Bluestone House™: April 2014

Vintage Marketplace 2014
by Deborah Warner April 24 - 30, 2014

The vintage sisters are back this year with their 2nd Annual Vintage Marketplace. Sisters–in–law Andreana Hudson and Lauren Erickson are local residents who seek to make the vintage lifestyle readily accessible to all Hamiltonians. Andreana says, “Our 2013 show exceeded all measurable expectations. We estimated 500–900 shoppers and ended up welcoming over 2,500!” With the feedback they received from vendors and customers alike, the decision to hold a second marketplace was a no–brainer. “We knew within the first 2 hours of our 2013 show, that we had a 2014 show. There was a line–up at the door when the show opened, and, shortly after, [we had] vendors approaching us to hold their place for the following year. It was an extremely energizing and humbling experience, to see it unfold that way.”

For these two ladies, the beauty of the vintage life is not just a hobby but is a passion. Lauren Erickson opened her own women’s clothing store, La Bichette, in June of last year soon after launching the first Vintage Marketplace. La Bichette is located on James Street North and sells modern women’s fashion but includes “a small capsule of vintage and retro clothing.” In her everyday life, Lauren makes sure that she is surrounded by vintage items that keep her inspired. “For the home, tea cups and silver trays to hold my cosmetics and beauty products; in my office, old fabric–covered books and brass owl bookends; in my purse, monogrammed mirror compact and an old cigarette tin to hold business cards; in my wardrobe, lots and lots of midi dresses.”

This year The Vintage Marketplace will see the return of many of last year’s vendors as well as over 35 new vendors. One of their new vendors is the Bluestone Cottage Inc. which is owned and operated by Pamela Stiles. Bluestone Cottage, named after her dogs Blue and Stone, is her furniture company that is all about ‘Do it Yourself’ projects. “The furniture I sell [is] usually vintage pieces that nobody wanted and I make them French Country Beautiful.” Her pieces include antique mirrors, rocking chairs, side tables etc. She also sells home décor including her own line of paint called Bluestone Cottage Silky Patina Furniture Paint.

Before Bluestone, Pamela worked in the fashion industry for over 20 years. “I was not an ace student so the thought of returning to school after graduating high school made me queasy! But once I went into this creative field (fashion), I excelled.” She started at Cardinal Newman High School then went on to Sheridan College and ended up at The Paris Fashion Institute so it’s no wonder where her love of the French country look comes from! After creating and managing her own line in Stoney Creek for years, Pamela went on to work for Reebok in Boston in athletic apparel. “I returned to Canada and accepted the position as Women’s, Children’s and Accessories Designer & Product Manager for Reebok Canada.” In 2002 Pamela and her husband built their home. That is when her passion for DIY sparked. “[It was] a project that was so addictive to me [that] I wanted to sell and do it again. My well–grounded hubby said ‘if you love it so much and you are so good at it, why not do it for other people?’ He’s my biggest fan. So began a life of DIY.” Pamela helps others who share her passion and want to improve their own furniture pieces by holding workshops. “It’s all hands–on so everyone leaves with the piece that they created themselves.”

Pamela sells her pieces online and through trade shows however, her Bluestone Cottage Silky Patina Paint will be available at Branch retail and design studio on King Street West starting this month. But as of right now she doesn’t have her own shop so shows such as The Vintage Marketplace are right up her alley. “If you want to buy a piece that has been beautifully painted into a French Country statement for that perfect spot in your home — I have it. If you want to do it yourself — I can teach you. If you know what you want and just need some exceptional products to get you there — I have that too!”

With the success last year’s success, the organizers made the decision to move to a new venue. “With [the] Careport Centre being right off of the 403, it was the perfect fit. Cost to produce the show, cost to our vendors and cost to our shoppers was also a factor. Finally, [the] Careport Centre offers complimentary parking, which can be a deciding factor for some shoppers,” says Andreana.

Alicia’s Infinity (aliciasinfinity.com) is one of the many returning vendors to The Vintage Marketplace. After earning her Bachelor of Applied Arts in Illustration from Sheridan College, local artist Alicia Bint started her own business designing and selling her works. She started with illustrations and now includes her custom made jewellery. Being a married woman herself, Alicia really enjoys using her talent to make your wedding day as lovely and as beautiful as possible. “My main focus in my business right now is weddings though. My ideal workload in the future would be creating an illustrated wedding stationery and one–of–a–kind jewellery for brides and bridesmaids, etc. That way my two favorite aspects of my work are combined into one occasion, and I love weddings!” You only have to look under the Weddings tab on her website to see her beautifully handcrafted wedding invitations and stationary. From garden flowers to feathers, each original pattern gives off a vintage vibe. You feel that these were the types of invitations that would be found in mailboxes and fawned over by ladies in the early 1900’s. Instead of modern looking stationary which can still be attractive, there is always something delicate and refined about our grandmother’s time. “I'm inspired by everything that surrounds me, including nature, people, all of the antiques that fill my old house, pop culture including fashion magazines and all of the beautiful blogs and websites I frequent. I couldn't narrow it down to one thing! I just like to create new things in general so between my jewelry and illustration something is always in my mind.” Alicia is quite happy to have customers from a wide age range. “I tend to sell my jewellery to women of all ages; I have 20 year old and 60 year old ladies looking at the same pieces! The same goes with my artwork, which is great. I think my work in general is a perfect mix of trendy and timeless, if that's possible. I do really just make things that I love, as that's how I create my best work and hope that other people love it too.”

This year’s marketplace will be adding the delicious Rapscallion Restaurant to their food vendors along with 4 vintage cars. With the popularity of the vintage lifestyle and savvy shoppers demand for one–of–a–kind pieces, The Vintage Marketplace may well become a staple of the Hamilton shopping scene. V

The Vintage Marketplace takes place this Saturday April 25 and Sunday April 26 at Careport Centre, 270 Longwood Road South. Click on thevintagemarketplace.ca