Graphic Textures in Black, White and Grey

Sometimes you can just let the texture and design do the talking, rather than the colour. I thought these selected items from The Sydney Etsy Team illustrate the use of black, white and grey well.

All of these designs and items have been created in Sydney, by Sydney Etsy Team members.

Above, Charcoal Complexion - Handmade Cold Process Soap - All Natural Lavender and Tea Tree Essential Oils with Activated Charcoal by Innerearthsoaps

Below: Gypsy skirt or dress, tribal motif with sheer lower section - ONLY 2 available by JupiterThree




Above, The Science of Love - laser cut heart necklace with brain contours, black acrylic FREE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE by Morphologica

Below: ruffle necklace, ruffle collar. buttermilk cream. PVC. contemporary, handmade designer jewelry by frankideas on Etsy by frankideas



And above: Unisex Breakers Solid Sterling Silver Necklace by Whitelake Designs
by Whitelake Designs

post by Penelope Red

You can find all of these designers and more by taking a look at the Sydney Etsy Team Blog

Australia Day on Etsy!

Australia Day Promotion


Gum Leaves Pin Cushion by spincushions


The Australian teams on etsy have joined together for an exciting cross-team Australia Day event! Teams from all around Australia are participating- the Down Under Street Team (DUST), the Sydney Etsy Team, the MadeOnTheLeft team from Perth, the Adealaide team and the BrisStyle team from Brisbane.

Find some amazing handmade or vintage goodies, or pick up some craft supplies to make something special! Participating shops are offering a discount of between 15%-25% across their entire store between January 26th-31st (Aus time).

How to get the special Australia Day discount:

Enter the discount code ausday in the coupon code space during checkout between 26th-31st

Use the code for:

15% off these items

20% off these items

25% off these items

Support for the flood disaster

From My Heart Card donated by glasfaden

As part of the Australia Day event, we'd also like to help spread the word about the efforts on etsy to raise funds for those affected by the terrible flood disaster in Queensland.

The BrisStyle team is running a Handmade Ark Flood Appeal, with some or all proceeds from items sold to be donated to the Premier's Disaster Relief Fund. Browse items from the Ark Appeal here or find out more on the BrisStyle Blog.

The DUST team has set up a dedicated shop with all proceeds (minus etsy and PayPal fees) to be donated to the premier's flood appeal. Visit the AusDisasterRelief shop here.

(please note- the flood fundraising appeals are separate from the Australia Day discount offer)

-posted by morphologica

The Queensland Flood Disaster

Originally posted on The Australian Etsy Blog
I'm sure everyone is aware of the terrible flood disaster in Queensland. Many Australian sellers on etsy are working together to try and raise funds to help those affected by the disaster, and there are lots of ways you can help- either by donating an item, buying some cool stuff with the proceeds being donated to the flood relief fund, or by helping to spread the word about these efforts.

The Australian Etsy DUST team has established a shop taking donations from sellers all over the world, with all funds (minus etsy and PayPal fees) to be donated to the Queensland Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal (over $2500 has been raised already). There are new goodies being added all the time, but you have to be quick before someone else snaps them up because things are selling quickly! You can visit the ausdisasterrelief shop on etsy here.

Some of my favourites from the shop:
Swoon Bracelet by SavageKitten

Alien Nation Coinpurse by MsPIGGii

Visual Journal Slip Cover by iheartcharlie

The Queensland BrisStyle team has also launched a Handmade Ark Flood Appeal, where participating members are donating proceeds from their sales. You can find out info and browse the lovely things for sale via the team's blog- they have raised over $1300 already!

Picks from the Handmade Ark Appeal:


Follow Your Heart Garland by LittleMaryMoo

Banana Cupcake Soap by warmsigh

Jeffrey by WildChildDesigns

There are also other ways to donate- you can contribute directly to the Premier's Relief appeal here.

Also, the RSPCA has asked for help, as their Fairfield Shelter has been severely damaged (see below). Unfortunately the shelter can't receive disaster relief funds needed for human welfare, so they are relying on donations to rebuild the facility. If you would like to donate, please visit their website for details. All of the animals have had to go into temporary foster care because the housing and equipment has been destroyed.

- posted by morphologica

A Seller's First Experience at a Market - Giggleberry Creations

I had the opportunity to meet the lovely Amy from Giggleberry Creations at Mathilda's Market which happened on Sunday the 5th of December. It was her first market . I was curious about her experience at the Market and she very graciously has shared it with us .

Check out the adorable buntings from her shop.


How long have you been selling online ? What made you decide to sell at a market ?

Amy : I opened my Giggleberry Creations etsy shop in April 2008 and have been blessed with it's success. I decided I would give a market a go now that my brand was becoming more well known. Dong a market would always give me great feedback, a chance to talk to customers & other sellers face to face and of course I would also start to work out if my business is better online, at a market or both.


How did you choose your first market ? How far ahead did you decide that you would do Mathilda's Market ?

Amy : I have always loved shopping at markets myself so know lots of the ones around Sydney, my local area. The main points I looked for in a market were:

* one that was aimed at the demographic my products are mainly aimed at (children)

* a well known market (know by both sellers & shoppers)

* a well promoted market

* a busy/full market - I attended markets I had on a short list to see which one had the best turn out of shoppers... this is always a hit or miss as it could be busy one time and not the next though.

