Anyone in the market for original and handcrafted wares should make their way to Perth Upmarket's mini upmarket on Sunday, August 9. August's event runs as part of the University of Western Australia's 2015 Open Day and is set to feature the work of over 45 designers. The mini upmarket pieces together a handpicked selection of artists, stylists, craftspeople and gourmets under the one roof, a sampler of the original event. Perth Upmarket is promoted by UWA as the city's premier quarterly market for original and handcrafted wares. You can see a selection of the retailers here. How to get there: Parking and entry is free. The venue is easily accessible with plenty of parking available on or near the UWA campus. Parking is generally free on Sundays in the pink car park zones, but paid parking is also available in the purple zones. Make sure you check the signage! P1 will fill up quickly, but the other car parks are only a 5 - 10 minute walk through the university campus. The market is located at Winthrop Hall, at the front of the university on Stirling Highway. Look out for the big clock tower! Here's a handy link showing you how to make your way to UWA via car and bus! The event runs from 10am to 4pm. Photos courtesy of the University of Western Australia's Facebook event and the Perth Upmarket website.
Welcome to Cents of Discovery, a blog dedicated to the joy of thrift shopping in Australia. Why start a blog about thrifting? More than simply a show-and-tell (although there'll be plenty of that!), I want to highlight some of my favourite off-the-beaten-path spots, give you handy how-tos and finally... I want to inspire you to re-think the very idea of thrifting. How'd we get to this point? Last year, I swore off retail shopping for the foreseeable future. (More about that soon). So here I am - 10 months in. My style is now very much my own. I don't feel the social pressure to keep up with the latest trends. Rather, I'm relishing the chance to develop an individual style. With trends seeming so regulatory and curated nowadays, it's fun to be eclectic. My style will never look like something from the latest David Jones catalogue, but I don't want it to. I don't want to have to beeline for a rack of the same blouse everyone else is wearing. See, I can now gravitate to what I personally like - not what the big names are telling me I should. Shopping secondhand allows you to save money and look your best. And don't forget the ultra rewarding, coy smile when people ask you where you bought your latest look. Now don't get me wrong. Thrift shopping isn't easy. It takes time, dedication and patience. Because a lot of what's on offer will be old, tattered and even dated. The rewarding part is hunting for those gems (and I promise they're there) of items which are quality, still have their new tags, are made of good materials and things you can reinvent as your own. Somehow I always manage to find something stylish on the $1 clearance rack. All of these savings add up, freeing up my disposable income for things I value, like travel and coffee with friends. Now 'just having a quick look' has become one of my favourite things to do. I go every weekend or so. Over the past year, my wardrobe has steadily expanded, instead of me struggling to afford one new piece. Thrifting is not only great for your purse, but it's good for the environment (these clothes get a second chance instead of heading for landfill), charities (no matter where you are) take in much-needed money, and I finally have enough clothes to experiment with having an actual style. For me, it's a win-win-win situation :D And who doesn't love treasure hunting? All in all, I hope this blog inspires you to give thrift shopping a try if you haven't already. And if you haven't been in awhile, I hope to reignite your passion for thrifting - hit up your local op shop this weekend. Thank you for stopping by. If you have a hot tip on a store I need to check out, want your thrifty style to be featured, or simply want to say hello, I'd love to hear from you. Drop me a comment or email me at centsofdiscovery@gmail.com. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the updates as they start rolling out this week. Happy hunting everyone! Lauren xoxo
