Sleigh, What! The Finders Keepers Market Is Coming to Sydney This Weekend
- Words by Peppermint
top photo and market photos below THE FINDERS KEEPERS SYDNEY AW22 BY SAMEE LAPHAM
The Finders Keepers markets will be shining bright at The Cutaway, Barangaroo from 9–11 December, with over 150 small and mighty makers, daily drop-in workshops and delicious food and drink – all wrapped up for a ticket price of just $5!
Peppermint is proud to once again be the media sponsor for the event PLUS we’ll be popping up in person for the weekend! And we’ve really pulled out all the stops for the final market of the year…
We’re bringing along our latest issue for sale, along with a brand new and gorgeously groovy selfie wall (perfect for posing). And if that wasn’t enough, we’ll also be showing off our new Peppermint Flower Power fabric! We partnered with our friends at Spoonflower – the world’s largest marketplace of independent designs from global artists – to create and print this gorgeous design on their Petal Signature Cotton. Then, the lovely team at Fiskars came to the party and sent us their Easy-Action Pinking Shears so we could cut the fabric to the perfect size.
Now, we’re bringing all of this flower power exclusively to the Sydney markets and putting it to good use – wrapping up goodies for you!
When you visit our stall and buy a Peppermint subscription for 2023, you’ll receive a 2022 Peppermint Bundle for free – that’s issues 53 to 56 PLUS four printed sewing patterns wrapped in this reusable Spoonflower fabric – all for just $58!
A subscription is the perfect present for someone you love (or for yourself, of course!) because it’s one that gives all year. Think of each issue as a gift from us, made with love, packed with hopeful stories of people doing good in the world and filled with style, sustainability, sewing and substance.
BUY TICKETS NOW AND YOU’LL GO IN THE DRAW TO WIN ONE OF FIVE SUBSCRIPTIONS TO PEPPERMINT!
Of course, we can’t wait to tick some items of our own Chrissie lists and soak up the atmosphere of the markets. If you ask us, the best thing about buying from a small business is that you can shop mindfully – getting to know the people behind the brand, hearing their story and falling in love with their pieces. At this time of year, when it can all feel a little overwhelming, that’s a real gift too! With that in mind – and to get you excited for this special Finders – we had a chat with a couple of lovely stallholders who you can see this weekend in Sydney!
Argent Silversmith
Tell us a bit about what you make or do…
Argent Silversmith is imagined, designed and created by myself, Elizabeth, and my small team in our studio at the foothills of the Australian Alps. I draw inspiration from the metals themselves as well as the surrounding environment and the complex beauty of the gemstones – the jewellery is timeless and raw yet fine enough to wear every day. Our small, women-led team hand-makes a range of unique, made-to-order jewellery from recycled silver and gold and ethically sourced stones – Argent jewellery is about creating unique, wearable pieces with the least impact on the earth.
Why do you love The Finders Keepers?
The Finders Keepers market is always an exciting event – as a stallholder, I love meeting fellow makers and designers, making new connections and putting a face to the labels I follow. My favourite part of the event is getting to meet and chat with so many of my customers and avid Argent jewellery lovers – it’s always fun trying to spot how many of our jewellery pieces are worn by our wonderful clientele out in the world!
What can market-goers look forward to when they visit you at the Sydney market?
We will have a substantial collection at the Sydney market, including our newest birthstone and gemstone range!
We will be offering on-the-day personalisations of some of our jewellery pieces for those who want to add that extra special touch to their Christmas gifts and offering ring sizing services for those who are looking for a future piece but are unsure of their ring size.
Why is the creative community so special?
The creative community is inspiration, problem-solving, sharing knowledge and contacts, compassion and understanding – I always walk away from a market like The Finders Keepers exhausted but also inspired and acknowledged.
Amble Outdoors
Tell us a bit about what you make or do…
Hi! I’m Rhianna, the founder of Amble. We’re a sustainable, outdoors brand, creating raincoats from recycled bottles. We don’t compromise on fit or function, style or sustainability and love to encourage women to get outdoors without the pressure of performance. We make raincoats and activewear designed for the outdoors and love to see our community hiking, walking their dogs, discovering waterfalls and getting out there without feeling like they have to be super ‘outdoorsy’ to get outdoors.
Why do you love The Finders Keepers?
The magic that it is! This huge empty space is transformed into an incredible market for a few short days, and it highlights all the wonderful creatives and small business owners who pour their hearts into what they do. Everyone is always in a great mood and all the stallholders are super friendly and talented. It’s great to connect with our existing community – and meet new customers too – and chat about all things sustainability.
What can market-goers look forward to when they visit you at the Sydney market?
Being IRL again! Thanks to you-know-what, it’s been three whole years since the brand has been in Sydney. Since then we’ve rebranded from Team Timbuktu to Amble and we’ve hit the milestone of recycling 300,000 post-consumer bottles into our products. We’ll also have our artist collaboration prints on our waterproof jackets that have been incredibly popular, and perfect for the never-ending La Niña!
Why is the creative community so special?
There is so much hard work that is poured into small businesses and it’s amazing to see the creativity and originality behind everyone’s work. The community is so supportive and encouraging no matter your niche. It’s also so important to connect with other small business owners as no one else really understands how much effort goes into creating your products and running your business!