* One that had been recommended or highly spoken about from other sellers.

* I also thought one close to Christmas would be a good one for gift shoppers being there. Mathilda's Market ticked all the boxes. You need to apply for many markets so I suggest once you decide on one apply straight away... you may not find out if you are in or not until a few months/weeks before the market though.


What kind of preparations did you do for the market ?

Amy : I asked other market sellers how much stock I should take and the best advice I was given was "as much as you can make". I then made a deal with myself to make a certain amount of banners extra every week to put into my stock pile. In the end I took about 270 - 300 banners to the market and was happy with that amount.

* I have been selling online long enough to know what are my 'best sellers' so made plenty of them. I then had lots of variety also, girly, unisex, fun, classic, baby, teenage, themed, neutral - you name it I probably had it!

* Mathilda's market prides itself on gorgeous presentation of stalls so I had this in mind for sorting out my set up. I also needed to be able to show off my bunting hanging so had to think of a way to do that too somehow. LOTS of thinking and inspiration hunting happened while I worked it all out - a great blog post I found was this one that has great tips:

danceinmygarden.blogspot.com/2009/12/visual-merchandising-for-your-market.html

I asked many lovely people advice and they were always helpful (Always ask, ask, ask!! People are 9 times out of 10 more than willing to help) After a few practice set ups at home then a day with my sister at a market she did I felt i had the right set up for customers to browse and shop while also being visually appealing and easy to maintain for me.

* Every market is different in the application process, the rules, the supplied items etc most of this you can find out from them via websites or phone calls prior to applying. Mathilda's Market for the Lane Cove Sydney one, supplied 1 trestle table the rest of the set up is up to the seller. I was given plenty of info and guidance along the way for what I needed to do and information I needed to know etc.

* Again this would vary from market to market. My experience at Mathilda's Market was a final market day information email a few days before the actual market date with the floor plan for the day so I knew where i would need to set up. When I arrived the trestle tables were set up and ready for us - there are always plenty of people around to help answer any queries too.


What were your expectations from the Market ? How was it different from your actual experience ?

Amy : As I had never done a market before I wasn't to sure what to expect as far as sales go. I knew i would have a great chance to talk to shoppers and sellers which is always invaluable. I did think there might have been a few more shoppers than there was on the day as it was close to christmas but this is so hard to guess - it was a sticky humid day with rain predicted so that could have kept shoppers away as well as just a generally busy time of year - who knows??

I was really pleased with the whole process... if anything I wouldn't sign up to a market at the same time as moving house LOL - it made the sewing of stock tricky and I had more than a few really late nights the last few days before the market.

Any other tips or suggestions for people out there who are looking to take that first leap to do a market ?

If you are really interested and want to see if it's for you and your biz i say jump in! There is only one way to find out if it works :)


Thank you , Amy , for sharing your experience with us. We wish you the very best in your endeavors and hope to see you in many more markets !

Post by Doodlekreations

CUTE for Christmas!

Some of my favourite super cute picks from members of the Sydney Etsy Team- great gift ideas for Christmas!

Freya the feather-tailed glider by Blubies


Wool felt eco-friendly bunnies by JulieBlanchette


Hamster Hug ACEO by KarenHull


Peter's Pals PDF knitting pattern by KooklaCreations


Oscar the yellow puppy dog by MoontsyAndFloontsy

Posted by Morphologica

Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales from the Sydney Etsy Team!

This weekend (26th-29th November), you can find some great deals from the Sydney Etsy Team members listed below!

Discounts or special offers will apply to the items pictured and details will be given on the individual product pages across the sale period.

Happy shopping!

2011 Inspiration for Sydney Etsy Team Part 1

Today I am going to start the ball rolling on inspiration for next year! While I admit that this is my own inspiration for the Penelope Red Autumn 2011 Collection, I hope to include other Sydney Etsy Team member's inspirations in the following weeks.


There is nothing like seeing the real copy of a famous artwork in real life! I was lucky to visit the Belvedere Museum in Vienna, where they have the largest collection of Gustav Klimt paintings, and I truly fell in love with these amazing and inspiring artworks. My journey to Europe was starting to make me realise I had a thing for "Over The Top!"


Ever since I was in high school, I have been intrigued by the mythical and cultural aspects of Ancient History; Egypt in particular. I love their Hieroglyphics (and I still wish I could read them), I love the ancient stories, and the mystery of this foreign and ancient culture.


I will fuse the idea of Egyptian costume, with the beautiful paintings of Gustav Klimt!

Ancient Egypt has a certain mystery and regal beauty about it, and to me the two influences suit each other well.

I plan to use the colours of gold, brown, olive green, yellow, silver, purple, blue and contrast these with white, cream and black. I will include lots of beautiful textures and prints, draping, pleating, metallic trims, and the list goes on!




And of course, as I was researching Egyptian costume, I couldn't go past the costumes and styling used in Elizabeth Taylor's, "Cleopatra". They are not exactly historically accurate, but I think they are a perfect of example of how a modern interpretation of costume can be achieved.



I am really looking forward to starting this collection! I have been collecting fabrics and trims for a while now, and they are just dying to be used! It will be a fun and challenging exercise, and I can't wait to see how the designs translate in the photo shoot too!

written by Penelope Red.