A gray, rainy sky is never an auspicious beginning to a weekend festival in Florida. Luckily for me, and the ladies running the Retro Indie Market, the Boynton Beach Women's Club is an entirely indoor facility. The two story, 1920s building designed by Addison Mizner, is the perfect backdrop for this particular market and its focus on vintage.
Cupcake and vintage queens Amanda Linton and Michelle Parparian are fixtures -- and a combined force of nature -- in the local indie arts scene. Between them they manage the annual Stitch Rock show, the Vintage Trunk Show, FamilyVintage.com, and WithSugarOnTop.com. With their frilly, highwaisted frocks -- and Amanda's fuschia-streaked hair -- they might look a bit like the delicious cupcakes they bake, but don't let their sweet appearance fool you. They're basically the kind of cool, capable, artsy girls who can run a smooth show.
Both floors are completely packed with tables full of colorful wares and
shoppers looking to snap them up. But it doesn't have the frenetic,
overwhelming atmosphere that these events can sometimes have. Instead,
it just feels friendly. It says, "Here, eat this cupcake and have a look
around." And really, who's saying no to that?
Since I've sampled from House of Sweets before, I decided to get my
sugar rush Kate's Konfections. The Flapjack cupcake is brown butter cake
topped with maple cream icing and filled with blueberry compote with
bacon. And you know what?
Bacon really does make everything better.
Now in the frosty glaze of a sugar high, I'm drawn to this pretty pair on The Vintage Supply Company's table. They're pink, they're
shabby-chic-like, and they provide light. These are all things I need
more of in my apartment.
The Vintage Supply Company is run by Kris Lindholm and her husband Nick
Dewey. As Kris rocks sleeping baby Olive back and forth she tells me that she
had been a vintage collector for a while before she got sick of her day job as a
makeup artist.
"I had a week off and I started looking online [at what
other people were selling]. I did the math and realized, you could make a
living doing this." And so she does.
My second stop was a large table full of boxes. I could go crazy here
purchasing old patterns on the cheap and promising myself I'll use them.
Somehow, I manage to restrain myself and move along.
Finally, I allow myself to make some purchases. I paid Janie, a former clothing designer who now works for herself using reclaimed fabrics, $2 for this baby blanket. Best I can figure from extensive Google searches is that each panel is a scene from a Dutch nursery rhyme. I believe this one says, "Ride, ride, ride in the wagon." I could be completely wrong about this.
What I am continually impressed by over the course of the day is how many young women entrepreneurs there are here. The artsy girls I remember from high school have grown up to become savvy business women as well. Jassell Ranilla is slowly building her business through her Etsy shop, She's Crafting My Doom while working part time. Tiffany Battel of Pumpkin Pye Boutique had five Etsy shops going at one point and had so much business she had to close one down. She's mostly known for her smiling peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Scoff if you like, but this is her full time job. Tiffany is supporting her daughter and putting herself through college doing exactly what she loves.
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