Guest Post: Top 3 Clothing Stalls

Hi everyone,

This month I've decided to share my top 3 clothing stalls at the market. Everyone knows that when you're visiting the I Heart Market you need to dress up. There's no better way to keep up to date with the current trends whilst keeping to a budget than by buying your outfit from the market.

So here goes, my top 3 in no particular order are:

eb + am

Person behind the brand: Cindy Leigh Armstrong

Cindy graduated from Cape Town's Design Academy of Fashion in 2009 and returned to KZN in November 2010 to establish eb + am. Cindy is responsible for the design, fabric sourcing, cutting and PR for eb + am so she's a super busy lady.

Cindy took part in the Vodacom Fashion Challenge in 2010, was the winner of the 031 Collection in 2011 and has recently been chosen as 1 of 6 finalist to take part in the new talent platform of Renault SAFW this year.

I always love to see what Cindy comes up with, her designs are edgy but classic with a touch of romance thrown in. The fabric is always of the highest quality and the quality of the workmanship is superb.

Photography by: Gabrielle's Photography

Stockists:
Wardrobe - Ballito Lifestyle Centre
Mooi - Glenwood - 031 201 8274
Mememe - Cape Town (021 424 0001) and Johannesburg (011 447 1497)
I Heart Market - Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban

Contact Details:
Cindy Leigh Armstrong
Cell: 073 473 1813
Facebook

Jane Sews

Person behind the brand: Amy Venter

Jane Sews - Artisan Clothing may have only been established in 2011  but Amy has been designing and re-working vintage garments for as long as she can remember. Amy has a degree in Fashion from LISOF in Johannesburg.

I particularly like the playfulness and femininity of Amy's range. The fabrics and workmanship are once again of a very high quality and the designs are classic with a contemporary twist.

Stockists:

Mememe - Parkhurst, Johannesburg - Tel : 011 447 1497
MSC Boutique - Melville, Johannesburg - Tel: 011 482 3282
Mungo and Jemima - Long Street, Cape Town - Tel: 021 424 5016 / 021 683 5065
Mr. and Mrs. - Kloof Street, Cape Town - Tel: 021 424 4387
Carol Clark and Friends - Gateway, Umhlanga - Tel: 031 566 6904
I Heart Market - Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban

Contact:

Amy Venter

Cell: 071 352 1179

Email: amy@janesews.co.za

Twitter: Jane_Sews

Cinnamon

People behind the brand: Farran-Jade Beaumont and Cherazade Van Der Westhuizen

Farran-Jade and Cherazade have been friends since they were 5 years old and they both hold fashion degrees from the Style Design College. Since starting Cinnamon in 2010, they have been going from strength to strength. They still source all their fabrics and create their patterns themselves and their aim to create a brand that South Africans will know and love.

Whether you're looking for a printed tank top, a flowing blouse or a dress to wear to that upcoming wedding Cinnamon has something for everyone. In their own words, Cinnamon captures the eclectic style of the underground fashion scene. Cinnamon has a tasteful blend of vintage influences, quirky designs and rock 'n roll edge. This label is definitely for people who want to follow the trends and still stand out from the crowd.

Stockists:

Lady and the Punk - Gateway

I Heart Market - Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban

Contact:

Farran - 083 645 9601

Cherazade - 076 886 3167

Email: farran@cinnamonclothing.co.za

Website: www.cinnamonclothing.co.za

Twitter: @cinnamonvic

Facebook

That's all from me folks, thanks to the I Heart Team for asking me to guest post over the last 3 months. Have yourselves a fantastic July and I'll hopefully see you at the August market.

Kathy - Cherish Online
www.cherishonline.co.za

Wedding Treats from the Market

Hi everyone, we're Kim and Filipa and we run a daily wedding and design blog called Ruby and the Swallow. We're huge fans of anything local and anything creative, and for that we love the I Heart Market. We were thrilled when they asked us to do a guest post! Basically, we went around the market looking for stalls that would be able to add that extra special touch to your wedding day. We picked our favourite wedding trends and wedding details and set out to find stalls that could make those details come alive. In true Ruby style, we found A LOT and just couldn't cut anyone out - there's a wealth of great, unique local products to be found right at the Market. Here's what we found!

