a few notes on the Market Collective

Hello Again! Writing on a chilly Monday morning after the Market Collective this weekend. The Market was a great experience and a pretty great success. We had a great little table tucked in the back row against the wall. I loved our spot, because sometimes people would come around the corner, see my hats and their faces would light up with a big smile. Then they would peek down at the suitcase in front of my booth and see the Baby Bear Hat Bin:

And their smiles would get even bigger. "Awww!" they'd say, and nudge their companion to look. The Baby Bear Hats were a big success. I wish I could you show you a picture of the full booth, but for some reason my computer says the file's corrupted. In any case, Dan did such an amazing job helping me with my booth. They cut down a giant dead birch tree in our front yard about a week ago, and so we salvaged a bunch of the wood. Dan built two side poles, and we strung some wire across the top and hung a few hats. We also used a few stumps as mannequin-y heads to display the hats. You can get an idea of what it looked like here (note the Canadian bear hat!)

You'll see that we had candy cane bowls- also a huge hit. And my genius candy-loving husband's idea. And because we're on the subject, Dan has truly been a light throughout this process. He sat with me all weekend, despite wanting to go christmas shopping. He brought me hot cider and lunch both days. He told me how proud he was of me about a thousand times. Don't mean to get all sentimental- but it is the holidays, and a girl can shout her husband-ly love from her blog if she wants to. I love you Daniel!

Saturday was really busy. There were tons of people and tons of sales. Sometimes there would be a flurry of people, and then there would be long lulls. We were sitting next to two sweet girls, one selling little felt barrettes and pins, and the other selling these adorable monster pillows. They shared their snacks with us.

My favorite memory is of one little girl. She looked over the table for a very long time, with a curious happy look on her face. She had short hair, freckles, and two very new front teeth. She tried on a blue hat with fleece lining and rubbed her hands on the fur with a giant smile. I handed her the mirror, and how I wish I could have captured the look on her face when she saw herself in that hat. It was a look of pure wonder. That one look made this entire project worthwhile. It's what these silly hats are all about--moments of magic. About uncovering that little spot on our soul that believes...
Merry Christmas Everyone!

Lots of love,
Sky

...this would be our workshop.

Hello everyone. Greetings from my humble sewing room here in Calgary, Alberta. I began this blog as part of preparation for the wonderful Market Collective, which I am delighted and honored to be a part of this upcoming weekend.

When husband and I moved to Calgary in August, I knew I wouldn't be able to work. So the question of course arises: well what the heck are you going to do?

On just another day at our local Organic Market, I asked one of the girls where I could find a good loaf of bread. She told me about a lot of great things that day- and one of them was Market Collective. Of course, she was humble and did not mention that she actually founded this fantastic event, and was in fact listed as one of Calgary's Top 40 under 40. (You can read about Angela here).

In any case, it was one of those chance meetings that lifted my spirits and reminded me that there was so much awaiting me in this new city.

Bear hats have always been a little passion of mine. I've made them for many of the people I love most in this world. What can I say? they embody many of the things I hold dear in life: joy, creativity, and adventure. So, with all this time on my hands, I decided to make a go of it.

I've been sewing for almost two months straight, about four or five hats a day. I've made over 100 hats! My husband has put up with more dust a stray fur balls than anyone should ever have to. And the big market is this weekend.

I really have no idea if these hats will sell or not. I have moments when I'm convinced every single one will go. And other moments when I think- god these are ugly. No one will buy them. My guess is that I will land somewhere in the middle. My only wish is that the hats bring as much happiness to whoever they end up with, as my first little bear hat brought to me. I hope the project will somehow bring me closer to my new surroundings. That I can contribute some tiny thing.

Sometimes I think it's funny that bear hats have become this "thing" in my life. Something I can't quite put my finger on- (though I think this blog, and all these pictures together in one place begin to illustrate it) - but I do think it's those things that draw us, that press their finger on our hearts, that we are meant to follow.

Thanks for reading dear friend. And Happy Holidays to all!

...the DJ would love us. And we'd pick all the best songs.

...every hug would be a bear hug.

...we would live in a house with all of our very best friends.

...this would be our album cover.