The Finders Keepers is Australia’s largest curated marketplace of makers, designers and entrepreneurs. The Finders Keepers is where communities come together to shop, explore and discover the very best from designers, makers and entrepreneurs in our country.
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“My piece of advice for makers and designers? Run your own race… make sure your key decisions stay anchored in your brand’s core beliefs.”
- Bec Bligh
Quick show of hands: who’s opened a water bottle expecting a refreshing sip… and instead been greeted by the unmistakable whiff of uh-oh?
Because for something that follows us everywhere (desk, car, hikes, yoga…), the humble drink bottle is strangely prone to becoming a science experiment. Hard-to-clean corners and gaskets. Mystery smells. Bec Bligh and her husband Tim know it well. A six-month sailing trip along the Queensland coast left them with a lifetime of memories and one stubborn annoyance: mouldy water bottles they couldn’t properly clean.
So they did something about it.
Enter @EverVessel. Thoughtfully designed borosilicate glass and stainless steel bottles that keep things beautifully simple: durable materials, wide openings, easy-to-clean parts and none of the techy gimmicks that tend to age badly. Turns out simplicity, done well, is pretty powerful stuff. (Their many design awards agree!)
And lately they’ve added a little extra delight: the Artist Series, where creatives like Paola Castro, Ben Miners and Martin Thompson transform these everyday companions into tiny travelling artworks. There are more colabs in the works, too: hydration, but make it joyful! 🎨💧
We chatted with Bec about the sailing trip that started it all, the philosophy behind Ever Vessel, and why the most sustainable product is often just the one you keep using.
Tap the link in our bio to read the full conversation. 🚰
#EverVessel #ReusableWaterBottle
Pull up a chair… there’s room at this table!
For the first time, Feast for Freedom is bringing people together for a spectacular long-table dinner as part of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
A Longer Table is exactly what it sounds like: one beautiful shared table inside the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1), piled with generous dishes inspired by this year’s hero cooks, Noha and Nige.
From 6 to 9pm on Wednesday, 25 March, this is what you can expect:
🍽 A three-course shared feast
🍷 Matched drinks
🎶 Live entertainment
✨ A room full of good humans
Your ticket doesn’t just buy you a delicious dinner. It supports the ASRC’s vital work and helps create a fairer future for people seeking asylum.
Seats are limited, and long tables have a way of filling up quickly – head to @MelbFoodAndWine’s website to book now: feastforfreedom.org.au/mfwf
#FeastForFreedom #MelbourneFoodAndWineFestival #LongTableDinner #FoodForChange
Sew versatile! 🪡
Another great make from Lisa from @SunnySewsEveryday:
My #PeppermintWaratahWrapDress is finished and I’m so proud of it. It has been designed not to flap open and flash your pants in the wind, so I feel confident it will be a great wheelchair or standing dress in English weather.
#PeppermintPatterns #WrapDress #WrapDressPattern
Frame your face with the Peppermint Bucket Hat!
Stay safe and stylish in the sun with your very own self-sewn and self-drafted wide-brimmed bucket hat. This beginner-friendly sew is perfect for a sunny day. Get out your pencils – this pattern is created using equations and maths!
This DIY project was featured in Issue 53 and now you can access it for the lovely low price of only $5.
Sun-safe chic is always in style. ☀️
Find it via the link in our bio!
Photos: @KelleySheenan
#PeppermintPatterns #PeppermintBucketHat #BucketHat #BucketHatPattern #DIY
✨ INSTANT CLASSIC ✨
The Peppermint Myrtle Shift Dress is a beginner-friendly make with a few special details based on the ever-stylish shift shape – the perfect dress you need in your wardrobe right now!
Myrtle cuts above the knee with options to customise the length. Don’t think she’s reserved for hot weather either: try a heavier-weight fabric to turn your Myrtle into a pinafore-style garment for layering.
For our fabrics we chose two from our lovely sewing partner @Karmme_Apparel – the bold Rottnest Stripes in a lightweight, soft-drape cotton, and the quality linen in the handpainted Mexico Collection.
Get making the Myrtle – the only question is, can you stop at just one?
Link in bio 🪡
Fabric: @Karmme_Apparel
Sewist: @Laura_The_Maker
Photos: @KelleySheenan
Models: @SerahSews and @Pins_And_Tonic
Location: @ShareTheDignityAustralia
#PeppermintMyrtleShiftDress #PeppermintPatterns
It’s time to Feast!
Some recipes travel a long way before they land on your table to delight your taste buds. This year’s Feast for Freedom invites us to gather our friends, cook something delectable and raise funds for the incredible work of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1) while we’re at it.
The 2026 Feast features recipes shared by two remarkable cooks: Noha, who brought the flavours of Palestine with her when she arrived in Australia, and Nige, a Sri-Lankan Tamil cook whose journey with food began in the most unexpected of places.
You can host your own Feast up until 30 April – simply register online and get planning! Host a dinner, organise a workplace lunch, or gather your community… However you do it, the idea is simple: cook, connect and celebrate the cultures and stories that shape Australia.
Want to find out more? Head to the link in bio to meet Noha and Nige, learn more about their stories, and discover a delicious recipe to try.
#FeastForFreedom #PeppermintMagazine #FoodForGood #ASRC
