelle’s Red Onion Linguine with Lemon and Asparagus

Saturday, July 2nd, 2011

A while back we went to the Ames Farmers Market and picked up some Papperdelle’s Red Onion Linguine.

What to do with such a uniquely flavored pasta?  Modify one of our favorite recipes, of course!

We’ve made Giada’s linguine with shrimp and lemon oil many a time. I realized that the flavor I love from the arugula can be mimicked with asparagus. And with something as substantial as asparagus in the mix we could be cheap and cut out the shrimp.  Thus — linguine with asparagus and lemon oil was born (directions below modified from Giada’s original recipe).

Linguine with Asparagus and Lemon Oil

  • 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 lemon zested
  • 1 pound linguine pasta
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 shallots, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
  • 1 lemon, zested
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 lb asparagus, cut into pieces and steamed
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

For the lemon oil:

Combine the olive oil and the lemon zest in a small bowl and reserve.

For the pasta:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, in a large, heavy skillet warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the steamed asparagus and toss to coat. Add the cooked linguine, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Toss to combine.  Using a mesh sieve, strain the lemon zest out of the reserved lemon olive oil and add the oil to the pasta. The zest can be discarded. Add some of the cooking water to desired consistency. Add the chopped parsley to the pasta and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

 

early bird …

Saturday, June 4th, 2011

… gets lots of stuff done!

I got up early today since I had an appointment to take my car in for the 30K service that it needed.

Then Mark and I went to the Ames Farmers Market. We found some fabulous things at the Farmer’s Market — spring greens, granola and some english muffin bread (which Mark promptly turned into homemade egg mcmuffins).  But most of all — Pappardelle Pasta. They have so many different kinds and awesome flavors. I even let Mark get some that wasn’t whole wheat. We got the Sweet Red Onion Linguine and the Tomato Cracked Pepper Pappardelle. We’re planning on doing Linguine with Shrimp and Lemon Oil for dinner tonight with the red onion linguine.

Then the bank to cash in my change from my giant Jack Daniels tin — $30 — mostly pennies.

Then groceries.

Then I baked some EPIC brownies, which gave me an excuse to use my giant spring blossom pyrex cinderella bowls.  I used the recipe my mom used since I was a little kid (which apparently is still popular with Hershey’s). Please note that Paula Deen would definitely approve of the butter usage in these brownies.


And I’m going running. A decent distance. Yet to be determined, but between 9–10 miles. It’s supposed to thunderstorm, but I’m throwing my iPod in a ziplock and going anyway — especially after making those diabetes-inducing brownies. So there, weather.  Hit me with your best shot.

Sunday Brunch: Farmers Market and Market Day Finds

Sunday, July 4th, 2010

Last weekend, I was at Market Day from 9 AM-2 PM selling my wares. Mark took some of his undergrad students that he’s mentoring down to Des Moines for the Farmers Market and for Market Day. He picked up some fabulous delicious breads.

He got me a cinnamon roll, which I decided to save for Sunday AM.  But, for some reason, it was unfrosted. This was blasphemy.

Never fear!

I managed to obtain some frosting shots from my friend Darby as she was getting rid of what she had left for the day (she sells amazing cupcakes and delicious frosting). I had 4 different flavors — lavender, cream cheese, lemonade and some kind of spice. All of which are delicious.  But the clear winner was the cream cheese frosting with the cinnamon roll.

cinnamonroll

I wish I knew where Mark had gotten the cinnamon roll … either way, it was a good breakfast. :)

PS: since I almost forgot — Happy Independence Day!!

Wonder-Bred Italian Boy Cooks: Grilled Steak and Blue Cheese Sammies on Garlic Focaccia

Saturday, July 3rd, 2010

After Mark’s trek to the Des Moines Farmers Market last week, he came up with an amazingly awesome idea for dinner. He’d picked up a batch of garlic focaccia bread (and I wish I knew where he bought it from, because I’d love to credit them — not to mention, get MORE). I had some steak in the fridge from grilling a few nights previous. Thus, his idea was born.

Grilled Steak and Blue Cheese Sammies on Garlic Focaccia Bread

1 large chuck steak, grilled to taste (I like medium rare), sliced thin
1 loaf garlic focaccia bread, sliced into 4 quarters, then sliced lengthwise for sandwiches
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T butter
1 avacado
1/2 c blue cheese crumbles
baby leaf lettuce
steak sauce or hot sauce

Heat a small skillet over medium. Butter and spread garlic on the bread. Toast bread until brown and crispy. Repeat with all slices. Set aside. To assemble sandwiches, place steak, avacado, blue cheese, lettuce and choice of sauce on the sandwich. Serve warm. Makes 4 sandwiches.

