when appreciation and admiration are shared
Have you ever experienced a moment of intense, forehead-furrowing confusion? One that had you rooted to the spot trying to make sense of what you’re seeing?
I was standing with my beautiful friend Leonie at the front of The Mining Exchange on the first cold and crystalline morning of the Design Exchange market. As our breath mingled and fogged, my spirits were high with the potential of the day ahead. As we idled beside the grand iron gates of the Exchange waiting to be let in, a few metres away stood a lovely lady who was also gazing at the gates, waiting patiently. A lone, beautifully dressed woman… who just happened to be wearing one of my The Florist’s Daughter tops.
I blinked. I was so confused. It was all out of context. My brain created a rapid succession of possibilities to explain what I was seeing. Did someone inside sell one of my tops before we even opened? Was someone copying my designs?? Oh my god did she somehow steal it???? Surely not this friendly looking lady! How could it be that she is wearing one of my tops before the market was even open for trade?
And then it clicked. My first customer sighting in the wild! Once I figured out what I was seeing, I immediately approached her and introduced myself. She recognised me straight away (no surprise I guess seeing that my face is plastered all over my website) and I proceeded to tell her that she looked MARVELLOUS and I was so delighted to meet her. I was so very happy to see someone who looked so very happy to be wearing one of my pieces! And as it turns out, she was excited to meet me and tell me about how she loves to wear it, and how many compliments she gets when she does! Turns out she didn’t even know I was going to be at the market, so the meeting was indeed very serendipitous.
At the end of the day when I was thinking of our interaction, I realised that what I had experienced was a rare moment indeed. When have I ever, in the last 49 years, met someone who made my clothes? When have I ever had the chance to gleefully tell this person who made my treasured garment that I LOVE IT SO MUCH and then gush to them in great detail about how and when I wear it and what I style it with and the compliments I receive when I wear it? Probably never? And yet today, it happened (well, in reverse 😆). My lovely customer and I bonded and chatted, and she came to my stall and we chatted some more. And then she came back again and we chatted even more and I felt compelled to give her a big hug and say THANK YOU. It was the highlight of my day, and I may well have been the highlight of hers!
It was the connection that struck me so forcefully. Here was a garment that I had made - hours cutting and sewing, washing and drying, ironing and packing at my studio, being worn about and loved by this fabulous lady. The garment’s story started with me, and now continues with her. That top was now part of her home, her outings, her memories, and our shared history. Gosh it was lovely. And that is something that, for the most part, we totally miss out on in the increasingly homogenous and anonymous mall offerings that are churned out by far away factory production lines. Most of us will never meet the hands that made our dress or our tops, and we will likely never know their name, But for her, and for me, the connection is now there and she can look at her top and know who made it, and I see her face and know who wears it.
So now I am preparing for my next little in-person venture, where I will be accompanied by many creative hands making many beautiful things right here in the city we call home. These creative hands belong to lovely people you can talk to as you hold the items they have made. Lovely people who can tell you the inspiration behind why they make, and love the process of making enough to keep doing it themselves. Lovely people whose faces you can see, hands you can shake, and smiles you can return. Three of the makers are fellow Ethical Clothing Australia accredited brands (by Audrey and Grace, Spiritus Eco Clothing, and Magenta Threads) and we will be joined by talented lampshade makers, ceramicists, and artists in a wee pop-up gallery in High Street, Thornbury. It will be a bright and eclectic mix of human creativity and endeavour, and I can’t wait to see all of what we have created on display.
I will have The Florist’s Daughter tops and clutches available to purchase off the rack, and The Florist’s Daughter pants, and The Antique Botanist and MEMENTO collections will be available to try on and order. Come and say hello to me and my fellow local makers, I would absolutely love to meet some of you there!
EVENT:
Magenta Pop-up and Gallery
Friday 17th - Sunday 26th July 2026
10am-6pm daily
Opening drinks Friday 17th July 5pm - 7pm - all welcome
HOSTED AT:
Neon Parlour
791 High Street
Thornbury VIC