We love accessories that are different and that pack a punch. Nadia from Cupcake Couture does just this with her handmade, one-of-a-kind collection of corsages and boutonnieres. She hand-crafted these boutonnieres for a local Cape Town wedding, and she can custom make them to suit your colour theme. A recent new product Nadia has added to her product list are her keepsake necklaces. These are perfect for a bride who wants to include something borrowed, blue, old or new into their outfit. Nadia will take any old trinkets you have (old keys, grannies old brooch, scraps of fabric) and make them into beautiful necklaces or pins for you to wear. It's something unique, and a great way of using your little treasures. 

We stumbled across this gem of a store on our way out of the market and we simply loved the look of this grey dress. Its simple and the lace is right on trend. We thought it would make the perfect bridesmaids dress and would be something your bridesmaid could wear again. And at a cost of only R350, what more could you possibly want? Cindy of Eb and Am makes all these dresses, and has made bridesmaids dresses before. She will obviously consult with you and create something perfect for your liking. Get hold of her at 0734731813 or email her at ebandam@gmail.com. 

If you are only to know one thing about the wedding industry right now, know this: bunting is a HUGE trend at the moment. We simply adored the bunting available from Little Mud Hut Designs. Vanessa is right on trend with creating this wonderful hessian bunting that has a lace trim detail. You can have the bunting custom made to reflect the colours of your wedding, and you can even get your names printed on them. How divine? Little Mud Hut designs isn't just about bunting though, so do go take a look at their stall. It's packed with packaging tags, labels, magnets and gift bags. A sure win for any bride looking to be inspired. 

Cocktail hour is an important part of your wedding. Guests are restless after the ceremony and need to kill time while you go take pictures. So what do you do to occupy them? Feed them of course! The baked goods at Boutique Boulangerie literally made our mouths water. They had a great selection of tapas style tarts and pastries and artisan bread. They also had a great selection of cakes available, including a gorgeous red velvet one. Contact them to create a cocktail hour menu for your big day - we're certain you won't regret it! They also do wedding cakes, desserts and chocolates. 

Decor ideas were plentiful at the Market this last week. We adored the paper flowers made by Freshly Found. They've made these for weddings before and they can make them out of custom paper to suit your theme. They're great for including into your bridal bouquet or on your wedding tables as an extra fun element. The chalkboard hearts from Queen of Hearts are right on trend and a great addition to your big day. Use the pegs to seal favour bags closed, use the hearts to write people's names on, or use an extra big heart to write your menu on. They can custom make the chalkboards into any shape for you ,so the sky is the limit. We think they would be great as directional sign posts too! The Shabby Chic Boutique was oozing wedding prettiness and we didn't know where to start! From the wooden engraved signs to the hanging wooden hearts, your dream vintage-styled wedding can be style just from this stall. Use the ceramic hearts as gifts for your guests or bridesmaids, use the hanging wooden hearts as escort cards for your guests - love love love! Get in touch with Le Anne on 079 515 2368. 

You've spent an uber amount of money on a photographer for your big day and now Jen-Jen Designs can step in and block mount the gorgeous pictures of you into mini works of art. We've always been fans of Jen-Jen's work and we think block mounting a few of your photographs is a great way of showing them off - no icky frames, no boring albums - this is different and we love it. Jen-Jen also photographs couples and does great sequence shots (see above) which are great when mounted up as a series. 

We had so much fun finding all these stalls and we were surprised at how many of them could cater to a bride and groom. We'll always vote local above anything else, and these suppliers are all friendly, professional and pay great attention to detail. 

A big thanks to the I Heart Market crew for asking us to guest post. 

The Ruby Team 

Picture Credits 

All market pictures taken by us // Sequence shot in Wedding Portraits taken by Jen-Jen Designs  // Accessories picture found here  // Bridesmaid picture found here  // Bunting picture found here // Cocktail picture found here // Decor pictures (left to right) found here, here, here and here  // Portrait picture found here