Sorry I’m a terrible recipe-writer, but that’s pretty much what we did. :) It was amazing. Check out the photos. They’re totally drool-worthy.

bread
Focaccia, pre-grilling

toasting_bread
Mark grilling the bread

marks_bread
Of course, Mark added more garlic to his bread after toasting.

mark_sandwiches
Sandwiches, almost ready to go — sans lettuce

calee_bigsammich

And the finished product … almost too big for me to eat.

Market Day Recap!

Sunday, May 30th, 2010

Hey all!

Yesterday was the first Market Day of the season and there were a lot of changes from last year’s event — all of which I thought were great changes.

First off, the event was in a new venue. This venue had much better lighting, better ventilation and was all in all a better fit for the event.  They also had music playing and an announcer to start and end the event.  The booth sizes were a lot smaller than last year, which allowed more vendors.  This was a problem for some vendors, but I’ve got a tiny setup, so I was okay. I let the neighboring vendors have a bit of my space.

I had a moving sale in an attempt to downsize the amount of dishes that I had to move to my new place.  It went pretty well.  My hottest selling item was the fabric greeting cards. I’m going to be making a bunch more of those for the next go-round on June 26.

All in all, the event was a success, and I met a lot of new people.

My one purchase (well, aside from the mandatory sweet tart frosted cupcake) was a lovely hair pin from Bean and the Sprout. I’ve been drooling over these for a while, so I finally bucked up and bought a piece from her.

flowerpin

Here’s me sporting my new purchase. In the background is my lovely butterflies in wonderland quilt, which I’ve finally decided to keep for myself unless somebody wants to buy it for $300 or more. It’s currently hanging on the wall in my bedroom.

meinbooth

Here’s me with my wares. I strategically placed my moving sale in my suitcase … ;)

dishes

A closeup of my dishes. I wasn’t selling the bowl with the flowers on it in the background. I decided to use my extra set of pyrex spring blossom mixing bowls as displays for my camera cases and greeting cards.

booth

And my booth. :)   Most of it is now in the hands of hopefully happy people.

Market Day on Saturday!

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Hey all!

It’s that magical time again. That’s right. MARKET DAY!

Larger2010WebPoster

If y’all don’t know what Market Day is by now, you should probably get out from under that rock you’ve been hiding under.

Market Day is a casual monthly market for art, vintage, found items, homemade and handmade goods. Artists are encouraged to look beyond what they traditionally retail and bring a fun and inexpensive mix of items. Think arts festival meets bohemian garage sale. It is always free-to-attend. Six of the seven dates overlap with the nearby Des Moines Downtown Farmers’ Market. It’s is a seasonal event and runs the last Saturday of every month, May through October. We also have a special Black Friday sale the day after Thanksgiving.  Market Day is brought to you by make/break.

So basically, lots of cool people peddling pretty things.

It’s from 9 AM–2 PM this Saturday in a warehouse off of MLK. Here’s a map.

I’m going to be selling a lot of things and offering all of my pieces from 2009 at an INSANELY low price.  I’m having a trunk sale. Everything in the trunk must go. I’m also moving this week, so anything I don’t have to move, I’d be glad to offer at a fabulously low price.

In the meantime, enjoy this video of Cat Rocketship, one of the make/break peeps, chatting with me about Market Day.  For up-to-date info about Market Day, follow them on twitter.

For a preview of what I’m selling, check my etsy or my flickr. I sell things on etsy at a higher price than what I sell at Market Day, so for better deals and steals, hit up Market Day next Saturday!


Market Day!

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009
I’ll be participating in a craft/art/thrift bazaar next Saturday. I’ll be selling my ceramics, some vintage and handmade clothing, and some craft supplies. I know it’s a Saturday…and it’s kinda early (for some of you folks), but I’d love to see some peeps at the show.  

Here are the details:

Market Day launches May 30
Farmer’s market die-hards and thrift-conscious art lovers are invited to a new kind of market debuting May 30.Market Street Media Foundry is hosting a casual, monthly bazaar for art, vintage, found items and handmade goods. Dubbed “Market Day” artists and vendors are encouraged to look beyond what they traditionally retail and bring a fun and inexpensive mix of items.

There will be dozens of artists and craftsters selling their wares in addition to thrift furniture items from Racoon Forks Trading Company and Mike Kinter.

Like a farmer’s market, patrons are encouraged to bring cash and shopping bags, though some individual vendors may accept credit cards and provide bags and packaging for larger items.

Market Day is the last Saturday of every month May 30 through September 26 with special dates in October and November. It will run from 9am-2pm. Market Day is located in the 120 year old Market Building at 118 SE 4th Street.

For more info, go to www.marketstreetmediafoundry.com.